Israel “Izzy” Paskowitz grew up the son of surfing legend and Stanford M.D. Dorian “Doc” Paskowitz along with 8 siblings. Doc wanted his children to have the wisdom that comes from life experience. So instead of living in a house, they lived in a small camper, traveling in search of our next wave. (Check out the Surfwise documentary to learn more.)
That life experience led to achieving the dream of becoming a professional surfer. Izzy won major titles, major endorsements, and major respect. In 1987, he married the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, Danielle followed by their first child, Israelah. Life was perfect. Isaiah, their second child, was perfect too: handsome, laughing, smiling. However at some point he began to regress, he stopped speaking and hitting developmental milestones. Diagnosis? Autism.
Reeling in shock, denial, and disbelief. Izzy threw himself into his work, avoiding home as much as possible. Paralyzed with feared that he'd let his family down, and that it was his fault. He realised that he had to get past all that and came to terms with the fact that he had to start thinking about Isaiah. He began taking him everywhere he went and stopped caring what people said or thought. In doing so he fortunately met some amazing people who loved Isaiah exactly as he was. Thanks to them, Izzy learned to embrace, rather than fight, the reality of his son's differences.
Fast forward to the opening ceremonies of the World Longboard Championship in Haleiwa, Hawaii.
Isaiah was having a meltdown.
Danielle tried to calm him, but she had her hands full. Not knowing what else to do, Izzy picked Isaiah up and heaved him into the ocean.
When his head popped up, a transformation had taken place; here was a happy, smiling, peaceful child. "What else could I do but jump in with him? A friend grabbed a longboard, and Isaiah and I rode the waves for the first time. He loved it. He loved the ocean; he loved being out on the board together. And me? I was beside myself, because I was finally connecting with my son. We could surf together, and that was enough." - Izzy Paskowitz
Isaiah responded so dramatically to the ocean that day because it helped calm him during a time of sensory overload. It was a therapeutic experience for him. There's something powerful about the weightlessness or floating, the lightness of riding a wave, and the family has seen that transformation time and time again with Isaiah.
"That day in Hawaii, I had a feeling that maybe, just maybe, surfing might help other kids with autism like it had helped Isaiah."
Surfers Healing, the original surf camp for children with autism, was then officially founded in 1996.
Attending the Surfers Healing camps positively impacts children with autism; the experience helps instill confidence and calm. Yet over the years they've seen that Surfers Healing also has a profound impact on parents. Autism parents are always hearing about what their children cannot do. But at a Surfers Healing camp, it’s all about what their kids can do. In the words of one volunteer, “For parents to see their kid up on a surfboard … sometimes, it’s nothing less than a miracle.”
Our biggest challenge? Getting kids to come out of the water! Once they ride a wave, they don’t want to stop.
"Our NC camp expanded from a 1 day surf camp serving 70 children in 2006 to a 2 day surf camp serving over 300 children. We are more than JUST a free surf camp, we are a family (OHANA) and our NC camp has become a family reunion. Strangers become friends, friends become family."
- John Pike
This year Wells Insurance was honored to be able to send a handful of volunteers out to Wrightsville Beach to embrace the Ohana and provide the gift of surfing to kids from all over the country that show up to these free events.
CLICK HERE to see upcoming events to support this free camp and also camp dates and check out the video of the day!