Cheers to the 317

The Bergmans left Los Angeles, California around the 1960s during the riots when my Grandpa’s job moved him to Indiana. My mom still remembers the day the drove through the city to get to the airport with people rioting in the streets. and banging on the car.

When they came to Indy, they set up their lives in a cute little neighborhood. My grandparents lived here until my mom was in college and then my grandpa’s job transferred him once more to the East coast, but my mum stayed because she fell in love with my dad.

Now, here we are, two generations later, almost 60 years later, taking the family line back to the West Coast. While I may not hold the Bergman name, the Bergman blood runs through my veins and the Pacific has been calling my name for ages.

Abby and I are so excited that we moved to San Francisco in January 2022!

Anyone who knows me knows I’ve dreamed of this for quite a long time and I am truly so excited for this next adventure!

At the end of 2021, my time at Water for Good came to a close and as 2022 begins, I started a new role as the Development Manager for an epic organization called City Surf Project! CSP works as an alternative physical education credit for Bay Area youth to bring them out of the classroom and to the beach! Their programs allow students to oftentimes experience the beach for the first time, learn how to surf and the ripple effect that standing up on a board for the first time brings. They learn about environmentalism, confidence, blue mind, and so much more. I am truly honored to be a part of this amazing organization.

Many people have asked, “Just how did you get involved with this organization? How did you get this job? How did it all happen?”

Well, there’s a short version and a long version. The short version is, well, a wee bit boring, and it’s been a while since I’ve actually written. So here’s the long version, because it’s just a wee bit better…

Let’s go back in time, shall we?

Growing up, I loved skateboarding and rollerblading, and being in the water. It was my happy place. When summers rolled around, I begged and pleaded to be outdoors and in the water. It was just what made me feel most alive.

I don’t think I really learned about surfing until junior high. Instantly I was enthralled with it! I found magazines and subscribed and couldn’t wait for them to arrive every month. I remember asking my parents for Surfer and Surfing Magazine subscriptions for presents. I remember borrowing as many books about surfing from the library as I could, delving into the history of where it started (major debate about that by way. Some say, Ireland, others say Hawaii). There was something so indescribable about what I was looking at on the pages; the joy, intensity, and peace in the eyes of those who were dropping into 100-foot waves. The history of how it all started, the movements that began, the environmental impact (both positive and negative), and more. It was, well, an escape at times. The pages and stories would transport me in the winters from freezing cold Indiana to warm sunny, Indonesia. Beautiful beaches, beautiful people, beautiful waves.

Every time I looked at those pages, I wanted to just blink and transport myself to that beach with the knowledge of how to ride a wave like that.

The more that I look back on it, I think my infatuation with surfing contributed to my desire to study Environmental Sustainability. There are tons of organizations, like SurfRider, who have built a brand and movement of surfers spearheading ocean conservation, beach clean-ups, recycling, environmentalism, and more.

There was even a summer when I almost went to Indonesia to intern with a surfing organization. We were emailing back and forth and the guys at the organization were helping answer questions so my parents weren’t totally freaked out at the possibility. In the end, it was much too expensive to actually happen, but it sure was a nice dream for a bit.

All throughout college, I continued to read surfing magazines, studying the surfers, the breaks, the destinations. I would have surf videos on while I studied (those soundtracks were amazing!) and of course, I followed tons of surfers on social media to stay up to date. Even if I living in Indiana, I wanted to know what was happening at Pipe all the way to Indo. That’s how much it called to me.

It wasn’t until my junior year, when I was doing humanitarian work, that I finally got a chance to actually surf. We were in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, and our hosts were surfers. They took us out to a calm break, and by calm, I mean almost stagnant, and taught us. It was so much fun being in the water and trying to lay on a board and then try to push up and stand up.

I remember laughing more than I had in weeks.

I remember smiling so hard my cheeks hurt afterward until I fell asleep.

I remember trying so hard to push myself up onto my feet and barely being able to get up to my knees.

It was an absolute blast and I knew I would have to do it again and I prayed that I would get to do it regularly.

Once I was back in the states and back at university, I found this organization called, City Surf Project, on social media. I was instantly captured by the mission of the organization: working to provide young people an alternative PE credit and hoping to change their lives through the power of surfing. It was basically everything I loved: youth, surfing, environmentalism, empowerment. They seemed perfect.

I kept following their work that semester and the work of a few other surfing organizations. Whenever I needed a little mental break from studying, I would check out their latest posts to see what was going on. A few months later, I found myself in England making friends with another surfer. She and her brother took me over to Wales and we got to surf, again! The water was freezing, the company was delightful, and it was an absolute blast!

I laughed, a lot. I got some wonderful battle scare bruises from trying to throw myself onto my board fast enough to paddle in to catch a wave, and I got closer to actually standing up fully. I think I even got onto my feet and then fell into the water.

It was simply so much fun.

After England, I was back in Indy for my final semester of school. That semester, I remember talking with my academic advisor and starting to brainstorm what I would focus on for my senior project. I thought about planning a school lesson or some kind of curriculum about environmental sustainability. I thought about creating some kind of plan for students to study abroad and do humanitarian work. And then I thought about surfing. I remember sitting across from my advisor pitching all my ideas and when I got to the idea about the sustainability of surfing, his eyebrows shot up and he cautiously encouraged that while it sounded interesting I may not be able to gather enough information. A semester later, lots of research, one book written in Australia, and many more borrowed and renewed about 5 times from the library and then bought so I could make notes and some 40 plus pages later, my senior project was complete. “The Sustainability of Surfing” was one of my favorite projects I worked on at university. It allowed me to research a combination of topics that I loved and had studied for the past four years.

Once I graduated and started an amazing internship with Thirst Project in Los Angeles, my team and I spent a Saturday morning surfing in Santa Monica. It was amazing! My third time surfing, first time in the states, and let me tell you, the Pacific in January, is freezing. My feet were so cold I could barely kick and paddle to catch a wave. I wiped out more times than I could count and ended up on the beach catching my breath quite a few times and trying to warm my toes. I remember laying on the beach next to my board and thinking that even though I had yet to stand up and actually ride a wave to the shore, I was having a blast! Really and truly. It was rough and hard and cold, and yet it was still so fun.

When I came back to Indy, I followed surfing a little less. I still loved seeing videos pop up on my feed, staying somewhat up-to-date on the competitions. I wasn’t following it as intently as I had in the past. Mostly due to time, and partly due to ability and location. It’s sometimes hard staying interested in a sport that wasn’t easily accessible in Indiana. Something that was accessible and starting to make headlines in the surfing and environmental world was an organization just beginning in 2017 called, the International Surf Therapy Organization (ISTO). They are a network of surfing organizations all around the world focusing on the blue mind, environmental impact, and the future of surf therapy. ISTO actually featured City Surf Project, an organization that had taken a back burner from searching came up once more.

ISTO brought CSP back to the forefront of my mind and social media channels. The work they were doing in the Bay was beautiful and so important. I loved every social media update I would get! For the next few years, I continued to follow the great work that the ISTO was doing, CSP, and many, many more organizations that were a part of the surf therapy network. I applied for random jobs at many organizations all around the world. There were so many organizations that were connecting youth with the ocean and encouraging them to live well-rounded lives, focusing on nature, learning a new skill of resilience, and much, much more.

Fast forward, just a little bit to when I started working at Water for Good in 2020. An incredible organization that is working to bring safe, clean water to the Central African Republic. It was my absolute dream job come to life! I loved working with WFG, the team was wonderful, friendly, encouraging; and we were working to end the global water crisis which was just one of the global injustices that tugged at my heartstrings hardest. My professional and personal skills grew rapidly during my time at Water for Good. One of the most challenging skills I learned was Salesforce, a beast of a database. Right around when the pandemic started, I received a newsletter from City Surf Project asking for volunteers in Salesforce - and the rest was history….

I volunteered for a little over a year with CSP before serious conversations about coming on staff started. This past fall, during conversations about me coming on board, I came out to meet the team, experience a fundraiser, and do a little sight seeing. The team was unbelievably kind, welcoming, and knew how make someone feel at home even when they were from thousands of miles away.

I was even able to go out on programs and see what it was like for students. Let me tell you, if you ever want your heart to burst with excitement, pride, and overflow with joy, come out on programs with us! I got to see students who had never really gotten to try a water sport learn to surf in a DAY! Students who are timid of getting in the ice cold water, slowly step closer to the water lapping up on the shore only to jump back as it cascades over their toes. Instructors wait with them and slowly encourage them to get into the water. They work with the student’s timeline, never asking too much, always there to support and encourage. Then, as the students gain confidence and trust, they learn to paddle and pop up on the shore, in the safety of the sand, before they venture back out to the water.

Once the students go out into the water, the instructor (who are alumni of the programs) is with them the whole time, right next to their board or right behind them. As they get just past the white water, the student jumps on the board with the instructor right behind them holding the tail. When the right wave comes along, the instructor behind the student starts to push and propel the board forward as the student begins to paddle. The instructor holds onto the board, encouraging the student when to paddle and then to pop up. Once the student hits the break of the wave, the instructor lets go and lets the student continue on to ride the wave, shouting “Let’s go!”, “You’ve got this!”, “Keep going!” all until the student either rides the wave to the shore or wipes out.

Let me just say, that this is the most amazing moment. When a student stands up on a board. Their face, much like the faces of the pro surfers I poured over in magazines, is full of peace, pride, and the knowledge that they can do anything.

Once the student comes back to the instructor, a smile spread fully across their face whether they wiped out or rode the wave to the shore, the instructor asks the student how it felt. 9/10 the student says something positive. The next moment, without missing a beat, the instructor asks the student something along the lines of “What would it be like if you took that attitude/knowledge/peace/power into your daily life?”

At that moment, I know, I’ve seen, a student’s life will forever change. Partially because of a skill they just learned that is applicable in all areas of their lives, and partially because, perhaps most importantly, here is someone who was relatively a stranger a little while ago, who believes in them.

Back to the Beach concert feat. Michael Franti.

After a surf session with students at Linda Mar!

When I came home, I was so excited for this next chapter. I didn’t know if would actually happen, if everything would align, but I knew, I felt it in my bones, that this was a chance worth taking. Abby and I had lots, and lots, and lots, and lots of conversations about what a move might look like. We asked all the important questions about our personal and professional lives. We did research. We asked friends and trusted mentors for their opinions. Some of the advice we got back was beautiful like:

“Once you make a decision, that’s it. Keep moving towards it and don’t look back.”

“Don’t think of this as a long-term 10 year move. Take it in stride. It could last the next 30 years, or 3 year or even 3 months. It’s an opportunity that you can only grow and learn from even if it’s hard.”

Everything was falling into place with such a divine underlying. A new job, a new year, right around when our lease would be ending as well. After signing the offer, Abby and I came back out to the Bay to do some apartment searching and we found our new home. Upon flying home, we started packing, enjoyed the holidays with a somewhat packed up home, lots of next steps in limbo. Right after we rang in the new year, we started to pack up everything else in our home, shipped our stuff across the country, slept on an air mattress for a month, said “see you later” to our friends and family, drove across the country, and started making SF our new home.

We’ve been in the Bay for over a month now and it’s slowly starting to feel home.

I can officially get to CSP’s office and home without using my GPS! I’ve found a chiropractor and two parks I enjoy going to. I’ve been to the beach a few times which makes my heart happy. I know how to walk around the neighborhood and when I drive I often get a little turned around. We’ve fully unpacked, which is a huge blessing and our home feels like ours! Abby and I are slowly finding our groove and learning to live in our new home. The boys, however, have adapted quite quickly and are loving the sunshine.

Work is going quite well as I’m slowly learning and understanding all there is to learn about grant writing, donor engagement, donor retention, campaigns, and more. CSP is actually moving HQs in just a few weeks! This new space will allow us to better serve our students and better equip our programs with resources and more space. We have some really big dreams for our new home like building out a shaping bay, creating workspaces for our students to do homework, building out a library of resources for our students, having community spaces, and more. If you want to learn more and see how you can help us, check out our campaign here.

Honestly, I’m still in awe that Abby and I packed up our lives and moved across the country. Sometimes it feels like a dream and I wonder if I’ll wake up back in Indy doing something else. I’m so excited to continue to grow here, make friends, build a community, and more. With each passing day, our house feels more like a home; the streets feel a little more familiar; the sights, sounds, smells are a little less jarring. Who knows what a few more months will bring in a city that hardly sleeps and yet remains feeling peaceful and unhurried.

Here’s to you SF, here’s to my grandparents up above, I hope you’re happy the Bergman bloodline is back, ‘cause I sure am.