INSPIRED by THE GROM FATHER
The Mission
Inspired by the fearless and adventurous spirit of Peter "Buck" Shea, The Grom Father Foundation is dedicated to helping families who are suffering from early tragic loss. Through Live Like Pete guided adventures, we provide opportunities to heal in the embrace of nature, build meaningful connections, and create lasting memories.
With a focus on community, resilience, and hope, we honor the lives of those who have passed while empowering families to find strength and navigate grief together.
”Grom” Means Young Surfer
Pete was the Surf Team Dad and mentor to the young surfers of the Oregon North Coast. So, they called him the "Grom Father." When the surf was up, the Groms would pile into his van, and they would drive the coast looking for the optimal break that day. Pete never let the Groms down.
OUR PARTNERS
Cannon Photography
For over two decades Brown W. Cannon III has traveled to more than 50 countries photographing award-winning stories for editorial and commercial clients including Travel & Leisure, Conde Nast, National Geographic Adventure, Outside, Copalli Rum, and AAA.
Brown has camped in the Empty Quarter and been diving with great white sharks in Guadalupe. He has ridden 120 miles on horseback through the Mongolian Steppe with the Altai Mountain Eagle Hunters and has sailed through the Arctic Glaciers of Svalbard.
For many of those trips Pete was his B-role photographer and right hand. They would always find the nearest epic surf break after the work was done. Brown also claims to be Pete's "real best friend" ;).
Brown is credited with the photo on the home page of this site of Pete ascending from the depths. And the photo of Pete and Brogan duck diving in Waimea Bay (above) is prominently displayed in Brown's recently published book, "NORTH," which he lovingly dedicated to Pete. Click below to see more from Brown...
Challenge to Excellence
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Kathleen Shea is a retired credentialed educator. She wrote and taught a motivational course called Challenge to Excellence to thousands of junior high and high school students, parents, teachers, student teachers, and administrators. She did this through workshops, weeklong seminars, retreats, and leadership conferences.
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She is also a certified teacher of the Enneagram, which she taught in the Come Alive Program at St. Mary’s College in Moraga, California.
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Her last teaching assignment was teaching seventh grade at Chipman Middle School in Alameda, California. This provided her with the tremendous opportunity to really get to know and love her students and convey the principles of Challenge to Excellence daily.
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After forty years of making a difference in the lives of others, she now enjoys life with her husband of fifty-five years and loves being the best Gramma she can be to her five grandchildren.
"The joy we feel at our family reunions with our five beautiful grandchildren and with our sons is abundant. On May 30, 2023, our joy was shattered when our youngest son, Peter Ryan, had a freak surfing accident and died on Short Sands Beach in Oregon. I would never wish this devastating grief and sadness on anyone. There is a hole in our hearts that will never heal. Peter Ryan was/is the BEST of the Sheas.
I’m writing this prologue for three reasons:
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When you read Peter’s “story” in Chapter Three, I want you to know that Peter was full of self-confidence. He didn’t care what anyone thought about him because he knew that he was worthy. He was a child of God, unique, rare, valuable, and a priceless, precious angel. When he saw a classmate crying on the steps and everyone else was walking past him—probably because they were worried about what others would think of them if they stopped, Peter Ryan stopped, and that made all the difference in that boy’s life.
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His story is the basis of why I wrote this book. What I want for every reader is to attain that same exceptional self-confidence when you grasp the value of realizing your own magnificence.
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Family is the most important thing in the world. This book is a Family Communication Workbook. My hope is that you will use these principles during these teen years to create wonderful family memories and build unbreakable bonds that will last forever."
To learn more, click below...
