Phil Salick
Phil Salick, twin brother to Rich (East Coast Surfing Hall of Fame, Class of 2000), made his mark on the surfing world through mentorship and philanthropy. Together, the two Floridian surfers established the National Kidney Foundation’s Rich Salick Pro-Am Surf Fest, the largest charitable surfing festival in the world.
The brothers took up surfing in the early 1960s at the Bradenton Beach Pier on Central Florida’s West Coast. They were noticed in 1966 by Mike Tabeling, who was visiting the area on a sales run. Tabeling spotted a surfer who was catching twice as many waves as any other rider in the water. When he realized he was watching identical twins, he offered them both a spot on Dewey Weber’s Surf Team. The brothers moved to Cocoa Beach and enrolled at a local community college. To earn extra money, they helped out at Weber’s Surf Shop, fixing dings and running errands. In time, Phil Salick made a name for himself as a free surfer, while Rich went on the competitive route.
The brothers opened their own store in 1971, Salick Surf Shop, which sold Carson/Salick Surfboards shaped by Bob Carson and airbrushed by Rich. They created a surf team, recruiting young Cocoa Beach talent. One of their best talents and future legendary shaper, Matt Kechele, remembered: “The Salicks were the first to believe in me, support me, and encourage me to start doing contests. They were definitely huge role models in my life and their team was pretty amazing back in the day.”
In 1973, Rich was diagnosed with kidney disease — an event that would change the course of both brothers’ lives. Salick donated his kidney and teamed up with Rich and the Salick Surfboards Surf Team to organize a small charity surfing competition in Cocoa Beach. In those early days of their philanthropy, the twins hand delivered the cash proceeds from their events to various dialysis units across the region.
The event received national sponsorship from the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) in 1985 and has since transformed into a weeklong festival attended by thousands, both from within and outside the surfing community. Over the course of its 40 year existence, the festival — which includes a surfing competition, musical entertainment, banquets and a silent auction — has raised more than five million dollars and counting for kidney disease research, patient support, public education and organ donation.
The surfing world lost Rich in 2012 to kidney failure, but Salick carries on the Salick legacy through his continued role spearheading the festival. The brothers found purpose in Rich’s diagnosis, making an impact not just on the surfing community, but on those suffering from kidney disease. In the words of Kelly Slater, “The Salick brothers made my first surfboard, ran the first event my brothers and I ever surfed in, ran NKF — Florida legends and family friends for life!”
