Heart of a Soul Surfer
Posted on June 21, 2009
Filed Under East meets West, Guest Columnist | 4 Comments
By Susan Stackpole
Bethany Meilani Hamilton, born in Kauai, HI on 8 February 1990, would go on to inspire thousands of people in her young life. Bethany’s entire family are surfers, and she learned quickly, at age eight winning the “push and ride†division of a Quicksilver surfing competition. She went on to take first place in the “Rell Sunn Menehune” contest on the island of Oahu at Makaha, competing in the girls seven to nine longboard, and seven to nine shortboard.
Bethany, at age nine, began seriously competing, winning 1999 Haleiwa Menehune Championships 23 annual contest. February 2000, Bethany placed in the Volcom Puffer Fish Contest, 1st in the “11-under girls”, 1st in the “15-under girls,” and 2nd in the “12-under girls” division. Rip Curl began sponsoring Bethany, fueling her dreams of becoming a champion surfer. She went on to compete in the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) circuit.
Bethany’s life would change forever on the morning of 31 October 2009. Bethany, her father, brother, and friends set out at 7:30 am to surf Tunnels Beach in Kauai, HI. Bethany’s left arm was dangling in the water when a fifteen foot tiger shark appeared out of nowhere, detaching her arm. Two inches further in would have proved to have been a fatal bite for Bethany.
Bethany’s friends placed a tourniquet from a surfboard leash around the remaining part of her arm and helped her swim back to shore. Bethany lost sixty percent of her blood before arriving at Wilcox Memorial Hospital, where she went into surgery, taking the place of her father, who was scheduled for knee surgery that morning. Bethany spent six days in recovery, though she was determined to return to the ocean.
Three short weeks after the incident, Bethany returned to surfing. Bethany found paddling to be more challenging without her left arm, so she initially used a custom-made board that was thicker and longer to help ease the necessary paddling. Bethany re-taught herself to surf and resumed competitively surfing with short boards. Bethany went on to win the 2004 ESPY Award for Best Comeback Athlete of the Year and the 2004 Teen Choice Awards presented her with a special award for courage. Bethany took first place in the NSSA National Championships, a long-standing personal goal since childhood. Bethany began competing full-time and came in third against the word’s best women surfers in the ASP World Qualifying Series (WQS).
Bethany has appeared on 20/20, Good Morning America, Inside Edition, The Oprah Winfrey Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, The Tonight Show and been featured in People and Time. In 2004, MTV published Bethany’s book, Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family, and Fighting to Get Back on the Board. Bethany’s story is told in the 2007 documentary, Heart of a Soul Surfer, directed by Becky Baumgartner, chronicling Bethany’s courage and spiritual quest. Bethany spoke at the US Open Outreach & Huntington Beach Screening of Walking On Water on 26 July 2008. When asked if she could choose to go back and time and have the shark attack happen again or not, which would she choose, Bethany responded smiling, “I would, for sure, let the shark attack happen again because just the things God has brought in my life and the opportunities – me being here right now and me being able to go and surf the world. … You never know where I would be today if I had two arms. I might not even be following God. I might be going down a path that isn’t even worth living. I look around at the world right now, and a lot of people are just wasting their lives….and if you are right now, think about it – are you doing something in your life to make a difference in this world because if you aren’t, you should start now – we all need to work together to make this place better. Yeah, so I’m stoked with one arm. …Know you are loved, and love is the greatest gift God has given us. Just trust in God. He will be there for you – that’s how I made it through everything I’ve been through.â€
Watch these two Videos too
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uG6A0IOFvo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=duelon0MF2o
Message from the Editor
Dear Susan, I welcome you back on http://www.indiantvtoday.com after your hiatus and I miss your articles as much as your other readers if not more. Thank you for getting us these beautiful articles about Bethany and also Nick (http://www.indiantvtoday.com/don’t-worry-be-happy/2009/03/30/) which I’m sure are a great source of inspiration to many in this world. I really appreciate your work and your thoughts. Once again, a standing ovation from all our readers here on  http://www.indiantvtoday.com
Keep writing Dear
Ragini
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4 Responses to “Heart of a Soul Surfer”
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MY GOD…
( I WATCHED ALSO VIDEO AND I REALLY ADMIRE HER… THESE THINGS DEFINITELY MAKE US ON THINKING WHAT ARE WE DOING WITH OUR LIVES… THERE ARE SO MANY THESE CASES ALL AROUND US AND I’M JUST ASTONISHED HOW PEOPLE CONTINUE TO LIVE… EVERYBODY SHOULD SEE THIS… TO HEAR ALL THIS… WE SHOULD EVERYBODY LEARN FROM THIS… AND START FINALLY TREATING LIFE LIKE IT DESERVES!!! GOOD JOB BETHANY!… YOU AND EVERYBODY LIKE YOU GOT BEYOND ALL OF US, YOUR SELF AND THE LIFE IT SELF…
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my it makes u think doesnt it that in life u may have problems but that doesnt mean u cant succeed ur goal if its what you really want. beth your an inspiration too all those who think things are not possible. makes u think an appreciate your life just that little bit more. if only there was more people with this sort of attitude, the world would be a better place.
I am stunned. This girl has such an incredible mentality and she is just admirable…very admirable…I am speechless..