Impact Story: A taste of the better life

“Bro-Am and StandUp for kids give me the opportunity to feel special and important and there are not to many times in my life that someone has made me feel special and important. The Bro-Am Beach Fest is the one day a year I get to just be a kid. I don’t have to worry about who will steal my stuff, where I will eat, or if I will have any problems on the streets that day. I get to just worry about having fun and being with people who care about me and my future.”
- StandUp for Kids youth participant

One of the things that we love about the BRO-AM Beach Fest is that it is one day of the year where we all forget about the negativity in our lives and focus on the fun and freedom that comes from such an epic day of surf, music, and community banding together to give back.

We’re honored to have the stage and the platform to make an impact, to help give these kids that sense of freedom, belonging and hope. Oh, and of course an EPIC day at the beach.

Our goal is to create a thriving future for every kid, and for many years our partnership with StandUp for Kids has helped us achieve this goal. Through the simple act of loving kids experiencing homelessness in our hometown of San Diego. Through BRO-AM & Stand Up For Kids, these kids who are often overlooked and forgotten are are given so much more than just a VIP treatment and free surf lesson, they are given hope and a sense of belonging.

“This one day a year is the day they [the kids] have no worries, and they can see with their own to eyes, what life should really be about. They get a taste of the “better” life, they open up to the volunteers, and they realize that they can achieve anything they put their mind to. That the hard work they are doing is worth it and that the community as a whole really does want them to be successful and succeed.”
- Maggie McWhorter, Co-Executive Director StandUp for Kids Oceanside