In 2018 Brett Morey, founder of Surfers Unite Rotarian Fellowship and past president of the Rotary Club of La Jolla Golden Triangle joined a group of friends on the Degree 33 Surfboards team to catch 100 waves each in a single day. The group raises funds and awareness for Boys to Men Mentoring. Boys to Men is a 501(c)3 located in Spring Valley that provides mentorship and accountability to at-risk teenage boys growing up without a positive male role model. The statistics and results support the vast need for this fabulous organization as kids who get into gangs, drugs and make bad choices not only get into the Juvenile System but repeat a cycle of bad choices as adults unless others step in to turn their lives around. Boys to Men is "turning the tide" with weekly in-school meetings in over 33 local San Diego schools and has volunteers and staff helping teenage boys stay in school, improve their grades, graduate on time, pursue a career or university studies and most importantly learn self-worth.
You can get your club involved in any number of ways:
- Volunteer as a Mentor
- Recommend a student to the Boys to Men program
- Volunteer to be a food runner as teams are raising funds for Boys to Men over the next few months and will need items dropped off from Pannikin (coffee and danish) and sandwiches from Board & Brew which are sponsoring events through November
- You can join the team at Cardiff Reef October 8th or assist with an event at local beaches including those in the South Bay
- Man the Surfers Unite Rotarian Fellowship tent and recruit others to the family of Rotary
- You can also help sponsor a child in the program or make a donation to Boys to Men Mentoring Foundation
"Youth Service is a significant aspect of any thriving Rotary Club" says Morey, former Youth Chair of D5340. "When you meet Alumni of Boys to Men and hear their story you learn how their lives were changed because others stepped in to simply listen, share their journey and encourage them to be a better version of who they are today. Together as Rotarians, we can make a difference in the lives of young men and when I grind out 100 waves on October 8th after surfing for almost 7 hours I know we've done our part to build a better future. I am truly humbled by the support I've received over the years from countless Rotarians including Past District Governors and our current District Governor Chuck Pretto." Each year a number of Rotarians and Rotaractors through District 5340 have been involved including Big Kahuna Vince Ponce of the Rotary Club of Carlsbad Hi-Noon, Lifetime Member Ken Barrett of the Rotary Club of Del Mar Solana Beach, Derren Lechuga of San Diego Coastal and Rodger Doughtery of Club 33 just to name a few. Rodger has taken on the 100 Wave Challenge for 13 years straight years including paddling out solo on the East coast on more than one occasion...now that's dedication! Be sure to "Carve for the Cause" and send a text with the word "100Wave" to 858-602-2532 or click this link to get started.
Photo: Last year's Degree 33 Surfboards team raised over $86K thanks to many members of Surfers Unite and the generosity of Rotarians like you.