About

Biography

Kelly Potts’ exuberance for life can be contagious; all thanks to her life-long participation in sports. As a teen she formed a passionate relationship with nature when she took up surfing, marrying sport with the outdoors, and since then has centered her life around adventure and wave hunting. It is with no surprise that Kelly decided to share the great gifts she gained through surfing with her Maui community by providing free surfing clinics and retreats for local females, as well as for indigenous girls and women in the Pacific Northwest. Through the sport of surfing Kelly helps females discover their inner lordess, while perpetuating sisterhood.

Learn more about Kelly and her surf clinics by checking out her website here! 

Follow Kelly on Instagram @kellypottssurfer

Biography

In 2024 we are thrilled to announce that Kiki Martins has taken over the photography portion of our surf lessons.   After years of working with our surf school, women’s camp and teen camps, we couldn’t be more excited to keep her as part of our ‘Ohana.  We’ll definitely get her back out on the water but for the moment she’s enjoying her new position on the beach, with a camera in her hand and her toes in the sand!

Kiki is our Brazilian powerhouse, gracing our students and campers alike with excellent surf coaching and heartfelt mentorship.  She’s a talented water woman, you’ll catch her stand up paddling, long boarding and short board surfing all the best surf breaks in Maui.    Kiki brings out the best in our students, while her passion and enthusiasm for the sport is infectious.

Biography

From a small Louisiana town to cruising the Hawaiian islands, Maui stole my heart, offering unexpected opportunities. Introduced to surfing by a friend, it turned into an obsession—now, my fun includes kite surfing, wing foiling, paddle boarding, boxing, and kayaking.

Teaching surf lessons brings me joy, sharing new experiences and improving my surfing passion, all while reveling in the rewarding smiles of those conquering waves. Living the dream! 🏄‍♂️✨

Biography

Meet Maggie Venters!

Maggie grew up in Wrightsville Beach, North Carolina, where she started surfing at 8 years old. She recently moved to Maui to enjoy warmer, clearer water!

Maggie loves teaching surfing because it empowers people and shows them what they are capable of!

 When not surfing, she love snorkeling, searching for waterfalls, and relaxing in my hammock at the beach.  Prior to joining Maui Surfer Girls, she was a surf instructor in Costa Rica and San Diego for many years.  

Follow Maggie on  Instagram  @maggiev620

Biography

Natalie is from California where she grew up snowboarding in Lake Tahoe. “I used to come on vacation with my family as a child to Hawaii. I would sit on the beach and watch the surfers and told myself that one day I am going to move to Hawaii and become a surfer. When I first moved here after college, I did not have a surfboard but would borrow boards and go out on my own as much as I could. After many wipeouts I finally got the hang of it. My love for surfing grows everyday. Surfing has made me a better person. It has made me more humble, patient and loving. When I teach I get so excited when someone catches a wave because I know the stoked feeling that they are experiencing.”

Natalie has been teaching surf lessons with Maui Surfer Girls since 2016, and in 2017, she also joined our teen camp staff as a welcome addition.

Biography

Liz Smith has been our marketing manager since December 2015, and she is also serves as the surf school manager.

“I went to high school at Seabury Hall with Dustin, although we were a couple years apart, but we reconnected when we were both on the alumni board a few years back. Then she posted that she was hosting a women’s surf camp and I jumped on the opportunity! I hadn’t surfed very much, so I was looking forward to spending some quality time on the water. But I quickly realized that camp wasn’t just about the surfing. As an adult, bonding so closely with a group of women was such a life-changing experience. All of the Maui Surfer Girl staff is so amazing… when Dustin asked me to come on board (pun intended), I just had to say yes!”

When she’s not working, she can be seen driving her kids to and from Carden Academy and numerous after school activities!

Biography

Carole Berthiaume was a surf instructor with Maui Surfer Girls from 2013-14. In 2018, she returned to Maui after a few years back in the mainland running her own surf school in South Carolina. Carole has 23 years of surfing experience including competitive surfing. Her degree in Marine Biology goes hand in hand with her love of the ocean. She is ecstatic to be back teaching surf lessons with MSG and had a blast with her first Teen Camp, also in 2018, helping to inspire the next generation of female surfers!  In 2020, she transitioned from surf instructor to our awesome retail and social media manager!

Follow Carole on Instagram @nrg_rider

Biography

Meet Todd!

We are so excited to welcome Todd to the Maui Surfer Girls ‘Ohana.  Todd has been teaching surfing in Lahaina for over 20 years, and he’s a great new addition to our team.

“Our lesson with Todd was the absolute highlight of our Maui trip! We had what ended up being a private lesson with him, which was amazing. He is an excellent teacher, making sure we knew about how understanding waves and the ocean are really key in learning to surf. He even drew detailed drawings in the sand to help describe what he was teaching, and it made us really understand the concepts. He made us feel confident and capable, and we both stood up on our first wave! He was encouraging the entire time, was a great listener, and had a way of using our own experiences to help us understand surfing. Thank you, Todd, and we couldn’t recommend Maui Surfer Girls enough!” – Allison, April 22, 2024