WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — A West Palm Beach woman is using a heartbreaking life experience to mentor other women.
"I grew up surfing in South Carolina, actually. And I grew up with two older brothers surfing," said Mary Glazier.
She taught herself how to surf after her 17-year-old brother died by suicide 14 years ago. She felt it was a way to connect with her brother.
"This means more to me like some competitive, thing,” said Glazier. “This is like a therapy for me, this is personal for me, I want this for myself."
Now the West Palm Beach resident is mentoring other women by teaching them how to surf and the importance of mental health—from working moms to women in their 70s.
"To be able to plug out and have time for yourself to just get in the moment and be present,” said Glazier, “because there is so much that is pulling us away from that lately."
She's taking her mentoring via surfing lessons to a different level with help from the organization 1909, which helps entrepreneurs.
"She will go through our six month accelerated program,” Shana Ostrovitz said, “where she will learn all different types of business fundamentals and dive into her business where she needs the most help."
Ostrovitz is the executive director of 1901. The organization helps entrepreneurs grow their business.
"Mary started as a very small business just coaching and teaching on her own, but saw the potential to train women to surf,” said Ostrovitz. “So, she wants to grow that business, bring on more instructors and really support more people locally."
Glazier sees the benefits of surfing and hopes she can help others.
"I guess growing so much in my mental health that I see the value in just the simple encouragements,” she said, “even that one hour of fun or joy or one smile can really break some of those depressive habits."