The World Surf League is set to begin it’s 2023 Championship Tour season on the North Shore of O’ahu for the Billabong Pro Pipeline next week. The event’s window officially opens on Sunday. Several surfers of the WSL, along with other pro surfers, took time out of their preparation to spend time with the next generation in Waikiki this week.
Hawaii’s Seth Moniz & Brazilian Olympics Gold Medalist, Italo Ferreira, were two of the headline names that spent time with the boys and girls for The Surf for the Soul event organized by Kids Hurt Too Hawaii, The Andy Irons Foundation, and Billabong. Each surfer was paired with a youngster for an unforgettable surf lesson.
Kids Hurt Too Hawai’i is a non-profit organization that provides support and mentoring to children and their caregivers who are grieving the death of a family member, and/or traumatized by child abuse, neglect, or domestic violence. They also welcome children impacted by parent separations, incarcerations, or living in out-of-home placements. Moniz was more willing to spend a day away from the rigors of training to give back on the same break he grew up on.
“Sharing waves with the next generation is awesome and I grew up right here on the beach. Same things, my happiest days were when my uncles, or the people I looked up to you, the professionals, took me out under their wing and taught me a thing or two about the ocean. So now it’s, you know, it’s kind of my time to pay it back. I’m here in my home break. I grew up here right on this beach. So anything for the kids”
