When Tim Conibear launched a surf club for kids in the Cape Town, South Africa, township of Masiphumelele in 2009, he realized the local children were showing up for more than the opportunity to ride waves. “The surfing was fun and different for them, but they were really coming for a chance to speak to an adult about the challenges they faced,” Conibear says. “Social services and counseling and psychology infrastructure in Cape Town is poor, so having a chance to be heard was very important.”
When Surfing Is Literally Therapy