Homeschooling Hero: Bethany Hamilton

by Christina Yeager

​Bethany Hamilton is a professional surfer who was attacked by a shark at the age of 13 on October 31st, 2003 at Tunnels Beach, Hawaii. Despite only having one arm due to this tragedy, she still pursued her dream of becoming a professional surfer and succeeded. Bethany had spent her entire life in Hawaii and began surfing when she was just 4 years old. She officially participated in a surfing competition at the age of 8. Homeschooling allowed her to pursue this ambitious desire. ​

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How homeschooling helped Bethany Hamilton

​Homeschooling
Bethany always dreamt to become a professional surfer since childhood. Even after the shark attack, she returned to the beach in less than a month and again started surfing. To overcome the hindrances of her surfing wish, she started to learn academics at home after completing the sixth grade at the Hanalei School.

The main reason for home-based education was to spare more time to surf and practice - school was scheduled during primary surfing hours. She had to start homeschooling for the better good of her ambition. Though Bethany’s family was not financially stable at that time, her parents still supported her in every possible way to help her pursue the dream of becoming a professional surfer.

“Self-education is the only possible education; the rest is mere veneer laid on the surface of a child's nature.”
Says Charlotte Mason

Her father was a waiter in a fine dining restaurant and mother remained a banquet server for a couple of years. When Bethany started learning at home, her mother shifted to a part-time job to lend more time to Bethany. She was homeschooled until graduation.

After the shark attack, Bethany also appeared in several TV shows. You can also read her autobiography aptly named “Soul Surfer.”

Accomplishments
Bethany Hamilton has won many awards to date. She has always been a generous person who likes to be supportive and give a lot to charities. She is an excellent role model, she exhibits that there is always a chance to succeed and reach your life goals.

Some athletic achievements of Bethany are as follows:

• 1st place in Rell Sun Menehune in 1998
• 1st place in Open Women’s Division of NSSA in 2002
• 1st place in NSSA National competition 2004 and 2005
• 1st place in Island Girl O’Neil Junior Tournament in 2005
• 5th place in NSSA National Under-18 Championship in 2006
• 5th place in Hawaii Team Highlights in 2006
• 1st place in T&C Pipeline Women’s Pro in 2007
• 5th place in US Open of Surfing at Huntington Beach in 2008
• 3rd place in Roxy Pro Surf Festival Philip Island, Australia in 2008
• 3rd place in Rio Surf International in Brazil in 2009
• 2nd place in Billabong ASP World Junior Championship in 2009
• 1st place in Surf n Sea Pipeline Women’s Pro in 2014
• 13th place in Swatch Women’s Pro in 2015
• 3rd place in Fiji Women’s Pro in 2016

Bethany took part in several international tournaments and stood on top against pro surfers. Having one arm became an encouragement as she turned adversity to motivation. When she was nominated for the 2016 ESPY award for the Best Disabled Athlete Woman, she declined it. She later said, “I just couldn’t accept this award joyfully.”

Currently
What is Bethany doing now?

Bethany met her other half, Adam Dirks through a mutual relation in 2012. She was later engaged to him in April 2013 and then married the same year in August. The happy couple now has two sons, Tobias and Wesley. When it comes to surfing, Bethany is still traveling worldwide, participating in the surfing tournaments, and speaking.

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