We are excited to share this special short movie made by our good friend Adam Warmington, starring Anthony Stepney.
Anthony has participated in MeWater programming up and down the California coast, even joining us for a day at Kelly Slater's Surf Ranch. When Keith Malloy contacted me about producing Fishpeople in 2017, he asked if I knew any kids who we could highlight, and I immediately knew Anthony and Shirley were perfect for his film! My relationship with Anthony and Shirley is truly a blueprint for the vision for MeWater.
While MeWater certainly spends a great deal of time surfing and enjoying Mother Nature, the big picture was to create a community-based organization that could help the youth and families with needed resources and support. MeWater provides opportunities for youth such as Anthony to expand their horizons, experience the power of mother nature, and receive mentorship and guidance from the MeWater team.
Now 17 years old, Anthony regularly attends MeWater events and serves as one of our youth ambassadors. Anthony takes this role very seriously, as he can see himself in many of the kids coming out to MeWater camps for the first time. He loves being a leader, and he shines as he passes along all of the experiences we have shared with him. It is so extraordinary to see Anthony's growth and watch him easily interact with the younger participants.
Anthony wanted to share his own words about what MeWater has meant to him and his grandmother over the years:
"I first met Mr. Eddie when he worked at Edgewood, I was 9, maybe 10 years old. He invited me to come surfing with him, as he had just started MeWater. When I first started with MeWater, I was terrified of the water and I had never been in the ocean, nor had I ever thought surfing was something that I would ever do. I didn’t know if this was something that I wanted to do, but as time went on I started to get comfortable in the water, and going on these surf trips and it was really cool hanging out with Mr. Eddie and making a lot of new friends along the way. MeWater has been so much more than just surfing for me and my grandmother. Since the beginning, MeWater and Mr. Eddie has wrapped his arms and heart around me and grandma. MeWater has helped my grandma with getting her groceries and home appliances and I couldn’t thank MeWater enough for what they did for us. THANK YOU MeWater from the bottom of our hearts." – Anthony Stepney
About this Film
Our dear friend Adam Warmington wanted to produce a short story on Anthony. Adam has watched Anthony literally grow up over the years with MeWater. Adam had the idea to pair up with Anthony as he conducted his daily life and tell just a little bit of his story, all in his own words. Thank you, Adam, for putting the time and love into this project with Anthony.