Tony Costa and the Sandy Hook Foundation
Kudos to the The Sandy Hook Foundation for recognizing what a star my boy, Tony Costa is:
Tony Costa is no stranger to Sandy Hook.?He’s been coming here since 1979 with his father who also loved the beach. Summer outings would either be to the Long Branch boardwalk, Twin Lights, or Sandy Hook on the bayside. A core memory of Tony’s is visiting the old dynamite bunkers near Batteries Kingman and Mills, and exploring the rackline and shallows of the beaches on the bay.
?This love of Sandy Hook led Tony to eventually become an official and trained Volunteer in Park (VIP).?On any given weekend you might bump into him staffing one of the historic buildings in Fort Hancock.?Whether or not he’s officially on duty as a VIP, you might also find him walking the beaches picking up trash, surfing the waves, taking photographs that are regularly used by the NPS, or strumming his guitar.?In his travels Tony uses an app called SEEK by iNaturalist to identify plants and know whether he’s wading in poison ivy as he’s picking up debris, and reminds everyone that Sandy Hook is a carry-in/carry-out park, meaning visitors should take their trash home with them!
?One place you will find Tony on Saturday mornings in the summer is at Beach D, where he leads free Saturday Morning Beach Yoga from
8 am - 9 am, a program sponsored by The Sandy Hook Foundation. Years ago, Tony left his work in finance to become a full-time, certified yoga instructor.?This year, yoga classes begin on June 3 and run through September 23, 2023. Everyone is invited to grab a large and sturdy beach blanket and join him at the North Chute at Lot D for his early morning practice.?
?This summer, The Sandy Hook Foundation is working with Tony to add programming in the form of wellness workshops. Tony has been running workshops for over 15 years and in addition to his yoga certification, he is a lifelong martial artist, and lay ordained Zen Buddhist.
?A Self-Defense for Women workshop will take place at Spermaceti Lifesaving Station No. 2 on Friday morning, August 11 from 9am - 11am.?This workshop is perfect for women going off to college or moving out for the first time.?“Self defense begins before, and continues after, a physical altercation; the majority is what we do leading up to that. Our actions and mindset before it gets to the physical level is often the most important part of self defense. We need to not only learn physical tactics, but also learn to manage the mental and emotional aspects of it, as control of these can prevent many conflicts,” said Tony.
?“This workshop will work on a combination of physical techniques and understanding the mental and emotional aspects of self defense, as one does not work without the other. The combination of the two will help bring you to a place of confidence in yourself.”
?Through his practices, Tony stresses three things: 1) Situational awareness 2) a “no conflict” mindset and 3) not living from a place of fear.?“Fear is a choice, danger is real,” Tony says. Tony believes that the “art of fighting is not fighting,” which is the highest form of self defense.?Tony has studied martial arts since he was a child, and stresses that prevention is key.
?Some believe that at Sandy Hook, the convergence of water magnifies energy, where two locally strong rivers, the Navesink and Shrewsbury, empty into the Sandy Hook Bay; the Raritan, East and Hudson rivers feed down; and the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf Stream all meet here at the tip, where they swirl in powerful tides.?Tony believes that all that water is moving energy.?Please, join him and see for yourself … every Saturday morning for yoga, or for the self-defense workshop on August 11, when he will share with participants his practices, what he’s learned and how it helped him, and how you or someone you know can also use this knowledge to your advantage.?The Sandy Hook Foundation looks forward to announcing additional wellness workshops with Tony soon.?See you at the beach!
Save the Date and Register Now!
Women’s Self Defense Workshop with Instructor Tony Costa
Friday, August 11
9am - 11 am
Spermaceti Lifesaving Station No. 2
$25 suggested contribution for participants
Hosted by The Sandy Hook Foundation
Register?HERE, $25 suggested donation per registrant