The Potter’s Boards Youth Organization
Olympia, Washington
Learn More About Us
The Potter’s Boards is a youth organization transforming lives of youth and communities through the power of the gospel and shaping surfboards, with a focus on mentorship and outreach to youth and communities. We are supported by donors and contributions from TPB Surf Co. which donates from it’s net profit to The Potter’s Boards Youth Organization.
OUR STORY
The Potter’s Boards began as a dream in Rio De Janiero, Brasil, while hanging out with some youth trying to track down surfboards for them to take out. We drove around, stopping at several houses trying to find one to use, finally we tracked down a beat up old board, and headed to a local comp. to watch and relax. As we sat under a tent joking around, Logun saw a new board with a couple of stickers about Jesus on it, and had the thought, “What if someone built surfboards for God?” That thought sparked the vision of The Potter’s Boards.
The kids we were hanging out with were from pretty rough parts of Rio, and they all loved surfing (even just talking about it), but couldn’t afford to get a board under their feet. The vision of The Potter’s Boards was to change that. To teach youth to make their own board that they could surf whenever, and learn some valuable lessons about life and faith in Jesus through the process. So that’s what we do! We seek to help all youth, regardless of gender, race, culture, ethnicity, status, religion, or other background, to know they have an innate value from God that can’t be taken away. We believe that youth who know their own value, are empowered, transformed, and enabled to empower others.
Our Programs & Who We Serve
Who we Serve
We seek to serve primarily youth ages 12-18 in surfing communities who may experience various forms of marginalization, stigmatization, and other harm or abuse.
Community Shaping Lessons
We offer group and individual shaping lessons! Come by alone, or bring a friend or family member to make a board or two together! Every board you make, helps make a board for a grom in need of one!
Kook Kamp
We’re all kooks here! Kook Kamps are awesome camps where we partner with locals to teach youth to make their own board, surf, have a tonne of fun doing rad activities, and talk story (get real) together.
Kook Camp’s teach youth one part of the surfboard building process each day, combined with one spiritual life lesson. For example: on day one youth learn to design and plan out their own board; they also learn that they they are designed by God and he has a plan for them!
Contact us to learn more about booking a Kook Kamp for youth in your community!
Sponsorships
Build a Board Sponsorship
We partner with people like you to make boards for groms who need one! You can help us design and even shape a board for a grom!
Busted Board Sponsorship
Wanna sponsor a grom, but don’t have the cash? Give us your old board, we’ll fix it up, sell it, donate it, or use it to help a grom get out in the water! You can still help with design, repair, and building! We can also refurbish old boards to make them new for a grom!
Grom Sponsorship
Groms can apply, or be nominated to get sponsored by TPB. Sponsored Groms can get stickers, merch, mentorship, gear, coaching, free boards, and more! You can sponsor a Grom by covering or helping to cover these costs!
Mentorship
Personal Mentorship
We offer relationship-based mentorship where our mentors meet up with groms (youth) to surf, hang out, talk story, and usually have a pretty good time! Mentors walk alongside youth becoming ohana-family to eachother.
The Shaping Bay
The Shaping Bay is discipleship opportunities for youth who hold a faith in Jesus. We combine our love for surfing, and shaping surfboards with our love for Jesus, joining and guiding youth on their journey with Christ.
Outreach
Local Outreach
Our outreach encompasses a broad range of activity from working with schools and community organizations, to intentionally reaching out to youth in everyday life. It is designed to fill the gaps of the rest of our programs, and can include volunteering with other organizations, or holding events like Surf Days, or fundraisers, etc.
International Outreach
Some of our outreach also involves working with foreign locals in their communities. We partner with locals in countries we are not based in order to offer support, programs, and more. We offer long term relationships with regular short term operations. Our intent in this is typically to support locals who want to start their own TPB location in their community. While we typically avoid short-term outreach (or mission trips), we will work with locals who are seeking such partnerships.
Future Programs
Shapers Program
This program walks along youth in all aspects of life as they learn to shape boards! It operates in three parts.
Kookshapers
Youth new to TPB get introduced to the gospel, and shaping boards at an entry/low level experience, and get a small taste of helping at the shop/community. (12-13 yrs)
Gromshapers
Youth who have gone through TPB’s kook shapers program can enter into Grom Shapers. Groms get more intense discipleship in both the gospel, and in shaping boards. Grom shapers will have light duties around the shop/community and will help in discipling the kook shapers as well. (13-15 yrs)
Bombshapers
Bombshapers show a higher level of competency in board making where they can make a fully functional board on their own, and are ready to start learning the skill at an intermediate level. They also show a true and genuine faith in Jesus, and a desire to transform lives. Bombshapers who graduate the program are eligible to become a member of the TPB ministry team at their location. (15-18 yrs old)
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Here's what we do in action.
