North Shore Surf Community Raises Thousands Of Dollars For Local Surfers Medical Expenses
“It just made me so proud to be part of this community, and every single band was amazing.”
Eight months ago, Dakota Briley — son of legendary Pipeline surfer Shawn Briley — was seriously injured in a freak accident while loading surfboards at Chun’s.
“His ribs have been crushed, his spine is severed and broken in multiple places, the back of his skull has been crushed, fractured in 8 places, from the hips down his legs have been crushed,” wrote his brother Ryder at the time.
Over the past few months, the Briley family and North Shore community has raised around $400,000 to assist with Dakota’s recovery — but the costs are ongoing and the rehab seemingly endless.
“I believe that money has all been put to use,” explains North Shore staple Liam McNamara. “So we wanted to bring attention to the fact that his recovery is very much ongoing.”
How’d they bring attention to it?
The second annual Ke Nui Fest — a local music festival put on by Landon McNamara featuring performances from Kanaka Fyah, Kolohe Kai, and more.
“We did it last year and it was really beautiful last year, and this year was going to be bigger and they had the whole place set up differently,” explains longtime North Shore photographer Brian Bielmann. “Unfortunately, there was a horrible downpour. But even with the rain, I couldn’t believe how wonderful it ended up being. It was all for Dakota, and the fact that everybody came together to help with food, setup, music, photos, donations, or whatever. It just made me so proud to be part of this community, and every single band was amazing.”
According to Liam, they are still counting the donations but have raised somewhere between $25,000 – 50,000 for Dakota’s recovery.
“Liam and I definitely had our differences in the past,” says Brian. “But Liam has turned out to be such a leader of our community. I can’t even believe it. It’s amazing what he does for our community and how he makes things happen. It blows my mind. And it was all about Dakota. The smile on his face when the camera was on, and his mom was holding it, I’m ready to choke up right now talking about it.”
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