Free Wetsuit for Jalen

A few weeks ago I was searching for a cheap wetsuit for Jalen who I started taking surfing with me. Searching Craigslist I saw an ad offering 6 free wetsuits and a free surfboard to the winner of an essay contest. At first I thought it was novel, but then I thought I might actually have a shot of getting a wetsuit for Jalen, so I wrote:

"First off, I would just like to say thank you for putting this add on craigslist. In a world of selfishness and greed you offer a bit of hope…

I love going surfing, not just because catching waves is fun, nor because of the exercise you receive, nor because of the beauty of the surroundings, but because of the whole experience.

Usually it goes something like this:

• Get up at some ungodly hour
• crawl out of bed and into car
• Get out of the car at the beach
• Begin to freeze because of the fog and frigid wind
• Now that you are frozen, take off all your clothes
• Put on a cold wetsuit that is still wet from the previous days’ surf
• Get into ice cold water
• Pee on yourself just to keep from becoming hypothermic

Oh, but I forgot to mention that somewhere in the process you met some of your close friends and get to spend time together bonding over all these things, challenging each other to improve your abilities, congratulating one another when a new move is pulled off, sympathizing with another when you pearl, go over the falls, or get pounded in a close-out. The friendships that are formed and maintained around surfing are what I enjoy most about it.

This is why I am asking you today to consider my friend Jalen for a wetsuit and a pair of booties. Here is a bit of his story:

His mother became pregnant with him when she was only 18 years old. After her child was only 2 weeks old, the father was caught in the crossfire of a drive by shooting and was killed. Growing up without a father and a working mother was tough on him. He always prayed for a dad, but only had a grandpa and lots of autnies, until his mother was reunited with a man from high school. When Jalen was 9 years old they were married and he had that dad he had always prayed for. Unfortunately, though, his new dad is in also the Air Force and has to move around a lot and be gone from the family.

A few weeks ago Jalen found a surfboard in a trash pile next to his house… He was stoked! It’s a beat up 6″4″, but it floats and he spent the next week cleaning and waxing it up. I took him out last week and he had a blast. We were able to spend the day together and enjoy the waves and each others company. He was able to borrow a wetsuit that was a size small that didn’t quite fit him. He wants to keep surfing every week, but with the water being as cold as it is… He needs a new suit."

And... drumroll...

I WON!

The guy who started the whole thing is pretty cool and he created a website with all the entrants and winners:

www.surfboardcontest.com/