The night of July 23rd, Changing Tides Foundation partnered with Sierra Nevada to put on a special, sold out event to kick off the new Sierra Sister Sessions, a series of outdoor-sports focused events put on by Sierra Nevada created to celebrate womxn and support local organizations, while having an absolute blast shredding together. With over 300 people in attendance at the Changing Tides Foundation Community Space in Leucadia, California, the party was a gathering of the local community, excited to celebrate womxn, the ocean, and the mission of Changing Tides Foundation.

During the party, delicious food was available for purchase from local food vendors: Mojo Plant Foods (plant-based foods) and Rafikiz Foodz (authentic African vegan & non-vegan foods). Drinks were provided by Sierra Nevada Brewing, Strainge Beast Kombucha, Suja Juice, Guayaki Yerba Mate and Liquid Death Mountain Water. The party included a free photo booth and live music from Beeb$ (info) , local DJ, Kori Gabriola, and tons of raffles up for grabs. Some of the bigger ticketed items in the raffle included a 3 night vacation stay provided by VanCraft, a custom surfboard shaped by local San Diego shaping legend Hank Warner, and art prints from HerWaves. Alongside those raffles, we also had generous gift packages put together from numerous amazing sponsors like Athleta, KateBoards, Aloha Collection, Vuori, SunBum, Santoro Natural Wellness, Joe Roper's Custom Surfboard & SUP Repair, Creatures of Leisure, Otis Eyewear, Leus, Threadspun, Picture Organic Clothing, Salt and Reverie, F45 Poinsettia, Billabong, Changing Tides Foundation, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co, Guayaki Yerba Mate, Liquid Death Mountain Water, and Suja Cold Pressed Juice.

The next morning was the launch of the first ever #SierraSisterSessions. The day started off with 25 womxn gathered at Tamarack Beach for a beach clean up hosted by Changing Tides Foundation. After the cleanup, the ladies changed into their suits and paddled out for a morning surf. We had local female photographer, Laruen Hensgens and filmmaker Hannah Walsh documenting the festivities. Once the ladies took over the lineup, the vibes were at an all-time high. Other surfers paddled over to inquire about who this womxn group was and what we stood for. After almost 3 hours of socializing, paddling, and catching lots of party waves, the group headed in. Waiting on the beach under the Sierra Nevada umbrella were amazing goodie bags stocked full with gear from Sierra Nevada, Aloha Collection, and (list any others here). After distributing swag bags and cold juice from Suja Cold Pressed Juice, the gang laid out and enjoyed a little sun before heading to Pizza Port for some slices and beer. Pizza Port was generous enough to give us donation cards, where 20% of what we spent on our meals went back to CTF. The ladies enjoyed their afternoon lunch, repping their new Sierra Nevada hats and sunglasses. All in all, it was an incredibly empowering day of womxn lifting other womxn up and celebrating one another in the company of the sea.

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We cannot thank everyone enough for their generosity; from the sponsors, donors, participants, musicians, and party-goers. By the end of the night, we raised over $7,000, with 100% of the proceeds benefiting CTF and our US-based Women’s Outreach Mentorship Program. #CTFWOMP. We would also love to shout-out the amazing Sierra Nevada team, Aaron Horwritz and Courtney Linnborn. They came to us with a dream and we worked together to help create an absolutely epic weekend. We couldn’t have done it without them or their vision. What a phenomenal first ever #SierraSisterSessions. We can’t wait to shred at the next one!