Surfers celebrate the season

Surfing is a 12 month activity in Ocean City. Winter waters actually bring in waves that can be superior to the summer ones, and getting out into the water isn't something reserved for when you're only wearing a bathing suit. But at the end of the summer the Ocean City Surf Club continues its mission to promote both safe surfing and clean beaches. The club holds an annual Ohana Bonfire (a kind of kit and kin celebration) to cap its latest beach cleanup as well as to say farewell to the warm weather, if not to surfing.

Members of Connections helped the Ocean City Surf Club celebrate the end of another great season.

Stephen Decatur High School Connections

The "Connections" service club at Stephen Decatur provided much of the force for the beach cleanup that preceded the beach bonfire. Although there is a lot of overlap among the membership, they are not the same group. Treat Chetelat, an SDHS 11th Grader, happens to b a member of both. He's been surfing since he was very little and his family has been pretty involved both in the community service program as well as with the Surf Club. "They've both always just as always been part of my life," he said.

Members of the OCSC and Connections service group descend the dunes on their way to the bonfire following an afternoon of tidying up the beach.

Ohana time is family time

As the light started to fade, the group set to digging the hole that would accommodate the bonfire they had planned. The event is about togetherness and community, working to make Ocean City a better place, for them, has to go beyond just making it prettier and cleaner. Building community bonds that will last is a critical part of making the events worthwhile.