Bringing the beach inside

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Darreyon Johnson, who lives in South Central Los Angeles, was introduced to the sport of surfing last year at the age of 12, which showed a whole new side of him to volunteer mentor Kasaan Steigen. After that summer ended and Darreyon went back to school, his grades improved and he moved to a new school where he said he gets "more respect from the other kids." Photo by Kasaan Steigen

Part III: Fish Out of Water: The Story of an Undiscovered Surfer

A one-day trip field trip to Malibu turned into a summer-long adventure and the chance of a lifetime for Darreyon Johnson, a 12-year-old from South Central who spent last summer surfing with the help of a volunteer mentor and Malibu’s West Coast Riders.

By Kasaan Steigen / Special to the Malibu Times

“Why are you black?”

That is the question I heard coming from a 4-year-old resident of Malibu who walked up to Darreyon Johnson and the rest of the children we brought from South Central to the beach for a day of surfing. It wasn’t an aggressive question or an accusation. I think he was just wondering about something he hadn’t seen before. As a group leader, I was at a loss for words. Thankfully, one of the teachers in our group quickly rushed over when she saw the jaws drop open on several of the 12-year-old girls being asked the question.

“Kids come in all different colors,” she said.

“Oh, cool,” said the 4-year-old.

That was it. He went back to his bucket and shovel.

This was the first of many days I spent at the beach with 12-year-old Darreyon last summer. It was not the only time I wondered how the other children at surf camp would respond to him. The other children were almost exclusively Malibu residents who live literally footsteps from the beach. I worried that Darreyon’s aggressive behavior would not go over as well with children who weren’t used to it. I wondered if he would be able to let his guard down in the limited time we had each week. But that was adult thinking. Children adapt so easily. Darreyon had a great summer surfing, and it didn’t take long for him to start making friends. He was practically a celebrity on the days he came to camp.

One day I had lunch with a much-respected colleague who does a great deal of mentoring for youth. I was excited to share with him my summer experience and my ideas to expand my efforts-perhaps find ways for children to go to school all year in another part of the city, or find host families for them like study-abroad programs have traditionally done for wealthier children. My colleague said he, too, had thought of this idea, but he had always been met with the same response: “What good is taking kids out of a bad environment if you’re just going to send them right back?”

I thought, “That is like saying, ‘Why go on vacation if you are just going to have to go back to work afterward?'” It’s about upping your happiness-to-stress ratio. Letting go for a while and hoping some of that good feeling will stick. When you expose children to something new, many of them will go right back to seeing the world the way they are used to seeing it. We adults are the same way-people see and do what they know. But sometimes a good feeling-an inspiration, an idea, a motivation-resonates with something deep inside a person and brings it closer to the surface. Once you break down a barrier and show a child how “far out they can go,” you can’t take that memory away.

On the last day of surf camp, I took Darreyon to the Santa Monica Pier for a sort of “graduation” celebration. True to form, he got expelled from a ride because he would not sit down in his seat while flying back and forth on a gigantic swinging ship 30 feet above the ground. It wasn’t funny, and my stomach was in my throat just watching him, but I have to admit, inside I was smiling a little. Because while everyone else in line saw some punk kid misbehaving on a ride, I saw a surfer riding his last wave of the summer-flying high, happy, self-assured and feeling no fear.

When school started again, Darreyon stuck with the non-profit program’s monthly field trips and started to bring up his grades. His mother was able to move Darreyon and his brother Tevin to a new school where Darreyon is happy to tell me he “gets more respect from the other kids.” Better still, this past spring his mother received a letter from the school recognizing him for setting a good example in class.

I stayed busy with a new job and checked in on him occasionally. But as summer approached, I began to realize that consistency is probably one of the most valuable things you can offer a child. I made a call to Brendon O’Neal, and then I went by Darreyon’s house to ask if he’d like to go surfing again this summer.

The smile on his face in that moment is worth every minute we will spend baking in L.A. traffic. I also added the good news that this year his little brother is invited to come along, too. It’s funny what sticks in children’s minds, what it is about places and experiences they hold on to.

“Just wait ’til you see it,” he said to his brother on our first morning drive, beaming. “It is so clean! It is the cleanest beach I have ever seen!”

Darreyon attends West Coast Riders surf camp in Malibu headed by Brendon O’Neal. Kasaan Steigen was formerly program coordinator for the Chaka Khan Foundation and is the creator of the American Exchange Program, which seeks to provide domestic exchange opportunities for at-risk youth. Inquiries about American Exchange can be sent to: Kasaan Steigen, P.O. Box 692026, Los Angeles, CA 90069, or e-mail americanexchange@roadrunner.com

The first two parts of this story can be found online at www.malibutimes.com, search “Fish Out of Water” under the archives page.