Encinitas: Our History and People

SURFING
MADONNA
ORGANIZATION
On Good Friday, April 22nd, 2011, the
community of Encinitas was gifted with the Surfing
Madonna mosaic, Our Lady, Star of the Sea.
Local artist, Mark Patterson and his good friend
Bob Nichols, dressed up as constructions workers
and clandestinely hung the beautiful Surfing
Madonna mosaic with its “Save the Ocean” theme.
The mosaic was originally mounted underneath
the train bridge, across the street from its current
home. The mosaic received international attention
while the artist remained anonymous for months
until discovered. Although beloved by the
community, she could not stay there and eventually
found her new permanent home directly across the
street from her original location.
Mark Patterson and Bob Nichols sought to
raise awareness of the value of the world’s
Oceans. Through Mark’s his vision he created the
Surfing Madonna mosaic to spread a message of
environmental awareness of Mother Ocean.
The mosaic gave birth to the Surfing Madonna
Oceans Project which has continued to serve the
Ocean and community through funding of local
arts, environmental awareness, and by introducing
special needs youth and those with disabilities to
the joys of the ocean through free summer surf
camps and aquatic programming.
In 2013 Bob Nichols created the Surfing
Madonna Beach Run to raise funds for the
organization and their projects. And in 2017 the
Guinness Book of World Records declared it the
“Largest Beach Run in the World”.
Says The Encinitas Advocate, “It’s official:
Encinitas is the world record-holder for the largest
beach run. The Surfing Madonna Beach Run on
Nov. 5, 2017 earned the new Guinness Book of
World Records title after more than 4,000 people
ran across the sands of Moonlight Beach.”
Since 2014 the Surfing Madonna Oceans
Projects has donated over $600,000 to a variety
of local ocean, beach, park and humanitarian
related projects through its events.
It’s amazing to think that all this started from
the installation of a mosaic by two guys dressed
as construction workers.
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