“There are no cellphones, no dogs, no water leaks, no cattle – there’s just you, a surfboard and some water,” says Stephen Thomson, SFF founder and chairperson.
All free of charge, once a week over summer the programme enables local rural folk to prioritise self-care and take a break from the ‘daily grind’ by getting on the water for a surf, enjoying a BBQ and sharing stories with others.
Surfing for Farmers, an initiative developed by local man Stephen Thomson is now run at over 25 beaches nationwide
“Once your head goes under water you forget about the weather and the interest rates,” says Stephen. “We provide everything so all they need to do is show up.”
The SFF idea was born in 2018 when Thomson saw a documentary on TV about war veterans who turned to surfing for therapy. Thompson tweaked the idea and SFF is now offered at over 25 beaches nationwide.
In Sunrise’s annual funding round SFF received grants from the Suicide Prevention endowment fund and Bob and Aileen Harris’s named fund.
“We’re so grateful for Sunrise’s support. The grants will contribute towards a trailer to move equipment between Gisborne and the Coast when running our programme and will also double as a BBQ,” says Stephen.
Subscribe today
Receive all our latest news and updates about how we're helping our community direct to your inbox.
