The North Carolina Coastal Federation hosted the Surfside Shrimp Boil on Nov. 4 at the Blockade Runner Beach Resort in Wrightsville Beach, where attendees gathered for fresh seafood, live music and a silent auction.

The event kicked off a weekend of paddle races known as Surf to Sound, hosted by the Wrightsville Beach Paddle Club. Race organizers selected the federation as the charity for the event, and donated proceeds benefited the federation’s restoration work, specifically its clean water projects.

In the last few years, the federation has worked with partners throughout Wrightsville Beach and Wilmington to improve water quality in the area. This funding will help the federation to install more stormwater retrofits — such as swales and rain gardens — that help decrease the volume of polluted stormwater runoff entering coastal waters.

Paddleboard winners Kevin Durocher and Pam Van Velsor pose with their dog, Largo, with the paddleboard they won from the Surfside Shrimp Boil.

Paddleboard winners Kevin Durocher and Pam Van Velsor pose with their dog, Largo, with the paddleboard they won from the Surfside Shrimp Boil.

“We are so grateful to the organizers of this year’s Surf to Sound event, to our sponsors and to the Blockade Runner, for this very successful event,” said Tracy Skrabal, coastal scientist and manager of the federation’s Wrightsville Beach office. “This event represents the best of clean water partnerships among local businesses in this community, recreational users of our ocean and estuarine waters and the federation’s local efforts to restore and protect our natural resources.”

Besides the great support clean water received, the biggest prize of the event was a 10-foot paddleboard donated by Carolina Paddleboard Co. Kevin Durocher and Pam Van Velsor of Wilmington attended the event and won the paddleboard, which was delivered to them the next day.

Others took home silent auction items, which included various coastal-themed items.

This event would not have been possible with the help of our many sponsors: Surf to Sound, Blockade Runner Beach Resort, Carolina Paddleboard Co., Catlin Engineers and Scientists, Carolina Marine Terminal, Land Rover Cape Fear, All Ways Graphics, Talbert & Bright, RBC Wealth Management, Atlantic Diving & Marine Contractors, Beach Bagels, Konrady & Son Construction and WithersRavenel.