There's a well-known saying: "Do what you love, and you'll never work a day in your life." Nothing could be more true for Seth Broudy, professional surfer and owner of Seth Broudy's School of Surf in Virginia Beach. The Virginia Beach native grew up on 56th Street with a passion for surfing.

"I started surfing when I was six," Seth says. "We had just moved to 56th Street, and I would walk out to the beach and watch the kids surfing. At the time, I had a boogie board, so I started surfing on that. The lifeguards convinced my mom to get me a surfboard after watching me. She did, and I surfed with other kids on the block who I'm still friends with to this day. In elementary and junior high, that bus couldn't get me home quick enough to get on my bike and get down to the surfing spot!" he adds with a laugh.

Seth's passion for surfing never dimmed. He continued perfecting his wave riding skills with the intent to earn a living from his passion. At a young age, he traveled the world, making a living by winning surfing competitions as a pro. His dream was eclipsed, however, as a young adult due to severe back pain.

"When I got into my 20s, I started having back problems," Seth recalls. "My back locked up in the water during the ECSC competition, and I had to be pulled onto the beach. I swam in, but I couldn't stand up. The ambulance picked me up off the beach and took me to the ER. That was the end of my surfing for a living."

After the tremendous disappointment of a dream unfulfilled, Seth briefly stayed connected to a surfing career by traveling the East Coast selling surfboards for Hotline. Still, plane travel wreaked havoc on his back, and he had to stop traveling. After several years managing a car wash franchise, Seth started his own dump truck company, Broudy Hauling, which he still operates to this day.

Seth never became discouraged throughout all the changes and transitions, nor did his love for surfing ever dim. Instead, he continued to enjoy the beach, eventually teaching his young daughter, Sommer, to also enjoy surfing. In fact, Seth's surf camp arose from his father-daughter bonding.

"I got the idea when Sommer was five years old," Seth explains. "I was pushing her out in the waves on a board, and a couple of friends asked me if I'd push their kids, too. Eventually, more friends started asking me to teach their kids to surf. I was already down there having fun with Sommer, so it was fun to teach their kids, too. That's when I got the idea to look into surf camps and realized I could do that. So, I took out a loan to buy the trailer, boards, and everything I needed to start up. The first couple of years were slow. I'd have 10 to 12 kids a week. As the years went by, though, word of mouth was getting out, and I'd get a few more kids each week. So now we're up to 45 kids per week," he says with a grin.

Seth's school provides private lessons for age six to adult daily from June until September. Surf Camp offers 10 one-week camps from mid-June to mid-August for students from age six to adult. "It's very family-oriented," Seth smiles. The parents even learn with their kids. It's a lot of family fun."

Camp content includes learning about currents, rip currents, the sun, the tides, and first aid while ensuring that every student learns proper techniques. "If we see incorrect techniques in the water, we'll bring them back up on shore to make sure they learn the right techniques because we want them learning to surf safely. We want them to be safe and self-sufficient on their boards when they leave," Seth stresses.

While teaching surfing, safety, and surf etiquette, the primary purpose of Seth's camp is to build confidence. "Many kids may not be good at sports, but if they're willing to take instruction from us, we'll get them surfing: Seth insists. "You ought to see the smiles when they accomplish a goal. That's the most rewarding thing - their smiles. It may sound strange for a surf camp, but it really impacts kids and changes their lives. They wind up feeling more confident knowing they've accomplished something."

Seth's passion is to help kids learn, be happy, and find self-confidence. All 15 instructors, including Sommer and Seth's nephew, Jason, share the same passion and dedication to camp participants.
"I believe that's what sets us apart from other camps -the passion that we all have," Seth states.

"We're invested in our students. Sometimes kids say, 'I can't do it.' We encourage them and tell them they really can do anything that they set their minds to. We're not a boot camp and don't act like drill sergeants, but we don't let kids give up on themselves. When they finally stand up on their boards, smile, and say, 'I did it, Mom!' that's what it's all about."

The success of Seth's school has also provided Seth with another opportunity to serve the surfing community through his 31st Street surf shop, Grom Coast. "While there's some inventory for adults, it's mainly geared toward younger surfers, with smaller clothes, suits, wet suits, and boards. Parents found that many stores don't carry the smaller surf inventory, so I decided to fill that void. Besides, I didn't want to compete with the other larger surf shops in the area as I'm friends with most of the owners," he smiles.

After many twists and turns, Seth Broudy has taken a passion he's had since age six and made a successful living from it. The wipeout of the original dream simply made room for a bigger one that would benefit the youth in his community. As far as Seth is concerned, working at Seth Broudy's School of Surf is no work at all.