Avery Hatfield Talks Sisters of the Sea, Jax Beach, & The Power of Mentorship

There’s something unique about Jacksonville Beach. Yes, the Florida city has great waves, super good food, affordable places to rent and live and more, but there’s something else that makes it unique from nearly all major surf communities…

In Jacksonville Beach, there’s a strong push for women empowerment in the lineup, regardless of your skill level.

It comes in many forms: women giving each other a “yew” or a shaka in the lineup; women perpetuating a special sense of welcomeness in the lineups; and several initiatives through the local nonprofit Sisters of the Sea.

Founded way back in 1997 as a group of women looking to share their passion and give back, Sisters of the Sea exists to empower women in the lineup by hosting surf contests, monthly surf meetups, beach cleanups and more.

Photo courtesy Avery Hatfield

This is especially personal for myself and ASM co-founder Mark Sawyer Chu, because we’re both devoted girl dads. But this isn’t just for the girl dads and female surfers; What the women in Jacksonville Beach are doing is something we all can learn from, regardless of our gender, skill level, where we surf, and more.

Because at the end of the day, our community is a reflection of the people in the lineup, and when you see a reflection of what the women in Jacksonville Beach are doing, it makes you proud to be a surfer.

We rang Avery Hatfield, the Executive Director of Sisters of the Sea, to talk more about the organization, her role, and above all, how empowerment and mentorship is changing the lineup in Jacksonville Beach and beyond.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5D29McMwuw

ASM: You grew up in Jacksonville Beach, and even though you spent some time away and experienced how fun the waves in California can be, you came back to make Jax Beach your home. Why?

I love Jacksonville! It has everything that you need. There's a beautiful downtown, the beaches are fantastic, you can find your little nook, you know, the places that you frequent. I had friends and siblings here, so my community is here. I didn’t wanna miss out on any of this, so I was excited to move back here and make it home.

How did you get involved with Sisters of the Sea?

When I moved back, I had a background in neuroscience research, had tutored children with autism and realized that I wanted to be a part of something bigger than myself. I got introduced to people in the surf community, which was funny enough because I wasn’t really a surfer … I had surfed just a handful of times.

A few years ago, I was at the Ink Factory, a local brewery that hosts a lot of surf events, and at the same time, Sisters of the Sea was holding one of their super fun pre-parties before their annual surf competition. I witnessed all these girls who were just, so freaking stoked on it. They all talked about their surf meetups, and invited me to their next one, which was the first Sunday of the month.

I showed up super nervous. I didn’t know anyone there, and again hadn’t surfed a ton, but I was so ready to get out of my comfort zone, push myself and be a part of something.

I had never felt more welcomed by a group of by a group of anybody, but especially women, where they were just so happy to have someone new come out. My life changed meeting these women, and this is exactly what I was looking to be a part of.

Photo courtesy Avery Hatfield

Do you use your experience to help other women who may show up to the monthly surf meetups nervous?

Ever since I stepped into the Executive Director role, there’s been a huge amount of women who showed up to our monthly meetups, or messaged us saying ‘I'm a newer surfer, like I'm nervous to come out’... and yeah, I know exactly what that feels like.

On the beach there’s an outpouring of love regardless of if you’ve surfed before or not. I talk to a lot of women and say ‘I feel you, I was the same exact way, but this is the perfect way to get involved with surfing and other women’.

So many women come out to the meetups who are new to surfing, and we welcome them with open arms.

During the monthly meetups, we don't have an agenda. We say the meetup starts at a given time, we’ll take a picture, and then you can surf or hang out as you like until at least 10am, because that’s when Jax Beach starts charging for parking. It’s very low key, relaxed, and for me, I’m there to talk and connect with everyone.

The growth has been crazy … I think at the last meetup, we had about 40 or 50 women in just a few hours. It’s been phenomenal!

What are some of the other initiatives Sisters of the Sea puts on?

We had a long running surf contest for 24 or 25 years which we stopped for now, because we’re looking more at answering the question ‘what does our community need right now? What can Sisters of the Sea provide for women and girls in surfing?’

There’s been a lot of what I would call newness happening, and it’s really exciting. We’ve been running clinics … we did a super fun nose riding clinic … and we did a wave reading and paddling clinic. We also have a Grom contest for girls ages 6-13 in September which is also super exciting.

Photo courtesy Sisters of the Sea

We have a surf team too, with young girls and even older women who all surf really well.

My work focuses on the admin side of it. There’s so much admin work, day to day organizing, emails, taking care of the website, forms getting sent out, and ideating new ideas for our community, trying to meet its needs.

How critical are these concepts of mentorship and empowerment in our surf community?

I get so excited when I see one or two other girls in the lineup, and I always try to give them a smile, or a ‘yew’! when they're paddling for a wave.

Most recently, I saw this little girl and her dad paddling out on a soft top … I could tell she was nervous … and when I was paddling back out after a wave, she was riding one towards me and I cheered for her. Her face just lit up!

It’s super simple, but just being a kind face and giving a smile and encouragement to these young girls, especially if they’re one of the only girls in the lineup, speaks volumes. I truly feel like it changes the way they view the lineup, or even being a young surfer.

I have a younger sister, and I’ve personally seen how being such a supportive older sister has had a positive influence on her, so I try to keep that same mindset with other little girls who I don't know, and hopefully it continues to be a positive light.

I mean, let’s be honest: the lineup at times can be scary, especially if you’re young and learning something brand new. If somebody can give a little bit of kindness in moments like that, it goes a long way.

That's something that Sisters of the Sea strives to do. The women involved in this organization are some of the kindest, most genuine people who are so happy to share the lineup with other women.

Girls and women who have never surfed before, and those who surf a lot, deserve to have a safe space in the lineup, and if Sisters of the Sea can do that for them and provide that, then our mission is a success.

We just want to keep that positive momentum going, share the spirit of aloha, and help out our local community.

What’s your advice to someone who hasn’t surfed before to overcome their fears and get out there?

Go for it!

I mean, there are so many things that could stop you, and you can hyper-fixate on the what-ifs, like what if I fall? That’s inevitable, and as an adult, surfing has been one of the most humbling experiences … I’ve never been so challenged in my life, really.

But I continue to push myself, and I get to share it with friends and other women through Sisters of the Sea.

I can't emphasize enough that Sisters of the Sea provides that incredible sense of community, so if there are women and girls who are nervous to surf, but want to, please reach out to us, reach out to me.

There’s so many girls in our community who would love to help and come alongside you.

Just go for it, and we’ll be there to help you.

Avery and Sisters of the Sea are one of several female empowerment initiatives in Jacksonville Beach. To learn more about the surf community, check out Visit Jacksonville.