Support Long Beach Kahakai Women in Brazil

We are the Long Beach, California Kahakai Women's Outrigger Team and we’ve got some exciting news—we’ve qualified to compete for TEAM USA in the Masters 40+ Division at the 2025 World Championships this summer in Brazil!

This competition offers our athletes a chance to develop their skills and experience in a way that will inspire others - especially young and upcoming female athletes - to pursue their sport at a competitive level, where they see an opportunity for international-level competitions.

Our goal is simple: we want to have an amazing time, push ourselves to the limit, and bring home a World Championship win for Kahakai Outrigger Canoe Club and the City of Long Beach!

After months of late-night, grueling training sessions, we’re pumped to represent our team and our Long Beach community on the world stage. Our crew—Ashley Richardson Deppe, Cat Bell Dorman, Christy Smitheran, Heather Picquelle, Rhisa Gibbs, and Suzy Strazzulla—have been putting in the work, and we’ve come together as a team that’s not just about paddling, but about having fun, building strong bonds, and supporting each other every step of the way.

But to get there, we need your help. We’re requesting donations to cover the travel and event costs, and every little bit helps. Whether you can contribute a little or a lot, it means the world to us to have your support.

Thank you for being part of our journey. We can’t wait to represent you all in Brazil, race hard, and hopefully, celebrate some big wins with the best team around! Let’s do this!

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