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Surfing The Nations – Store Front<\/p>\n
WAHIAW\u0100, Hawaii (Island News) \u2014 What was once considered a \u201cno-go zone\u201d in Central O\u02bbahu is now home to bustling caf\u00e9s, restored buildings, and thriving local businesses\u2014all thanks to a nonprofit that\u2019s proving business can be a force for good.<\/p>\n
Surfing the Nations, a faith-based nonprofit, moved into Wahiaw\u0101 over a decade ago with an ambitious goal: revitalize a struggling block through a unique blend of service, entrepreneurship, and community building. Today, the organization\u2019s footprint along Kamehameha Highway includes Surfers Coffee, Antique Alley, Petite Sweets and several other storefronts that are breathing new life into the area.<\/p>\n
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A nonprofit in Wahiawa is transforming lives with a unique business model that combines business, volunteer service, and faith. Discover how Surfing the Nations is inspiring change and supporting local businesses.<\/p>\n
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Back in 2012, the stretch\u00a0of road they now occupy was known more for crime, sex trafficking, boarded-up buildings, and poverty than for any sort of community energy. Surfing the Nations saw an opportunity not just to clean it up\u2014but to build something sustainable.<\/p>\n
The group\u2019s model, known as the \u201cThruster,\u201d is inspired by the three-fin surfboard design. It\u2019s based on three core pillars: business, volunteer service, and faith\u2014working in sync to lift up the neighborhood.<\/p>\n
The results are tangible. Through partnerships with local volunteers and interns, the nonprofit operates multiple businesses, hosts weekly outreach events, and provides mentorship programs for youth. Proceeds from the coffee shop and thrift store go directly back into their efforts\u2014fueling food distributions, job training, and feeding the hungry for those in need.<\/p>\n
Each month, Surfing the Nations helps feed thousands of people across O\u02bbahu\u2014many of them unhoused or food insecure. Their outreach includes free grocery distributions, hot meal programs, and weekly engagement with youth through mentorship and sports.<\/p>\n
The block that once struggled to attract foot traffic is now becoming a small business hub.\u00a0One of those new entrepreneurs is the owner of Petite Sweets, a locally-owned dessert business, opening its first storefront with support from Surfing the Nations.<\/p>\n
For Bauer and her team, stories like that are the real reward. Over the years, Surfing the Nations has expanded its reach beyond Hawai\u02bbi, helping to train leaders in other cities and countries to replicate the Thruster model in their own communities.<\/p>\n
Surfing the Nations calls it \u201cbusiness with a mission.\u201d And in Wahiaw\u0101, that mission is working.<\/p>\n
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