15/06/2026
There are very few people who get to say they helped build something from an idea into a nation wide community. Luke is one of them.
From those early days of loading boards, setting up tents, hoping families would show up and believing the ocean could create something bigger, Luke helped Ocean Heroes become what it is today.
Not just a program, but a community.
Over the years, thousands of neurodivergent participants, families and volunteers have walked onto the sand and found connection and belonging. Behind every road trip, challenge, partnership and every moment in the water, there has been an huge amount of work going on behind the scenes that Luke has made happen.
Founders often get recognised for starting something, but what feels more fitting here is recognising the years of continuing to show up. Through growth, challenges, long days, changing seasons and everything in between, Luke kept backing the mission and the people around it.
To our volunteers, staff, families, participants, partners and supporters, thank you for helping carry the vision and making Ocean Heroes what it has become.
And to Luke, thank you.
Thank you for taking a chance on an idea
Thank you for creating opportunities where they didn’t exist.
Thank you for believing in the power of the ocean and in the young people and families who trusted us.
The impact you leave behind reaches far beyond the shoreline and will continue in every future session, every volunteer who puts their hand up and every participant who discovers they belong in the ocean.
Ocean Heroes will keep paddling forward because of the foundations you helped build 💙
