Un Mar de Colores · Coronado, CA
Free volunteer orientation, paid background check, and cultural competency training for every direct-youth volunteer.
Un Mar de Colores welcomes adult volunteers (18+) from Coronado to support beach cleanups, youth mentorship, event logistics, and community organizing across San Diego County. Coronado volunteers regularly support our programming at Coronado Central Beach and partner community sites including Coronado Public Library and Coronado Unified School District. We provide free orientation, cultural competency training, and pay for your background check.
Ongoing (monthly events + weekly program support) · Completely free
Coronado Central Beach's wide, flat sandbar and year-round lifeguard coverage make it a welcoming teaching location for our South Bay cohorts. We partner with Coronado Unified for middle school recruitment and with the Silver Strand State Beach for overflow locations. The proximity to North Island Naval Air Station also means we serve military-family youth through our Ocean Stewards program.
Volunteer with Un Mar from Coronado is part of BIPOC-led Cali-Baja ocean equity movement — mentorship and stewardship as community infrastructure, not charity tourism.
Event volunteer roles for Surf Fiesta and community celebrations need Coronado adults for logistics, setup, and guest welcome — movement building, not unpaid grunt work without context.
With 20,192 residents, Coronado 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.
Coronado's relationship to the Pacific is complicated by history and economics. Our curriculum weaves Kumeyaay coastal stewardship, environmental justice, and culturally grounded instruction into every session — not as an add-on, but as the foundation.
Our primary Coronado and South Bay teaching location. Wide flat sandbar, gentle reform.
Coronado Central is consistently ranked among America's best beaches for family swimming and beginner surfing, with exceptionally clean sand that glitters from the high mica content.
In partnership with Coronado Unified School District and local community organizations, we recruit youth from 1+ Title I schools.
Volunteers are the backbone of Un Mar de Colores. Monthly beach cleanups, weekly after-school program support, annual Surf Fiesta events, and ongoing community organizing all rely on volunteers from across San Diego County. We welcome adult volunteers (18+) with a range of skill sets and time commitments — from single-event cleanup volunteers to weekly mentors supporting Ocean Stewards. All volunteers complete a free orientation and a paid background check, and we provide cultural competency training to every direct-youth volunteer.
Our coaches include graduates of the Surf Athletic Scholarship program and bilingual educators who reflect the BIPOC communities we serve. We partner with 15+ Title I schools across North County and San Diego.
“"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."”
Adults 18+ with a range of skill sets and time commitments. Roles include monthly beach cleanups, weekly Ocean Stewards after-school support, Surf Fiesta event logistics, and community organizing. Single-event and ongoing volunteers from Coronado both welcome.
Monthly cleanups across Oceanside, Imperial Beach, Cardiff, and partner sites accessible from Coronado. Quarterly workshops deepen advocacy skills for volunteers ready to organize beyond debris removal.
Training prepares volunteers to mentor BIPOC youth respectfully — avoiding savior dynamics, honoring cultural context, and supporting trauma-informed environments. Required before direct-youth pairing for Coronado mentors.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs in Coronado are 100% free — including 3/2mm wetsuits, soft-top surfboards, transportation from partner schools like Coronado Middle School, and certified bilingual instruction. Funding comes from the San Diego Foundation, community grants, and individual donors. No Coronado family has ever paid for our programming.
Primary water sessions run at Coronado Central Beach. Classroom components happen at Coronado Public Library and other partner sites. All water activities happen within lifeguard-flag zones.
We serve youth ages 18+. In Coronado specifically, our recruitment runs through Coronado Unified School District — with priority enrollment for students from Coronado Middle School. Cohorts are age-appropriate (One Ocean for 6–12, Ocean Stewards for 13–17).
No. We begin every cohort with ocean-safety fundamentals in chest-deep whitewater at Coronado Central Beach, supervised by instructors certified by the San Diego Fire-Rescue Lifeguard Division. Water comfort is built progressively. In Coronado, we also run pre-cohort pool-familiarization sessions at local community pools for students who request extra comfort-building.
Yes. All Un Mar de Colores programs are bilingual — and in Coronado, where 14% of households are Spanish-speaking, we intentionally pair at least one bilingual coach to every session. Cultural programming is delivered in both languages, and parent communications are always sent in Spanish and English.
Three ways: (1) everything is free, while most Coronado surf programs charge $50–$150 per lesson; (2) we are BIPOC-led and our coaches reflect the 32%-BIPOC Coronado community we serve; (3) our curriculum includes environmental justice, Kumeyaay coastal history, and cultural arts — not just surf skills. We exist because the ocean should belong to everyone in Coronado, not just those who can afford access.
Visit our sign-up page or contact us directly. Priority enrollment goes to students of Coronado Middle School and referrals from Coronado Public Library and Coronado Unified School District. Summer cohorts fill 3–4 weeks before start, so early contact is recommended.
Volunteer, donate, or enroll — however you join, you're helping Coronado youth access the coast.
All Un Mar de Colores programs are free for Coronado youth. Reach out to enroll, volunteer, or support the movement.
Un Mar de Colores is a BIPOC-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in Oceanside, California. We provide free surf, ocean, and environmental programming for youth across San Diego and Tijuana — bridging cultures, coasts, and communities since 2018.
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