SJ5001: Commending the East Coast Surfing Championship.


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5001
Commending the East Coast Surfing Championship.

 

Agreed to by the Senate, February 11, 2021
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, February 15, 2021

 

WHEREAS, the annual East Coast Surfing Championship, organized by the Virginia Beach Jaycees, became the longest-running surfing championship in the world in 2021; and

WHEREAS, the Virginia Beach Jaycees, first formed in 1948, provides development opportunities that empower young people to create positive change in their community and has a long history in the establishment of several community projects; and

WHEREAS, one such event, the East Coast Surfing Championship, created in 1963, invites surfers from throughout the United States and around the world to compete for the title of “The Champion of the Atlantic Coast”; and

WHEREAS, the East Coast Surfing Championship has become an internationally recognized event, with up to 23 countries being represented by professional riders, and it has awarded close to $1 million in prizes to contestants since 2009; and

WHEREAS, during the East Coast Surfing Championship’s 50th anniversary celebration in August 2012, the event welcomed close to 200,000 participants and visitors to the City of Virginia Beach over the course of seven days; and

WHEREAS, according to the City of Virginia Beach’s resort event analysis, the 2018 East Coast Surfing Championship generated $25.8 million in economic activity, the most of any festival or marathon that year; and

WHEREAS, the growth of the East Coast Surfing Championship created a need for a more robust operational support system, and Resort Management, LLC, took the lead in expanding the event’s marketing platform and building national partnerships, such as with the event’s title sponsor, Coastal Edge Surf Shop; and

WHEREAS, the success of the East Coast Surfing Championship has attracted a diverse and talented group of young professionals to volunteer for the event, with one such volunteer, Tony Pellino, selected by the Virginia Beach Jaycees as the event chair in 2020; and

WHEREAS, Tony Pellino and George Alcaraz worked tirelessly to adapt to the challenges of holding the East Coast Surfing Championship during the COVID-19 pandemic and created a comprehensive plan to ensure that the event was able to move forward safely, which included limitations on attendance, major safety measures, and online services to livestream the event to 230,000 viewers around the world; and

WHEREAS, thanks to the dedication and ingenuity of its organizers, the East Coast Surfing Championship has endured hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, global economic downturns, and a global pandemic to become the longest-running surfing contest in the nation and, as of 2021, the world; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend the East Coast Surfing Championship on becoming the longest-running surfing championship in the world; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Virginia Beach Jaycees as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration for the East Coast Surfing Championship’s nearly 60 years of contributions to the Virginia Beach community.

SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 5001

Offered February 10, 2021
Commending the East Coast Surfing Championship.
Patrons-- DeSteph; Delegate: Knight

Unanimous consent to introduce

WHEREAS, the annual East Coast Surfing Championship, organized by the Virginia Beach Jaycees, became the longest-running surfing championship in the world in 2021; and

WHEREAS, the Virginia Beach Jaycees, first formed in 1948, provides development opportunities that empower young people to create positive change in their community and has a long history in the establishment of several community projects; and

WHEREAS, one such event, the East Coast Surfing Championship, created in 1963, invites surfers from throughout the United States and around the world to compete for the title of “The Champion of the Atlantic Coast”; and

WHEREAS, the East Coast Surfing Championship has become an internationally recognized event, with up to 23 countries being represented by professional riders, and it has awarded close to $1 million in prizes to contestants since 2009; and

WHEREAS, during the East Coast Surfing Championship’s 50th anniversary celebration in August 2012, the event welcomed close to 200,000 participants and visitors to the City of Virginia Beach over the course of seven days; and

WHEREAS, according to the City of Virginia Beach’s resort event analysis, the 2018 East Coast Surfing Championship generated $25.8 million in economic activity, the most of any festival or marathon that year; and

WHEREAS, the growth of the East Coast Surfing Championship created a need for a more robust operational support system, and Resort Management, LLC, took the lead in expanding the event’s marketing platform and building national partnerships, such as with the event’s title sponsor, Coastal Edge Surf Shop; and

WHEREAS, the success of the East Coast Surfing Championship has attracted a diverse and talented group of young professionals to volunteer for the event, with one such volunteer, Tony Pellino, selected by the Virginia Beach Jaycees as the event chair in 2020; and

WHEREAS, Tony Pellino and George Alcaraz worked tirelessly to adapt to the challenges of holding the East Coast Surfing Championship during the COVID-19 pandemic and created a comprehensive plan to ensure that the event was able to move forward safely, which included limitations on attendance, major safety measures, and online services to livestream the event to 230,000 viewers around the world; and

WHEREAS, thanks to the dedication and ingenuity of its organizers, the East Coast Surfing Championship has endured hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, global economic downturns, and a global pandemic to become the longest-running surfing contest in the nation and, as of 2021, the world; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the General Assembly hereby commend the East Coast Surfing Championship on becoming the longest-running surfing championship in the world; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate prepare a copy of this resolution for presentation to the Virginia Beach Jaycees as an expression of the General Assembly’s admiration for the East Coast Surfing Championship’s nearly 60 years of contributions to the Virginia Beach community.