A Walk on Water
On the 5th of September Montauk welcomed the organization A Walk on Water (AWOW) to Ditch Plains for the weekend to host their annual surf therapy event. While a group of volunteers work consistently with AWOW under Bob Miller all summer long to provide special needs athletes the opportunity to surf, this annual event is a chance to bring more press, attention and education to the cause and organization.
The event was a success, even with particularly rough conditions that challenged the athletes, water safety team, surf therapists and all the volunteers to keep everyone safe and enthusiasm high. Those that work diligently with many of the athletes all summer had the advantage to employ and instruct other volunteers that participated that day in best practices specific to the athletes they have experience with. AWOW events take place all over the country, and those that drop in on that September weekend to help are managing many challenges at once, especially a volatile ocean and understandably nervous athletes. The army of volunteers that day assist in creating an awareness of, and exposure to, surf therapy.
What is special about AWOW’s approach is including the entire family in the experience not just the children with special needs. Everyone can encounter the power of the ocean and witness it’s ability to heal. For over a decade AWOW has transformed the lives of thousands of children, their families and those that help by embodying the concept of nature being therapeutic. The skill-building, interactions and memories of weekly summer sessions and special events continue to assist those involved with facing challenges in the water and in life. Most rewarding are the smiles on everyone’s faces and the cheers from the beach and in the line-up as athletes are catching waves and embracing the sea.
More modern research and methods for discovery continue to reveal what we intuitively know about the water; it is restorative and a formidable benefit to our mental and physical health. We see evidence that being in and around water makes a positive difference in those with anxiety, trauma, depression, PTSD and other struggles. The combination of exercise, being present, facing challenges and having fun can boost our cognition, improve the ability to reshape our neurological patterns (neuroplasticity) and improve our overall well-being.
Evident in the special event over the weekend and especially in the repetition during weekly summer AWOW sessions, athletes and volunteers are building the foundation for healing through engaging with the ocean. The appreciation, impact and celebrations are long lasting. www.awalkonwater.org