On the waveless island of Singapore, United World College of South East Asia (UWCSEA), a K-12 International School of 4500 students, continues to raise funds and awareness for SurfAid.

After a three-year hiatus, the newly opened UWCSEA East Campus hosted the 24-Hour Swim Challenge supported by Quiksilver on Friday 16 and Saturday 17 March. From 2006 to 2009, four 24-Hour Swim Challenges were conducted at the UWCSEA Dover Campus and raised a combined total of more than $200,000 for SurfAid.

The idea for the event is quite simple: open the college swimming pool for 24 hours and invite all members of the college community to swim as many laps as they are physically able to. 

During the 24-hour period, more than 650 swimmers jumped in the water and did their bit for SurfAid. Some students swam one lap, others like 13-year-old Liam Coates completed close to 700 laps (35 kilometres). After the event Liam commented: “Swimming so many laps has been one of the hardest things I have ever done. I am exhausted but glad that I am able to do my bit for SurfAid.”



Along with swimmers who were trying their hardest to do as many laps as possible during the 24 hours to win Endurance Cup awards, there were swimmers of various ages and abilities having fun in the pool. The youngest swimmer in the water, wearing floaties and with the help of mum and dad alongside him, was six-month old Austin Wark. The oldest swimmer was Anthony Skillicorn (UWCSEA East Global Concerns and Social Service Co-ordinator) who swam 180 laps  (9 kms).  Remarkably, there was at least one person in the water swimming during the entire 24 hours. 

Funds raised from the 24-Hour Swim Challenge will be donated to the ‘Malaria stills Sucks’ program that purchases and delivers mosquito nets to target villages in the Mentawai Islands. ...read more

Huge thanks to the Hunter Business Boardriders who put on the McGrath Charity Surfest Breakfast at Merewether Surfhouse, Newcastle, in March, raising $25,000 for us.

The breakfast, the third organized by the HBB for SurfAid, had a huge rollup with 220 people and was hosted by surf writer and former Tracks editor Sean Doherty.  

Four-time world champ Mark Richards, two-time world champ Tom Carroll, and his brother Nick, Matt Hoy, Simon Law and Andy King entertained the group with tales of Indo. A special feature was Tom’s love of sharing waves with his fellow riders. (Joel Parkinson had to give his apologies as he had a heat to surf.)



SurfAid founder Dr Dave Jenkins gave an update of our work in the field after the 2010 Mentawai tsunami, and how another big earthquake is predicted for the region.

Simon Law told a harrowing story of when he was caught in a tsunami at G-Land and ended up in a tree.  The experience still affects him to this day.

Special thanks to Brad Garrard and Dominique Squires, from Mullane Plumbers, MC Ben Hainsworth, and all who helped organize an excellent morning. ...read more