Tony
Soriano – Sharing the Stoke!
Written
by SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel
On any given morning the best place
to find Tony Soriano is riding a wave or helping to clean the beach.
Soriano, the Surfrider Foundation
Huntington/Seal Beach Chapter Advisor, is a waterman to the core. He loves
being in the ocean or working to protect the coastal environment for all to
enjoy.
Whether it's setting up Surfrider
information booths on the sand before dawn, leading beach cleanups or talking
to community groups, Soriano is a tireless advocate for the world's oceans,
waves and beaches.
Soriano, who grew up in Southern
California, told SurfWriter Girls Sunny Magdaug and Patti Kishel that he's
always been the most at home in the water. "When we were kids, my parents
used to fish a lot and my sister, brother and I always went along. The ocean
was our life."
Surfing is in Soriano's DNA. He
loves the challenge and the thrill of it. Plus, the camaraderie with the other
surfers in the lineup.
The only thing Soriano doesn't like
about surfing is the trash he sees in the water and on the beach. "When I
first started surfing the water was blue and clear," he says. "I want
to get the ocean back to that clean look from when I grew up."
That's why he joined the Surfrider
Foundation and why he spends countless hours working with organizations, surf
companies, and community groups to clean the beach and educate people about the
need to get trash and plastics out of the environment.
In recognition of his volunteer
work, in 2014 Soriano was honored by the Angel Light Academy at its Above
& Beyond Coastal Gala. The award honors those "doers" who are
making a positive difference in their communities.
An all-around good guy, who is
always ready to share the stoke and help his neighbors, Tony Soriano does
this...and much more.
And, at the end of the day, he still
fishes from the pier, watches the sunset, and spends time with his son Alex –
one of the next generation Soriano is bringing on board to enjoy surfing and
protect the environment.
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Sunny Magdaug and Patti
Kishel hold the exclusive rights to this copyrighted material. Publications
wishing to reprint it may contact them at surfwriter.girls@gmail.com
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as long as credit is given.
