About Columbia Gorge Windsurfing Association

The Columbia Gorge Windsurfing Association is a 501(c)(3) membership nonprofit in Hood River, Oregon. They were founded in 1987 and have worked with members and partners to create and improve beaches along the Columbia River. They aim to fully engaged the windsurfing community in access to sites and services in support of windsurfing in the Gorge.

Today they have over 500 members helping improve the windsurfing experience in the Gorge for everyone! CGWA doesn't just help beaches for everyone, they help kids learning to windsurf. Parents are able to enroll their child in the kids program, "Gorge Groms," where they pay a small price and their kids can enjoy windsurfing all summer long. The fee allows CGWA to have two trailers full of nice gear for the kids and store it for them right at the beach so they don't have to worry about packing it up every time they want to get on the water.

Along with their kids program, we have recently started an "A-Team." The A-Team is coached by volunteer pro windsurfers who get the kids excited about competing in windsurfing. SWAP meets are another big thing CGWA does to keep the new gear coming. Every Sunday they head to a popular windsurfing company parking lot to gain new items. You can either swap out your old gear for something new or buy our used gear for cheap!

In my short stay with CGWA, I helped gain over 50 members and 20 kids enrolled in the kids program. I worked with on other intern and my boss to plan an event that would raise money for CGWA to use for their program. The weekend long event was called "Beach Bash." It was held on the Columbia River Gorge event site next to the beach where windsurfers launch off. We held a silent auction event Thursday night to kick off the event with dinner and a live band. Friday we had a waterfront concert by the beach with beer, wine, and food vendors from local restaurants. Saturday and Sunday were a party at the beach! We had two more live bands, food vendors, and demos for those wanting to test the gear on the water.

The main point of this event was to get people excited about windsurfing and CGWA. We had people donate and sign up for memberships all weekend long. For those who signed up for memberships recieved demos for the whole day for just $10! That means they were able to test brand new gear from our vendors ALL DAY long out on the water. My experience with event planning and marketing wouldn't be the same without this company.