501(C)(3) NONPROFIT | SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA
ThinkWaves.org
The Smart Surfers Way
Reducing ocean rescues.
Preventing drowning deaths.
One clear message at a time.
MEDIA KIT
2026
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Milton
Willis — President info@thinkwaves.org | 760.978.9263 | www.thinkwaves.org |
ThinkWaves.org is a San Diego-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded
by identical twin surfers Milton and Michael Willis — the Willis Brothers. Our
mission is to reduce ocean rescues and prevent drowning deaths through
evidence-based public education.
Our flagship campaign, "The Smart Surfers Way,"
translates the hard-won, experiential knowledge of the surf community into
clear, visual, actionable guidance that works in the moment of crisis — not
just in the classroom.
We do not seek or accept government funding. ThinkWaves
is community-supported, driven by a belief that better-informed beachgoers save
lives.
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"To reduce rescues and
prevent ocean drowning deaths by closing the knowledge gap between surfers
and the general public — one clear, memorable message at a time." |
Milton and Michael Willis are identical twin surfers from San
Diego whose firsthand experience in the surf zone became the foundation for ThinkWaves. Their insight: that surfers possess life-saving
knowledge most beachgoers simply never receive — and that bridging that gap
could save hundreds of lives each year.
The Willis Brothers bring to ThinkWaves
not only a lifetime of ocean experience, but a commitment to translating that
expertise into communications that are clear, credible, and actionable for
everyday beachgoers. What began as a personal observation about a preventable
tragedy has grown into a structured public education organization with
documented, real-world results.
THE PROBLEM
Rip currents are the single most dangerous hazard at U.S. surf
beaches — responsible for the majority of lifeguard
rescues nationwide and claiming more than 100 lives every year. Despite decades
of public safety campaigns, the knowledge gap between beachgoers and the ocean
remains stubbornly wide.
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100+ Lives lost to rip currents annually in the U.S. |
#1 Leading cause of lifeguard rescues at surf beaches |
62% vs. 28% Surfers identify rip currents
at more than twice the rate of regular swimmers Source: Natural Hazards and Earth System Sciences |
The data tells a clear story: experienced ocean users — surfers,
bodyboarders — carry institutional knowledge that most beachgoers never
receive. ThinkWaves exists to change that.
For generations, surfers have developed an intuitive, body-level
understanding of how the ocean works — how to read water, where currents flow,
and how to get back to shore under duress. This knowledge is absorbed through
thousands of hours in the water. It is almost never formally taught. And it is
almost never transmitted to the general public.
Meanwhile, millions of beachgoers enter the surf zone each year
with little to no understanding of how rip currents form, how to spot them, or
— critically — how to escape one once caught. Traditional public safety
messaging has made meaningful progress but continues to face barriers: abstract
language, poor visual anchoring, and instructions that are difficult to recall
under physical and psychological stress.
ThinkWaves was built to close that gap.
OUR CAMPAIGN
ThinkWaves' public education approach centers on two pieces of guidance
that are more visually intuitive and actionable than conventional safety
messaging:
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▲ Message One: Swim Toward the Breaking
Waves Rip currents flow seaward
through gaps where waves are NOT breaking. Breaking waves form over sandbars that
naturally push swimmers back to shore. This gives a panicked swimmer a
visible, moving landmark they can locate even under duress — rather than
asking them to figure out which direction parallel to shore to swim. |
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▲ Message Two: Stay In
Front of the Waves A prevention-first message that
reinforces spatial awareness before a swimmer enters a rip current. Staying
in front of the breaking surf keeps beachgoers out of the rip current's path
entirely — the simplest survival strategy of all. |
Critically, this guidance is not at odds with NOAA's existing
recommendations. Both approaches direct swimmers away from the current and
toward the breaking surf. ThinkWaves simply offers a framing that research suggests is faster to process and
act upon in an emergency.
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“ Our goal has never been to
contradict NOAA — it's to amplify what they already know to be true, in
language that clicks faster when someone is scared and exhausted in the
water. If a surfer instinctively knows to angle toward the whitewater, that's
an insight we can teach to everyone. — Milton Willis, President,
ThinkWaves.org |
IMPACT
ThinkWaves' effectiveness isn't theoretical. The organization has
documented real-world accounts of individuals applying its
guidance in life-threatening situations — stories that illustrate the power of
a single clear, memorable message in the right moment.
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■ Case Study:
Kurt Besmer — Ventura, California An experienced surfer, Besmer was swept offshore on a ten-foot day after his
leash snapped. As he began to panic, he recalled ThinkWaves'
guidance and angled his swim toward the nearest breaking waves — rather than
fighting the current head-on. He made it safely back to shore and credited
the information he learned from ThinkWaves with
saving his life. |
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■ Case Study:
Tom, Flight Attendant — Costa Rica On a layover in Costa Rica,
Tom encountered a group of five Japanese swimmers caught in a rip current.
Using a bodyboard and fins, and directing the swimmers toward breaking waves,
he helped guide the entire group to safety — a rescue he later credited to
prior education through ThinkWaves. |
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“ Stories like these are exactly
why we started this organization. One clear, memorable phrase, in the right
moment, is the difference between a tragedy and a story someone gets to tell. — Milton Willis, President,
ThinkWaves.org |
These accounts represent not just personal survival stories, but
validation of the core ThinkWaves thesis: that
surf-community knowledge, properly distilled and communicated, can be
transmitted to anyone — and retained under extreme stress.
PARTNERSHIPS & OUTREACH
ThinkWaves has formally reached out to the National Oceanic and
Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), contacting the NOAA Administrator, to
explore a public education partnership that could reshape how Americans respond
to rip currents.
ThinkWaves is not seeking financial support. The outreach is focused
entirely on alignment — ensuring "The Smart Surfers Way" messaging
works in concert with federal guidance, creating a unified, reinforcing public
safety voice rather than competing signals.
● Co-branded public service
announcements (PSAs) — Joint messaging distributed
through federal, state, and local channels during peak beach season
● Shared educational materials and
digital resources
— Visual guides, social media assets, and printable safety cards combining ThinkWaves and NOAA branding
● Coordinated public-facing
campaigns during peak beach season — Memorial Day through Labor Day outreach targeting coastal
communities and visitors
● Cross-sector communication
alignment — Ensuring
lifeguard associations, municipal beach programs, and federal agencies speak
with one consistent voice
This reflects ThinkWaves' broader
philosophy: that ocean rescue and drowning prevention is a shared public health
challenge that benefits from cross-sector partnerships, community knowledge,
and communications designed for the moment of crisis — not the comfort of a
classroom.
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◆ Community-Funded. Independence
Guaranteed. ThinkWaves does not seek or accept
government funding. Our community-supported model ensures that our messaging
is driven entirely by what works — guided by evidence, shaped by the surf
community, and accountable to the public we serve. |
ORGANIZATIONAL BOILERPLATE
ThinkWaves.org is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit based in San Diego,
California, founded by twin surfers Milton and Michael Willis with a mission to
reduce ocean rescues and prevent drowning deaths through evidence-based public
education. The organization's "The Smart Surfers Way" campaign
draws on surf community knowledge and published research to develop rip current
survival guidance that is intuitive, visual, and actionable under stress.
ThinkWaves does not seek or accept government funding. Its work is
community-supported and driven by a belief that better-informed beachgoers save
lives.
PRESS & MEDIA INQUIRIES
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Milton Willis President, ThinkWaves.org Phone: 760.978.9263 Email: info@thinkwaves.org Website: www.thinkwaves.org Location: San Diego, California |
ThinkWaves welcomes media inquiries,
partnership discussions, and requests for educational materials. We are
available for interviews, expert commentary on rip current safety, and
collaborative campaign development with journalists, broadcasters, and public
health communicators.
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ThinkWaves.org | The Smart Surfers Way |
info@thinkwaves.org
| 760.978.9263 |
www.thinkwaves.org © 2026 ThinkWaves.org |
501(c)(3) Nonprofit
| San Diego, California |