1986 -1989

 

Jodi and Jean-Paul at Honolii Beach on the Big Island after Michel had a fun session.

When Jean-Paul was 7 months old we moved to the Big Island of Hawaii to prepare for Christian Missionary work with Youth With A Mission.  I had previously done inner city work with YWAM in Honolulu and Hollywood in the early 80’s working in Christian half-way houses. While on the Big Island we lived in North Kohala for 9 months while doing the School of Biblical Studies.  We lived in a small community in North Kohala called Makapala.  Makapala is only a couple of miles from the end of the road that overlooks the black sand beach of Pololu Valley.  This area of North Kohala is not only remote, but the surf spots are quirky and not easy to find.  Unless there’s a swell and clean conditions, it would be hard to locate the break, not to mention getting in and out of the water because of the lava cliffs and lava rock beaches.  In 9 months I was able to learn the ropes and often predict the best place to surf.  Fortunately, one of the most consistent breaks was just a short walk from our school.  

Mitch Anderson, Joe McCroskey and Michel
with their kids Nathan, Joy and Jean-Paul at Pichilemu.

After the school was completed, we decided to take a position teaching the SBS school at the YWAM base in Chile.  Jodi was also ministering as the base health worker to approximately 75 staff and students.  At about the same time a married couple who we met in Hawaii, Mitch and Juliette Anderson, moved down there also and were on staff with us.  We each brought down a quiver of boards and were able to drive from our base outside of Santiago to Pichilemu and Punta de Lobos, to surf on weekends and holidays.  In the late 80’s there were only a handful of local surfers in Chile, and only on rare occasions would we meet traveling surfers.  
 
Our daughter Nicole was born in Santiago during our second year there, and when she was 9 months old we returned to Hawaii.  Through some counseling from our pastor on Kauai, we decided to not return to Chile, but moved to California to be nearer to our families.