Un Mar de Colores · Pacific Beach, CA
Monthly cohorts year-round — healing isn't limited to summer when Pacific Beach youth need support most.
Un Mar de Colores ofrece surf therapy gratuitas para jóvenes de Pacific Beach de 6–17 años, directamente en la costa de Pacific Beach. Sirviendo a una comunidad del 44% BIPOC (45,892 residentes), nuestra instrucción se lleva a cabo en Tourmaline Surfing Park, Crystal Pier, con entrenadores bilingües certificados y todo el equipo proporcionado. La inscripción prioritaria es para estudiantes de Pacific Beach Middle, Mission Bay High, Mission Beach Elementary.
Monthly cohorts, year-round · Completamente gratis
Pacific Beach sits between Mission Bay and the open Pacific, producing the mellowest learner waves in the city. Tourmaline Surfing Park — designated a surf-only beach in 1981 — is the safest and most instructor-friendly break in San Diego. Over 55% of students at Mission Beach Elementary, Pacific Beach Middle, and Mission Bay High qualify for free or reduced meals, making this one of our highest-impact urban partnerships.
Free surf therapy for Pacific Beach youth is part of Un Mar's BIPOC-led Cali-Baja movement — ocean access as healing right, not luxury wellness product.
Surf therapy pathways connect to Ocean Stewards after-school and year-round lessons — Pacific Beach youth aren't discharged into emptiness after one cohort.
With 45,892 residents, Pacific Beach is one of the communities where a single free surf cohort can change dozens of lives per season. Our shuttles and school partnerships make distance (on the coast) a logistics problem we solve, not a barrier families carry alone.
Recruitment in Pacific Beach runs through counselors, teachers, and community partners who know which students need this most. We don't run open enrollment chaos — we build intentional cohorts.
Un Mar's primary Pacific Beach teaching location. Designated a surf-only beach in 1981 — the safest and most instructor-friendly break in San Diego.
Tourmaline was designated surf-only by San Diego City in 1981, making it the first formally protected teaching beach in Southern California.
South side of pier offers a sand-bottom peak ideal for graduating students from Tourmaline.
Crystal Pier was built in 1927 and is one of only two piers in California with an overnight hotel (Crystal Pier Hotel & Cottages).
En asociación con el San Diego Unified School District y organizaciones comunitarias locales, reclutamos jóvenes de 3+ escuelas Título I.
Surf therapy at Un Mar de Colores is more than recreational — it's a structured, trauma-informed mental health program that uses the ocean as a therapeutic setting. Licensed mental health professionals partner with trauma-informed surf coaches to deliver small-group sessions (8 youth maximum) combining ocean-based mindfulness, somatic movement, and culturally grounded healing modules developed with Kumeyaay elders. The program is especially effective for youth navigating anxiety, grief, immigration-related stress, and family instability. All programming is free and open to youth referred through partner schools, mental health agencies, and community organizations.
Un Mar de Colores is a BIPOC-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in Oceanside, California in 2018. Our instructors are certified by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Lifeguard Division and hold CPR + First Aid credentials.
“"He used to approach new activities with extreme anxiety — to the point where sometimes we couldn't even get out of the car. Now he goes much deeper into the water."”
Surf lessons focus on skill progression. Surf therapy integrates licensed mental health support, trauma-informed pacing, small cohort intimacy, somatic practices, and family caregiver sessions — clinical and cultural depth for Pacific Beach youth navigating stress.
BIPOC youth ages 6–17, especially those navigating anxiety, grief, immigration-related stress, and family instability. Referrals welcome from San Diego Unified School District counselors, mental health agencies, and community organizations in Pacific Beach.
Healing modules developed with Kumeyaay elders connect coastal stewardship, water relationships, and cultural recovery — culturally grounded practice for Pacific Beach Indigenous and Latino youth, not generic wellness language.
Sí. Todos los programas de Un Mar de Colores en Pacific Beach son 100% gratuitos. Proporcionamos trajes de neopreno 3/2mm, tablas de surf, transporte desde escuelas asociadas como Pacific Beach Middle, Mission Bay High, Mission Beach Elementary, e instrucción bilingüe certificada. El financiamiento proviene de la San Diego Foundation, subvenciones comunitarias y donantes individuales.
Las lecciones principales se realizan en Tourmaline Surfing Park. También usamos Crystal Pier según el nivel del grupo. Todas las sesiones de agua ocurren dentro de las zonas salvavidas de la bandera.
Servimos a jóvenes de 6–17 años. Nuestra Beca One Ocean cubre las edades 6-12, Ocean Stewards After-School sirve a 13-17, y las Becas Atléticas de Surf están disponibles para jóvenes competitivos a través de nuestras asociaciones con San Diego Unified School District.
Contáctenos a través de nuestra página de contacto. La inscripción prioritaria se otorga a estudiantes de Pacific Beach Middle, Mission Bay High, Mission Beach Elementary y otras escuelas de Título I en San Diego Unified School District. Los grupos de verano suelen llenarse con 3-4 semanas de anticipación.
Spots in our Pacific Beach cohorts are limited to keep instructor ratios safe. Contact us to reserve a place.
Todos los programas de Un Mar de Colores son gratuitos para jóvenes de Pacific Beach. Contáctanos para inscribirte, hacer voluntariado, o apoyar el movimiento.
Un Mar de Colores es una organización sin fines de lucro 501(c)(3) liderada por personas BIPOC, basada en Oceanside, California. Ofrecemos programación gratuita de surf, océano y educación ambiental para jóvenes en San Diego y Tijuana — conectando culturas, costas y comunidades desde 2018.
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