Fund-raiser will benefit
victim of shark attack
LIHUE >> Not surprisingly, surfboards will lead the items to be auctioned tomorrow at a fund-raiser for amateur champion surfer Bethany Hamilton, 13, who lost her left arm in a shark attack last month.
A five-hour benefit is scheduled from 3 to 8 p.m. tomorrow in the main ballroom of the Kauai Marriott Resort on Kalapaki Bay just outside Lihue.
There will be nonstop music from artists including North Shore Kauai resident Graham Nash, of Crosby, Stills & Nash, and a long list of local bands who are donating their talent. Andy Melamed, marketing director of KONG radio and a North Shore surfer, and Dickie Chang, host of a popular Kauai cable television show, will share hosting duties.
The event is free and donations are optional. Organizers expect about 1,000 people.
"It's not just a healing event for Bethany, it's for the whole community," said Stephanie Reid, public relations director of the Princeville Resort and head of the organizing committee.
A spokesman for the Hamilton family said Bethany would not attend, but members of her family might. Bethany, a Princeville resident, was released from Wilcox Memorial Hospital last week and has been in seclusion ever since at a private home loaned by a friend.
Considered one of the best young amateur female surfers in the United States, Bethany appeared headed for a professional career. On Oct. 31 a tiger shark, estimated to be 14 feet long, bit off Bethany's left arm four inches below the shoulder as she paddled out toward a wave off Makua Beach, also known as Tunnels Beach.
"So many people, especially in the surfing community, have wanted to find a way to show their support for her and really didn't know quite how to do it," Reid said. "I've seen it here and there all over the island. The Miura Surf Shop in Kapaa has a big sign in the window saying, 'Best Wishes Bethany.' By stopping by the fund-raiser, everyone will be able to let the Hamilton family know they care."
The organizing committee thought about charging admission but decided against it, Reid said. "We're just opening it to the whole community."
Bethany's primary sponsor, RipCurl, played a major role in organizing the event, and many of surfing's notables who live on Kauai have been involved. The silent auction will include custom surfboards from Andy and Bruce Irons, Mark Sauzan, John Delaney and Terry Chung.
A week-long vacation in California will be auctioned, along with a weekend at the Princeville Hotel, two cases of wine, a dinner at the Hanalei Gourmet and other items.
People who cannot attend but want to donate can send donations to the Hanalei Surf Co., Friends of Bethany Hamilton, P.O. Box 790, Hanalei, HI 96714.
