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Answering the call of surf and savior
Fellowship of Christian Athletes teaches kids how to ride ocean waves, give thanks to God
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FCA Surfing Camp in Ocean City Video
Video by Dale Gerhard
OCEAN CITY - The swimsuits were zipped, the boards were waxed and the surf was inviting. But before the students at Friday's surf camp plunged into the chilly Atlantic waters, they stopped to gather in a makeshift circle on the dunes.
"The Weather Channel said there was going to be thunderstorms," head instructor Joe Matera said, "but that didn't happen, did it? ... Look how it turned out. I trust God more."
"Check the percentages," a young student helpfully added.
It was the final day of the weeklong Fellowship of Christian Athletes, or FCA, Beginners Surf Camp at the 57th Street beach - and the instructors were overflowing with praise for how much the students have improved.
"For a lot of you, this is your first time ever surfing," instructor Jake Breitinger said. "You've progressed so much, I'm really proud. You're moving, getting the down-the-line waves, watching out for each other ... Imagine how much that pleases God."
Matera then recited the Competitor's Creed of the FCA - "I am a Christian first and last," he began. "I am a competitor now and forever. My sweat is an offering to my master. My soreness is a sacrifice to my savior." - before sending the kids out to roam the beach looking for three pieces of trash to remove, something Matera said he hopes becomes a presurfing habit.
Following a few warnings about the rougher waters - and smaller waves - the 16 students in the camp's afternoon class, about an equal mix of boys and girls between 9 and 14 years old, grabbed their boards and headed in - noses pointing upward, Breitinger reminded them.
"A lot of (them) are standing up and riding all the way in," a proud Matera said. "On Monday, most kids needed help just getting out into the water. They needed to be assisted and pushed, and they'd just tumble back into the water. Now, they're paddling out to the lineup, turning their boards around and catching a wave by paddling."
A former staff member with the group Christian Surfers, Matera helped found Watermen for Christ in the late 1980s before leaving to join the FCA.
"I only came to the FCA out of obedience to God," he said. "They didn't have any sports I liked! ... But then they told me, 'Since you came on the staff, we've been getting all these surfing calls.' It's almost like God gave surfing back to me as a reward."
Since he began the weeklong camps last summer, he said, the response has been so positive that some families scheduled their vacations based on the camp's schedule.
"We've been doing it for two years now," said Scott Fife, of Doylestown, Pa., whose daughters Chelsea, 13, and Rachel, 11, were out catching waves. "It's not just riding, they're learning how to take care of the environment - and a little religious instruction can't hurt in this day and age."
For her part, Chelsea said she didn't know anything about how to surf before last year. Since then, she said, the camp has taught her two things.
"The first thing is not to be afraid of the waves," she said, "and the second is to let God help you ride them."
Some students liked the camp so much that they wouldn't leave. Literally.
"We call him the surf camp stalker," Middle Township resident Robin Blum-Tomasello joked about her son, Evan. "He was done at 10 (a.m.), and he's been here hanging out with the groups all day. I don't even know these people."
Evan, she said, "loves the water, but would never go to camp. He wouldn't play games, he wouldn't socialize - and here he is!"
Surfing is so addictive, Blum-Tomasello said, that the night before Evan had talked her into throwing his surfboard and wetsuit in the car, driving to Stone Harbor and catching some evening waves.
So while the waters may have been rough and the coastline may have been enshrouded in fog, it was enough to inspire Matera to poetic words.
"Look at where we get to do this," Matera said, waving his arm to take in everything in front of him. "This beautiful beach. God created this as a gift, the water and the sand and the air we breathe."
The scene inspired Blum-Tomasello, too - but in a more down-to-earth way.
"There's nothing that clears your head better than going out in the water," she said, watching her son head back into the surf one more time. "It's like therapy."
E-mail Steven Lemongello:
Posted in Cape_may on Sunday, June 28, 2009 3:10 am Updated: 7:52 am.
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