FEATURE SISTER JESS

This month’s Feature Sister is Jess x

Jess chose SOS July Lombok retreat to be her "year defining event" and we are SO glad she did!

One of my highlights from the July retreat was the seeing the biggest surfer girl smile on Jess's face as she is riding down the line. Catching her own waves and pushing herself to keep going and try again, never giving up!

Jess radiates a beautiful, positive and absolute sunshine energy everywhere she goes. Something that was felt by all of the sisters on our retreat. Jess even brought everyone to tears with her beautiful poem, she shared with the group wrapping up every individual with the kindest words and the week we shared together. We LOVE you Jess.

Jess has a pretty incredible project she has been working on that we know needs to be shared with our sisters and beyond. Read about jess's mission and how she is mentoring and empowering our future generation of sisters.

"Surfing and Sissy. That’s the dream. And it is just the beginning"

Jess x

What do you love most about surfing and what is your most memorable surf moment?

Time stands still when I am on a board in the ocean. Making art comes close, but there is something about using my entire body and being in the water that demands my complete presence. My most memorable moment to date was riding my final wave in Lombok during the Sisterhood of Surf retreat in July this year. Most of the girls were making their way to the boat, and as buggared as I was, I stayed out for one more. It was long, sweet and so much fun. I got to chat with one of our Indo coaches in the water while we waited for the others. Pure magic to finish a week of a lifetime. Satu lagi always.

What made you book your first SOS retreat and how did joining the sisterhood make you feel?

My husband introduced me to an entrepreneur called Jesse Itzler on instagram. He shares a dynamic approach to maximising every year of your life and he has something called the Big Ass Calendar. The deal is that you map out your year ahead, and decide on one year defining thing to lock in each year. NOTHING moves it from the calendar. You then plan something new to do every second month, and you lock those things in also. By prioritising these, you'll end up having a year of a lifetime every year, rather than trying to squeeze some good stuff in between work and life’s obligations. I had already had a big year of change in 2024... moving my fam to Indo from Australia, quitting our jobs, packing up the house and buying a one-way ticket to see if we could make it work. I've spent many, many years hustling for other people's dreams, so it was time I hustled for my own. I decided I wanted to become a confident surfer, a friend suggested I check out SOS... and once I'd seen the Lombok itinerary, and realised that it fell on my birthday, I knew it was done. It became my year defining thing. The sisterhood I discovered while on this trip was unexpected and seriously (and quite sadly I think) one of the biggest things missing from my life. What a bloody gift to spend a week with women that began as strangers but quite quickly I realised were my people.

Top 3 highlights of your trip with SOS?

• Spending my 44th birthday snorkeling around one of my fav places, the Gili Islands: seeing turtles and mantas. What a treat.

• Making deep connections and friendships with incredible women.

• Experiencing the sweet mellow baby waves of Lombok, and realising that I’m actually surfing!!! Before every session I was nervous, but in the water, the coaches made me feel at ease.

Any advice for future sisters wanting to give it a go?

Oh love… seriously, if booking an SOS retreat has been a thought on your mind to try, then please lock this shit in before you have a chance to talk yourself out of it. Too often as women we put everyone else first. If you’ve had dreams of having salty hair and being barefoot and riding sweet waves with your sisters…. Then get your credit card out toot sweet. By saying yes to me this year, it has taught me so much more than how to paddle out the back. I can’t remember a better purchase.

Tell us about Sissy and all the wonderful work you are doing to empower our future young women...

For twenty years I have had dirty fingernails… I’ve been teaching art and leading art departments in large secondary schools in Queensland since I was 21. I’ve been hanging out with teenagers, creating space for them to just be them. My career in education has been a long and successful one, however in 2024 shortly after moving to Bali and reconnecting with spirituality and my true self, (think Eat, Pray, Love, but dragging around a husband and 3 kids) I had the download of a lifetime which had me yahooing on a scooter to the rice paddies.

 Fast forward and I have recently launched Sissy, an idea that has been in my heart for a while, and the mission: to create a global mentoring community that empowers girls to live a limitless life. The name Sissy is actually the nickname my dad gave to me as a young girl. It represents the young girl in me who is worthy of living her dream life, and the sisterhood that is essential for us as women to thrive in life. I mentor young women, often using art as a foundation, to build confidence, resilience and self-trust. I facilitate transformative in-person experiences such as retreats and workshops for teen and pre-teen girls to come together, connect with themselves and each other and build life-changing skills.

I also partner with schools, offering a comprehensive Sissy for Schools well-being program for girls, that includes a series of mentoring videos and classroom resources to support schools to empower their girls. So far my workshops have been in Bali, with plans to run some in Queensland soon, and I have several Queensland schools already partnering with Sissy. I’m about to launch my website… (She’s a beauty! Check it out here: www.sissycommunity.com.au) and keen to get this magic into some more schools across Australia and South East Asia.

WEBSITE: www.sissycommunity.com.au

INSTAGRAM: sissy.community