"You belong to the community regardless." - BoWaine (Bo) Ma, Co-founder and Director, Siren Section
Siren Section started with a wetsuit fitting.
BoWaine (Bo) Ma was learning to teach surfing at a local surf shop when she met her future co-founder, Amber Harding. "We bonded right away over the fitting of a wetsuit, and we took the chance to connect with one another," says Bo, now co-founder and director of Siren Section.
In the days that followed, the two surfed on opposite beaches and realized they had an opportunity: to learn and grow together, and lean on each other through the challenges of learning to surf and skateboard. As their friendship grew, so did an idea. Other people might want this kind of community too. "Because we currently don't have anything existing of that sort, we came together to create it," Bo says.
A Name With Attitude
Amber, the creative force behind the club, came up with the name. The siren isn't a villain. According to Amber, the siren is magnetic, confident, powerful, and connected to the water.
"She's got attitude, and she's rebellious, which I think is really important." Bo Says.
That spirit runs through everything Siren Section does, from learning to paddle out on Lake Huron to dropping in at a skate workshop for the first time.
A Club Where You Belong
Siren Section is a women and queer surf and skate club. It teaches people to surf on Lake Huron, hosts skateboarding workshops, and runs socials where people can make friends and grow together as they learn.
What the team is proudest of isn't a single moment. It's the feeling people get when they first arrive: "the feeling of warmth and inclusion, being greeted, and knowing that you belong."
Members are welcome to come as they are, without changing any part of themselves to fit in. There's no expectation to attend every event. "You belong to the community regardless," Bo says. Seeing people build confidence in a workshop, or leave with a new friend, is what makes it worthwhile.
Never Really a Solo Sport
From the outside, surfing and skateboarding look like individual pursuits. "You are the main character of your own experience or hobby," Bo says. But it's the people who make it enjoyable, fresh, and new. Learning alongside friends, or even strangers, helps you grow and get past setbacks. "Fostering that connection is what kind of keeps us human and keeps us going."
Both Worlds
Siren Section is a social enterprise. From the start, the founders wanted everything they did, from merchandise to services to socials, to give back to the women and queer surfers and skaters who make it possible. Every transaction carries that mission: one person's chance to surf and skate opens up an opportunity for someone else. And it's working. Bo sees it becoming "normalized for women and queer people in these male-dominated spaces."
Three years in, the team is learning that "it's okay to have a bit of both worlds." It's okay to invest in the team and still give back to the community.
As young women, Bo says, "knowing our worth and our value is the biggest challenge right now." The team is learning that it's okay to make a profit and to take care of themselves and each other. "If we're burnt out, we can't give anything."
What makes it worth doing is the freedom to create, a team that listens, and "having the grace to say that we're learning."
A Safe Place to Ask Hard Questions
Siren Section found Pillar through the Meaningful Market, which gave the team a welcoming place to show who they are to the local community. What kept them connected were the people.
As a young entrepreneur with a small, young team, Bo values having somewhere to ask difficult questions. "I'm not afraid to engage or sound silly when I'm asking those questions," she says. "Safe space is so important to have when you're learning something very difficult."
Free workshops, resources, and blogs help, too. As the club grows, Bo hopes to find mentors who can see the business objectively, and one day give back to the network herself.
Riding the Ripples
Siren Section is building a small team and preparing to scale. Bo is excited to see the ripples reach both the next generation of girls and queer athletes and older athletes joining now, all "embracing that fearlessness through surfing and skateboarding."
Her advice for Pillar's 25th anniversary is to keep the mission top of mind. "Don't let the time jade you or deviate you from your original mission." The goal, she says, “is to make everyone who comes in new "feel like it's their first time," just as she felt at the Meaningful Market.
Being part of this story has also reminded her what visibility can do. "I never notice how much impact having a voice means until we're given the opportunity," she says. Her hope is that the impact will "trickle down," creating safe spaces where the next generation can share their skills and knowledge too.
One wetsuit fitting started it all. Now, Siren Section continues to create a safe space for women and queer athletes in the surf and skate community.
Learn more about Siren Section: https://www.sirensection.ca/