Surfers Healing camp in Ocean City: Catching waves, big smiles for kids with autism

Walking from 37th Street onto the beach, the sound of crashing waves could be heard Wednesday alongside the sound of cheers. Autistic children and young adults were cutting through the waves on surfboards to the delight of the crowd watching.

Professional surfers were guiding them and working hard to give the families a fun, safe and perfect day at the beach.

“I’m so grateful to be part of this magic day,” Israel Paskowitz, co-founder of Surfers Healing, said.

On the surface it sounds like a bunch of surfers from California taking out autistic kids but it’s deeper than that.

“It’s young families with their precious little sons and daughters that have just got a new diagnosis of autism and that’s forever. It’s a forever commitment on shepherding and taking care of that child,” Paskowitz said.

Paskowitz and his wife, Danielle, started the nonprofit Surfers Healing 25 years ago because of their son Isaiah.

“He’s 31 years old and doesn’t talk. All this joy is because of him. It’s prophetic to have him and have this because of him because he suffers, and I know that’s the wrong word, but because of his autism,” he said.

When Isaiah would have meltdowns and sensory overload, it was riding waves with his father that calmed him down.

'It's super exciting to be here'

If even for a day, that’s what Surfers Healing brings to families who come to the camp.

Karen Oosterhous of Selbyville and her son Jamie have attended the camp twice.

“It’s been a great experience. With this great weather, and everybody has really shown up for the kids and it’s super exciting to be here,” she said.

Her son Jamie has a number of disabilities that require a lot of support to participate in different activities, and Surfers Healing is a place where he can enjoy surfing and being in the water with the level of support that he needs.

“The main reason we’re here is to have a great time and have him enjoy the ocean, but there definitely is, I would say like a social emotional aspect to it. Especially with the community showing up and the support from all the sponsors,” Oosterhous said.

Surfers Healing is a free camp that brings in many volunteers to help for the day. Lauren Cancila has been driving in from Baltimore for the last six years with several friends from high school to help with the camp.

“After we graduated (high school) our coach got us involved to come out, and ever since then we’ve all pretty much fallen in love with it and come back every year. It’s just amazing to see what this organization does and what they do for the kids,” Cancila said.

As the campers come out of the ocean, they are given cheers, leis and a plaque for their accomplishment.

“This is the time for families and parents to not have to apologize,” Cancila said. “If they’re acting up at all, we get it. We’re here for them and everybody’s here to have a good time and it’s for the kids and watching their faces when they come in from the water. It’s awesome. That’s what makes it all worth it.”

For the families and campers, it’s a day of acceptance.

“Everyone else is in the same boat and you’re going to have a different very unique life, but it ain’t all bad,” Paskowitz said.

The day of the camp in Ocean City, the waves were rough and the tide was high.

Paskowitz said it was an insane juxtaposition of nobody should be out there, let alone all these kids.

“But when you have the best guys in the world and the most important thing to have is heart. That’s when something really special transcends, the sport of surfing into something magic and beautiful,” he said.

Ossian Farmer first started helping with the camp 12 years ago during the northeast tour into New Jersey and Long Island.

“When I first did it, I came in totally blind, not knowing anybody and not knowing much. It’s challenging. But on the other side of that, it’s really, really gratifying. We get a lot out of it, and just seeing the smile on the kid’s faces and the families' faces really does a lot,” Farmer said.

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When he’s not teaching people to surf in Hawaii, where he owns a surf school, he also works to recruit professional surfers to help with the camp.

Mikey O’Shaughnessy is a professional big wave surfer who started helping the nonprofit about eight years ago on the beach in Waikiki in Hawaii.

“A friend told me to come down and help out. I didn’t know what to expect. It changed my life, in many ways putting things in perspective,” O’Shaughnessy said.

His biggest and strongest love is the ocean, and being able to share that with the campers is special to O’Shaughnessy.

“A lot of times you get a kid that’s fighting you and doesn’t want to even get on the board. When you accomplish that, getting them on the board, it’s so awesome. And then getting a wave, you can feel the energy in the child shift immediately from chaotic to just peaceful bliss.”

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Surfers Healing camp brings magic day on the beach to kids with autism