Fundraiser this weekend to benefit children with special needs
Best Day events focus on teaching kids how to surf, boogie board
By Michael Sullivan 02/25/2010
“Wow! A blind person surfing!” says 12-year-old Seneca, a student at Cabrillo Middle School in Ventura, recalling the Best Day adventure at South Jetty last October. Seneca, who is blind in her right eye, never imagined a day when she or any of her visually impaired friends would get the chance to catch a wave. While she only boogie-boarded that day, it was an experience of a lifetime.
“I think a lot of people there thought that they would never be able to do that,” she says. “They thought it was so one of the funnest things they did. I plan on going next year and the year after that and the year after that.”
Seneca, who has undergone six surgeries to remove recurring brain tumors since she was 1 year old, was one of 56 physically challenged children from Ventura and Santa Barbara counties who participated in the Best Day weekend, held on Oct. 3 and 4 of 2009. Best Day Foundation, a nonprofit organization, was established two years ago specifically to help children with autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy, blindness, cancer, spinal cord injuries and various other physical and mental challenges to participate in various sports that otherwise they would not be able to do.
Based on the same philosophy as that of Santa Cruz-based Ride a Wave Foundation, Best Day founders Max Montgomery and Brooks Lambert started chapters around the country — first in New Jersey in 2008, then in Ventura in 2009, and now the most recent chapter in Los Angeles, which will hold its inaugural event this year.
Chipper Bro Bell, longtime Patagonia employee and owner of nationally-recognized Surfclass, which offers classes for children with special needs, sits as the co-chairman of the Ventura chapter of Best Day. He says his experience working at last year’s event was an enlightening one.
“You know, it’s cool,” Bell said. “All the training we have done for our risk-management course has never prepared me and never came close to my experience working as a volunteer. I have learned from the students — it’s a very warm fulfilled feeling. Relationships have been made, and I’m a better person at the end of the day, taking part in changing the lives of these children.”
Although Best Day in the last couple of years has only been an annual event, Montgomery is hoping to ramp up Best Day events to several times a year.
“We are planning on four to six events this year, with the hopes of eight to 10 events a year at the end of four years,” he said.
Because the program is volunteer-driven, more people are needed in order to carry out the lofty goal of increasing Best Day fourfold over the next year. But volunteers aren’t the only necessary element — money is an important piece of the puzzle. This weekend, the Best Day Foundation will be throwing a special fundraiser with the hopes of raising $10,000 to purchase essential equipment to best serve children with special needs, including tandem boards, helmets and life vests. Screenings of the movie “Jack Johnson, En Concert,” surf films “On A Rail Europe” and “Ripple Effect” will be featured at the event. There will also be a silent auction and special musical guest.
Monte Crofts, Best Day volunteer and benefit sponsor, is looking forward to this year’s Best Day events.
“It’s pretty special when you help the kids out there on the board and see it as an exciting time for them,” he said. “A couple of kids had their thumbs up and were really excited about it. It is pretty inspiring.”
The Best Day Benefit will be held at the Elks Lodge at 11 S. Ash St., on Saturday, Feb. 27 from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. Tickets can be purchased in advance at brownpapertickets.com for $9.99, or by calling (800) 309-2815, ext. 10, or $12 at the door. To sign up your child for future Best Day events or to become a volunteer, go to bestdayfoundation.org.
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