Page 21 - MidWeek - Nov 24, 2021

Making The Ocean ‘Acces’-sible To All
FROM PAGE 16
wai‘i Adaptive Surf Team program in 2015. For the past six years, the team’s 20-25 members have com- peted all over the world, medaling at events like the Hale‘iwa Internation- al Open, USA National Surf Com- petition, and the International Surf Association Adaptive World Cham- pionships. Coming up, a team of 12 will head to California to compete in the 2021 ISA World Para Surf- ing Championship. AccesSurf was also instrumental in launching the Hawai‘i Adaptive Surfing Champi- onships, an international tournament that hosts upward of 80 athletes from around the world.
there is a path, there is sup- port,” Short says. “If adaptive surfing is a sport that someone is interested in pursuing, we can help them gain skills, and have coaching, leadership and mentorship.”
NOVEMBER 24, 2021 MIDWEEK 21
When AccesSurf started 15 years ago, Ann Yoshida (pictured above with executive director Cara Short) was one of its first participants/volunteers. Since then, she’s acquired numerous accolades on competitive watersport circuits — including being inducted in to the 2018 Hawai‘i Waterman Hall of Fame — and also earned degrees in speech pathology and rehab counseling, and a Ph.D. in occupational therapy. Looking back, it’s all set her up
for success in her current role as AccesSurf’s director of training and innovation.
“Society still has that notion that because you’re in a wheelchair, you can’t, and I think I’ve shown that you can,” says the 2016 sprint kayak Paralympian.
Currently, she’s working on enhancing the nonprofit’s programs and services, including its AccessBuddy pro- gram, a one-on-one initiative that pairs participants with a volunteer to schedule outings on their own time.
“There’s a lot of people still currently friends with their buddies, and they go into the water,” explains Yoshida. “We’re trying to provide quality services in the islands that can be replicated across the world.”
Part of that includes Yoshida’s work in creating online training manuals for AccesSurf’s volunteer base and staff to better serve their participants. Best of all, these how-to guides will be accessible to everyone with access to the internet — find them online at accessurf-training.org.
Basically, AccesSurf gives Yoshida an avenue to invest in others.
“Giving back, that’s what joy is in life,” she says. “I didn’t do all that alone. There is a huge community behind me.” It’s natural for this Mililani girl to want to give back, it’s
just in her nature, so even as a staffer with AccesSurf, Yoshida still volunteers on her days off at community events and takes the time to encourage others.
“It’s great to be inspired,” adds Yoshida. “But it’s time for motivation, for people to do something.”
Want to take that first step? Find out how to volunteer and donate online at accessurf.org.
In her 13 years with Acces-
Surf, Short has seen tremen-
dous change in the nonprofit that’s grown so close to her heart. The shift from volun-
teer to program coordinator
in 2012 and then to executive director in 2014 proved to
be challenging for Short, but being part of an organization
like AccesSurf has her feeling for- tunate.
“We want people to know that
still serve our members.”
To keep its community engaged
“I’m so blessed to be able to have this be my job,” she says. “The ex- perience of being the executive di- rector has been an honor, and I’ve learned a lot. It certainly makes me proud to be part of this community.
during the pandemic, AccesSurf started hosting virtual events, like online exercise programs and class- es to keep people in shape, as well as Talk Story Tuesdays, which incorpo- rates interviews with adaptive water athletes from around the world. A big part of these online endeavors is AccesSurf training and innovation lead Ann Yoshida (see accompany- ing story on this page), who created the Fitness For All program that fo- cuses on adaptable workouts.
AccesSurf makes water and ocean activities, including paddling, available to everyone.
PHOTO COURTESY 2SHRUGS, ACCESSURF
“Running a nonprofit at the best of times can be stressful, but in the last year-and-a-half, it has been a challenge. I’ ve been impressed with our community and organization and how we were able to adjust and
“They’re all centered around wa- ter activities, like paddling, surfing or swimming,” explains Yoshida, a 2016 Paralympian. “I work with people and give them ideas of how to adapt each workout.”
(Above and top) Volunteers and participants enjoy a day at the beach Nov. 6 for AccesSurf Hawai‘i’s 15th anniversary celebration at Kualoa Regional Park.
PHOTOS COURTESY 2SHRUGS, ACCESSURF
For more information, visit accessurf.org.
A full list of online events can be fount at accessurf.org/weekly-virtu- al-meetings.
AccesSurf and its staff of six are bolstered by a volunteer base of nearly 1,000 — including its board, leadership committees, coaches, lifeguards, therapists and more — and the community at large whose members have been supportive in giving of time and money to the grassroots nonprofit.
“The key to our success is our volunteer support,” adds Short. “They’ve made AccesSurf possible.”