From Team to Foundation
For the past 20 years, Melanie “Mel” Liesener has worked in special education at the Sussex Consortium, part of the Cape Henlopen School District. Since 2017, she’s also served as president of the Surfgimp Foundation, which provides grants for adaptive sports and lifestyle costs – covering equipment, competition fees, and travel expenses.
Her leadership role is deeply personal. Mel was married to the late James “Jay” Liesener – whose story is at the heart of the foundation.
Jay was injured his senior year of high school in a trampoline accident that broke his C4-5 vertebrae, rendering him a quadriplegic. Mel didn’t meet Jay until later, when they shared a class at the University of Maryland. Both were 22, pursuing master’s degrees in rehabilitation counseling.
“On our first date, he picked me up and drove in the rain,” she says, smiling. “Jay was magnetic.”
The couple got engaged during grad school. After earning their degrees, Mel began teaching special education, and Jay completed all requirements for his doctorate, except defending his thesis due to complications from his disability.
They married in 2005, but it was in 2003 – while still engaged – that everything changed. Jay had just stepped away from his academic career due to health issues, including pressure sores, ulcers, and frequent infections. Around this time, he watched a documentary, Step Into Liquid, featuring Jesse Billauer, a surfer who became a quadriplegic after a spinal cord injury.
“It was exciting for him – he was a daredevil and never sat still,” Mel says. “When we moved to Delaware, he had his mind set on surfing.”
Through the Life Rolls On Foundation, they attended a They Will Surf Again event, giving Jay his first post-injury experience in the ocean.
“He was the most disabled participant,” Mel remembers. “From a surfing standard, it was a nightmare. But for survival in the water – it was a huge success.”
He wiped out on a wave. “I was nervous, watching from the sand,” Mel says, “but I had the perfect view of him emerging from the water with the biggest smile on his face.”
She later shared a letter Jay wrote about that day:
“Just floating in the salt water and feeling the rhythmic motion of the waves rolling in was instantly familiar and flooded my brain with endorphins. When they pushed me into my first post-injury wave, it was a done deal. I was hooked. The sensation of the ocean grabbing the board and propelling me forward awakened the deep love for riding waves I had grown up with and felt forced to give up after my injury. I was stoked – and I knew surfing would be part of the rest of my life.”
From that moment on, surfing became part of their life together.
Jay, with help from friends, began modifying an adaptive surfboard to better suit his body. They recruited local volunteers by hanging posters at Surf Bagel and East of Maui, gradually forming a network of supporters from as far as Milford. That grassroots group became the original “Team Surfgimp.”
Jay surfed well – so well that he began traveling for it. They took trips to Assateague Island and the Outer Banks. In 2013, a Team Surfgimp member nominated him to attend the Quiksilver In Memory of Eddie Aikau event in Hawaii. It was Jay’s first flight.
“It was challenging, but we managed with our group of 10. The trip was amazing,” Mel says.
By 2017, Jay’s health declined, and he asked Mel to consider turning the team into something bigger. That same year, they traveled to Puerto Rico with 54 people representing Team Surfgimp, and later to California with 24 – both trips funded by the local community.
Team Surfgimp had become a movement. Volunteers made it all possible, building a strong adaptive community with Jay at the center.
Just two days before Jay died in 2017, the group received legal approval to form a nonprofit. Surfgimp Foundation was officially born. “Jay didn’t want the momentum to stop,” Mel says. “Team Surfgimp was about Jay. The foundation is about community.”
The first grant was awarded in January 2018 – just after Jay’s passing – for $3,000. The recipient used the funds to purchase a portable all-terrain wheelchair and has since traveled the world.
“She still sends us pictures,” Mel says. “That’s what it’s all about.”
Surfgimp Foundation is 100 percent volunteer-run. To qualify for a grant, applicants must have a disability and benefit from assistance to be active. Since its inception, the foundation has awarded more than $460,000 to over 300 recipients – ranging in age from 2 to their 70s.
“We recently gave a grant to a nursing home resident for a power wheelchair – so they could be a goalie in power soccer,” Mel says.
The foundation has a board of seven, including Mel, along with fundraising and communications committees. Hundreds of supporters continue to power Jay’s legacy – helping others feel the same freedom he felt catching that first wave.
“Nothing was ever small with Jay. I should’ve known it would go big,” Mel says.
In 2025, the foundation received 131 grant applications and awarded $100,202 to 72 recipients. “We had to turn down 59 applications because the total ask was over $718,000 – and we can only give what we raise.”
Mel continues to lead with purpose. “I’ll never not feel close to him. He’s embedded into my world.”
She wears a custom ring shaped like a dandelion, made by local designer Heidi Lowe. The stones came from her wedding set – six diamonds for their six-year engagement, plus the engagement stone.
“I didn’t want to wear them in the same form, not with the same meaning. But with the same force. They’re part of me,” Mel says. “Dandelions are for making wishes. And we make people’s wishes come true.”
Jay’s final wish was to “go exploring,” and he has his ashes returned to the earth. “For the last eight years, family, friends – even strangers – have helped me scatter his ashes around the world,” Mel says. “We keep a map with pins.”
These featured stories represent just a small sample of the lives impacted by Surfgimp’s mission to reduce financial barriers for people with disabilities:
1. Zach
Zach received a grant for weekly therapeutic horseback riding, which helps with strength, mobility, and communication. His grant also funded access to sensory rides and time in amusement parks.
2. Liv
Liv received a grant to support expenses for adaptive surfing competitions. With each new wave, she finds motivation to push her limits and mentor others.
3. Victoria
Victoria used a grant to help fund adaptive racing and travel to world surf competitions. She later won the Women’s Kneel World Title at the US Open.
4. Louisa
Louisa received a grant for a new sports wheelchair, which she used to build strength and finish in the top 5 at her first pro event.
5. Tom
Tom received a grant for private adaptive ski instruction. A former water skier, his work ethic and love of snow helped him rediscover confidence. No doubt, his tenacity couldn’t be crushed.
6. Ben
Ben received a grant for an auger-adapted kayak he now uses for solo fishing adventures. He’s also earned a captain’s license – and found a new path of calm and independence.
