What does it actually look like when young leaders are trusted with real responsibility in their community? In this special two-part Discover Virginia Podcast series, Joseph sits down with the people behind the Virginia Beach Jaycees and one of Virginia Beach’s most recognizable traditions—the 64th Annual Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships, better known as ECSC. Our guests are: Lisa Agosto — President of VB Jaycees Charities and Executive Assistant with Upward Spiral Management Sean Brady — President of the Virginia Beach Jaycees Lindsey Peard — Chairwoman of the 64th Annual Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships PART 1: The Virginia Beach Jaycees The Virginia Beach Jaycees are part of a larger leadership-development movement built around giving young adults opportunities to lead, serve, build relationships, and create positive change through real-world experience. But what does that actually mean? Lisa and Sean take us behind the organization to explain how members can go from simply looking for a way to meet people or volunteer to eventually leading teams, organizing major projects, developing other leaders, and making decisions that impact the Virginia Beach community. We explore the connection between the local Virginia Beach chapter and Junior Chamber International, the larger global network dedicated to developing young leaders around the world. We also get into the community initiatives supported by the Jaycees and VB Jaycees Charities, including First Citizen of Virginia Beach, the Christmas Shopping Tour, the Flame of Hope POW/MIA Memorial, and the organization’s ongoing commitment to giving back to Hampton Roads. At the center of the conversation is a simple leadership lesson: You don’t have to already see yourself as a leader to start becoming one. PART 2: Behind the East Coast Surfing Championships Then we head to the beach. Lindsey Peard and Lisa Agosto take us behind the scenes of the 64th Annual Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships, happening August 23–30, 2026, at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. ECSC began in 1963 when local surfers approached the Virginia Beach Jaycees for help turning an idea for a surf competition into an organized event. More than six decades later, organizers recognize it as the oldest continually run surfing competition in the world. But what most people see on the beach is only the finished product. Lindsey and Lisa reveal the massive volunteer effort, sponsorships, year-round planning, leadership, logistics, and last-minute problem solving required to bring ECSC to life. Lindsey shares how she originally volunteered because she wanted the iconic ECSC volunteer shirt—and how that decision eventually led her from being nervous speaking in front of a crowd to leading a committee of roughly 30 people and chairing the event herself. Lisa shares her own progression from ECSC volunteer to committee leadership, vice chair, and eventually chair, along with one of the most important leadership lessons she has taken from the Jaycees: develop the person who can eventually take your place. We also unpack some of the wildest moments in ECSC history, including having to tear down and rebuild major portions of the event around severe weather, and how the organization has learned to pivot, adapt, and keep moving when there is no playbook. The conversation goes beyond surfing as we explore Adaptive Beach Day, skating, live music, community activations, the World Surf League, sponsors, local businesses, and the expanding beach culture that now surrounds ECSC. Today, the event spans seven days, welcomes hundreds of competitors, and creates substantial economic activity throughout Virginia Beach. Current ECSC materials report 50,000+ visitors, $16.4 million in visitor expenditures, and more than $25 million in local economic impact. This two-part conversation is ultimately about much more than surfing or volunteering. It is about what can happen when people are given an opportunity to lead, when generations of volunteers take ownership of a local tradition, and when a community decides something is worth continuing to build. LEARN MORE & GET INVOLVED Virginia Beach Jaycees VBJaycees.org Learn about membership, community initiatives, volunteer opportunities, First Citizen of Virginia Beach, Christmas Shopping, and other Jaycees projects. 64th Annual Coastal Edge East Coast Surfing Championships SurfECSC.com (https://www.surfecsc.com/) Find the 2026 schedule, athlete registration, volunteer information, sponsorship opportunities, events, and everything happening August 23–30 at the Virginia Beach Oceanfront. Junior Chamber International JCI.cc Learn more about the global leadership-development organization behind the larger Junior Chamber movement.
