We are looking to do a little fundraising for the Yonder Surf Academy CIC as we look forward to Spring and Summer this year and we are asking people for a £2 Donation to the Yonder Surf Academy CIC. We have a target of £500 to raise for the charity arm of Yonder by the end of March.
The money raised will be put into a pot, alongside money from the recent Finisterre film fundraiser. This is a pot of money that we would love to have full independent control of. Often the funding we receive is allocated very specifically to certain projects. A pot of money that we can allocate to projects this spring and summer where we see fit would be a huge asset to the CIC.
Sometimes it might be legacy work from one of the projects we’ve worked on, it might be specific equipment needed for the CIC to strengthen or it might go towards some expert external support specific to a project or pilots projects to use as evidence to pitch for new funding pots.
However it’s spent, it will be very carefully considered to have maximum impact on the key groups that we are working with.
"Surfing opened a new door of stress relief. Being in the water and having the determination to keep going even when I fell off the board helped me strengthen my resilience."
Participant from the Angelou Centre.
Yonder is about to turn five; that’s five years of providing surf coaching to women and girls in the North East of England our way, zero compromise, following our vision and like an arrow, we have never wavered in our delivery. Yonder remains me, Sally as the only coach alongside my husband Tom who creates all our media and Billy our son and favourite cheerleader. Yonder has been our life since 2017, we work as a tight team organising, creating and delivering everything we do here full time.
"It was unbelievable to be offered such a high quality of provision of such an exciting sport in a format that was accessible and culturally informed for our teenage girls, many of whom have trauma and manage mental health challenges."
N.E.S.T Bridget Stratford MBE.
We think about the events we’ve hosted; from pre-Yonder Surfers Against Sewage film nights at the Surf Cafe to panel discussions at Pink Lane Coffee, sold out screenings at Tyneside Cinema, Three Tanners Bank and the TVLB, to mulled wine round the fire at CBK, meals on the beach with Finisterre and forecasting nights at Karma Coast. These are all fond memories, getting people together out of the water to chat, get inspired, share stories and experiences and build connections. We want to continue to strenghten those roots; create more opportunities. It’s a dream that we are still doing this after five years.
In 2019 we set up the Yonder Surf Academy CIC. The charity arm of Yonder (Community Interest Company) was set up to be able to offer lessons, coaching and courses to women and girls in the community who might not otherwise have the opportunity or confidence to give it a go. We recognised that accessing the ocean and surfing can have many barriers and we wanted to remove the financial barrier whilst working hard on all other aspects to create a welcoming and open space for our participants.
“My daughters have gone from walking past the surfers on the beach to being one and I feel really lucky that they were introduced to surfing through Yonder’s work with the school and the Phoenix Project, it is simply not something that they would have ever been introduced to otherwise, but I’m glad they were as the difference it has made to them is massive.”
Phoenix Detached Youth Project
