Shouts of delight rang out across Richardson Ocean Park on Friday as 26 children with autism learned to surf.
Hilo was the last stop on the 2017 tour of Surfers Healing, a nonprofit organization that conducts surfing camps for children with autism and other developmental disabilities. Professional surfers travel around the world to help autistic children and their families connect with each other.
Kalani Kahalioumi, leader of the Hilo chapter of Surfers Healing, said the founder of Surfers Healing, Israel Paskowitz, discovered that his autistic son’s demeanor changed for the better when he joined Paskowitz on his board.
“When you’re out there, you get this special feeling when you catch a wave,” Kahalioumi said. “So Surfers Healing tries to give these kids that feeling.”
The camps seem to work. Hilo father Rob Evans said his son, Robbie, becomes visibly more comfortable riding a board.
“He has such a sense of accomplishment when he gets off his board,” said Evans of Robbie, who has attended three Surfers Healing camps so far. “We usually don’t see that, he’s fairly monotone.”
At Richardson, children rode boards with the close assistance of several professional surfers, who steered the boards and kept the kids on them. Other volunteers, including several firefighters, watched from the shore to ensure the participants’ safety.
Pito Rodriguez, a professional surfer from Puerto Rico, said most children he sees are scared of the water at first. Thus, the surfers’ job is to make the children feel comfortable as quickly as possible.
“When they come out of the water, they start talking,” Rodriguez said. “I’ve come up to parents to tell them what their kids said and they’ll say ‘but he’s nonverbal!’ It brings out the best of kids.”
Another surfer, Hilo native Ikaika Kalama, has worked with Surfers Healing for seven years, traveling around the world from Mexico and California to Australia and New Zealand.
“It’s good to bring kids out of their comfort zone,” Kalama said.
Ben Farmer, a 12-year-old surfer, traveled around the world with Surfers Healing this year alongside his father, Ocean Farmer.
“It makes you and the kids feel good,” the younger Farmer said. “It gives them an opportunity a lot of kids never have.”
Kalama said the value of the program comes from fostering a sense of comfortability between not just children and the ocean, but between each other.
The results of the camp, Kahalioumi said, were “sore cheeks.”
“I love watching the kids get excited, watching their parent see them doing something different,” Kahalioumi said. “We help bring people together so we can share their burdens.”
Hilo mother Megan Mant said her son, Max, strongly resisted entering the water at first.
“All he wants to ever do is swim, but the waves scared him,” Mant said.
But thanks to the encouragement of the surfers who “wouldn’t let him quit,” Max began feeling comfortable on a board. And, after three years of attending Surfers Healing, Mant said it helped her feel comfortable, too.
“I didn’t really want to talk about having an autistic son,” Mant admitted. “It’s not an easy subject. But, having a support group like this, where everyone’s so friendly and accepting … it helps.”
Kahalioumi agreed, saying that some families are afraid to bring their children to events such as Surfers Healing out of fear or a sense of shame, even though the program is just as therapeutic for parents as it is for their children.
“It’s a big deal for kids, but I do this mostly for the families,” Rodriguez said. “They’re the heroes, not us. We’re just surfers.”
Email Michael Brestovansky at mbrestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.