November 25 / 26 2011 Oahu

"Aloha Ric n Terry we were able to Fill up ALL 250 goody bags with your Whale Tails Tortilla Chips! Thank u! Yummy! "...Rell Sunn Educational Fund

That’s 36 years of fun and aloha spirit for the surfing kids of Hawaii, 36 years of enlightenment.  Virtually every top Hawaiian-raised surfer(Sunny Garcia, Johnny Boy,Keoni Watson.. etc) have had the pleasure of surfing Rell’s contests at Makaha. The  Contest is held every year on the beaches of Makaha, Oahu. to educate the public, especially children, about sportsmanship and the environment and to combat juvenile delinquency.

Rell’s middle name, *Ka-polioka’ehukai,* means Heart of the Sea.

All children 12 years old and under were welcomed to participate in the contest. Hundreds of children statewide visit Makaha each year to attend and participate in the surf contest. Events included body board, long board, and short board, and each event was broken into age and gender categories. Each contestant receives a t-shirt with contest advertising on it, assorted surf necessities, magazines, literature for sunscreen info, literature about the dangers of the sun, environmental awareness literature, info on early cancer screening, and organic healthy snacks from Whale Tails. Each child is encouraged to exhibit sportsmanship by cheering for every competitor and helping retrieve lost surfboards.  Contestant’s families volunteered and helped run the event.

Ocean of thanks to Jan and Anthony Carreira for once again inviting Whale Tails Tortilla Chips to be a part of this winter’s 36 th Annual Rell Sunn Menehuene Contest.

San Diego, CA, CA, United States
November 20th, 2011

The TEDxYouth@SanDiego team honored students from twenty San Diego County high schools to participate in this global event. It was a transformative day for all of the attendees.

The theme of TEDxYouth@SanDiego was “The World in Our Grasp,” and it was all about inspiring one to see a problem, to take responsibility and to do something now. Sunday’s event  brought together a community of 400 students from all over San Diego County to challenge them, inspire them, and motivate them to be agents of change.

This was NOT just a conference or an inspirational day of talks. Student participants were asked to make commitments to take action within their community. TEDxYouth is solution-oriented. The attendees were given specific ways in which they can become involved no matter what their resources and where they are located.

Speakers at Sunday’s event included: Tracy Lee Stum, an internationally recognized American street painter who specializes in spectacular, interactive 3D chalk art street paintings, Richard Dreyfuss, Actor and spokesperson on the issue of media informing policy, legislation, and public opinion, Jason Russell, founder of the media-driven nonprofit Invisible Children, Inc.,  David Schenone, Innovation Director for Global Footwear for NIKE, Inc.,Mark Hixon, marine biologist at Oregon State University, Adora Svita, writer of over 300 short-stories, a poet and a humanitarian, Jason O’Neill, 15-year old entrepreneur who founded Pencil Bugs at age nine. He is also the author of Bitten by the Business Bug: Common Sense Tips for Business and Life from a Teen Entrepreneur at age fourteen, Patrick Ivison, motivational speaker and adaptive surfer. He is the first disabled member of the Lost Surf Team and is a member of his high school surf team. He has appeared on the Today Show, E! Entertainment, Transworld Surf Magazine, MTV, Fuel TV, the Oprah Winfrey Network and countless other publications and news outlets around the world. In 2009 he traveled with two other disabled athletes to Costa Rica to film a feature length documentary on adaptive surfing called “Charlie Don’t Surf”, Alec Loorz, founder of Kids vs Global Warming, Jake Shimabukuro, master of the ukulele. Lee Coulter,singer/songwriter from Australia, and  Nina Church
co-founder of Nika Water.

Lunch was provided by Jim (Jimbo) Someck who has been in the natural foods industry since 1973. In 1984 he opened up his first Jimbo’s…Naturally! store. Since then he has opened up four more Jimbo’s…Naturally! stores throughout north county San Diego.

Heather and Ric at the Hollywood Premier of Alcon Entertainment / Warner Brothers Movie Dolphin Tale

Ric Kraszewski co founder and VP Sales of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips  attended the event with his wife, Terry, and daughter, Heather.  Mr Kraszewski said ” I was thrilled to receive the invitation from Ms Wagner at Warner Brothers and did not hesitate to immediately send a truckload of our organic tortilla chips shaped like a whale’s tail featuring the artwork of world renowned marine artist Wyland as a contribution to the event. Having played just a small role in raising funds and awareness for  “Winter’s” story since 2005 it was thrilling to see the little dolphin’s story translated into a heart warming 3D movie by screenwriters  Karen Janszen and Noam Dromi.”

Alcon Entertainment with distribution by Warner Brothers had Charles Martin Smith of American Graffiti fame direct “Dolphin Tale” that stars Harry Connick, Jr.  Ashley Judd, Austin Stowell, Nathan Gamble,  Cozi Zuehlsdorff ,Kris Kristofferson, and Academy award winner Morgan Freeman.

Terry Kraszewski, CEO and Co Founder of Whale Tails Chips, said to have the premier take place on the same day as California’s Annual Coastal Cleanup Day was perfect timing by Warner Brothers. “We were able to participate in our annual beach cleanup before heading to Hollywood to walk the Red Carpet. ” Terry said the the movie “Dolphin Tale” sends an inspirational message about our connections with our ocean neighbors. “Families are going to love this movie.” she added.  David Yates, CEO of Clearwater Aquarium and an executive producer on the movie also in attendance at the premier, echoed Terry’s sentiment “The movie is having a tremendous impact, we’re already feeling it .. and the film hasn’t opened yet.” The film will open nation wide on Friday September 23.

Steve McCulloch HBOI, Ric Whale Tails, and Cameron

Also in attendance was Steve McCulloch, Program Manager of Marine Mammal Research at Harbor Branch Oceanographic. Steve was part of the “Winter” rescue team and recalled the chilly December rescue. “The line was heavily entangled around the base of “Winter’s” tail fluke and the blood flow had been cut off. Fortunately for us Clearwater Marine Aquarium on Florida’s West Coast had a large above ground pool was perfect for “Winter” and they accepted the injured dolphin.”  At Saturday’s event Hanger prosthetists Dan Strzempka and Kevin Carroll, the developers of Winter’s prosthetic tail were also among the attendees along with patients John Siciliano, Katy Sullivan and Cameron Clapp  and  Hanger clinicians Kevin Carroll and Michael Carroll. Thanks to the innovative prosthetic work of Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics along with the rescue and rehabilitative care of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Winter’s story of survival will become an inspiration to people all over the world.

Steve of Harbor Branch Oceanographic and the folks at Clearwater Aquarium couldn’t have known at the time that they were creating a movie star. But thanks to the folks at Warner Brothers and Alcon Entertainment, audiences nationwide will soon know the remarkable story of “Winter”. She is the star of “Dolphin Tale” and the founders of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips know the film is going to create a new awareness about threats facing marine mammals and what we can do to lessen those threats. The film is also a reminder that if we are willing to “chip in”, anything is possible, and our world just might have more happy endings.

About Clearwater Aquarium: The Clearwater Aquarium in Clearwater Florida specializes in marine life rehabilitation. www.seewinter.com/

About HARBOR BRANCH Oceanographic Institution, Inc. HBOI is one of the world’s leading nonprofit oceanographic research organizations dedicated to exploration of the earth’s oceans, estuaries and coastal regions for the benefit of mankind. www.fau.edu/hboi/

Whale Tails Tortilla Chips is America’s fastest growing organic,non gmo, gluten free tortilla chip company on a mission to educate that food choices effect not only our personal health but also that of our marine environment. Whale Tails Tortilla Chips recent partnership with the Wyland Foundation will help to provide the tools children need to be good stewards of our oceans. Available at Whole Foods Markets and other natural food stores in California.

By Dave Schwab
Staff Writer La Jolla Light

A three-day trip to see the gray whale nursery at Scammon’s Lagoon was an “otherworldly” experience, said a tour group of 30 La Jollans, which included renowned Scripps oceanographers Walter Munk and Gustaf Olof Svante Arrhenius, as well as former University of California President and UCSD Chancellor Robert Dynes and his wife Ann Parode Dynes.

“Magical, life-changing,” was how Nigella Hillgarth, executive director of Birch Aquarium at Scripps, described the March encounter. “To get close to a large mammal and their babies, see their eyes — I think everybody should try and get down to the lagoon and check it out.”

Munk said, “If you didn’t have any religion when you went down, you certainly did when you came home.”

The birthing grounds of the migrating gray whale is located near the town of Guerrero Negro, in an extensive Baja lagoon averaging 7 miles wide more than 27 miles inland. About 350 miles south of San Diego, the lagoon was named for whaling Capt. Charles M. Scammon who “discovered” it in 1857, though it was known earlier to Spanish and Mexican explorers.

Scammon at first decided to exterminate the whales before realizing his mistake, then dedicated his life to saving them, according to Wikipedia.

The gray whales congregate in this lagoon during winter to mate, give birth and let their calves grow enough to withstand the long north migration. Up to 2,000 whales and their calves can be found in the lagoon during the peak of the season.

Terry Kraszewski, CEO of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips who went on the trip, said, “I just felt so connected to them (whales) and the ocean.”

The experience was especially poignant for La Jolla community activist Mary Coakley, who was in the midst of a project to create a life-sized bronze sculpture of J.J., the Orphaned Baby Gray Whale rescued by Sea World which now rests in Kellogg Park playground in La Jolla Shores.

“I don’t even know how to describe it,” said Coakley. “This gave J.J. such a real dimension. I don’t want to say it was a once-in-a-lifetime trip because I want to go back next year.”

Kraszewski, an avowed whale lover, said the opportunity to connect with such awe-inspiring creatures was precious.

“The trust you saw, they kept coming to us time and again to let us touch them and to look in their eyes … They’re so powerful and so big, the size of a city bus … All we could do was grin and cry and hug afterward.”

WATCH VIDEO OF BAJA ADVENTURE HERE

By Elizabeth Schneider

As Terry Kraszewski, CEO and co-founder of Whale Tails tortilla chips, talks about her product from behind the counter of Ocean Girl, her La Jolla Shores surf shop, it is clear that she has a serious passion for the ocean.

So when it came time to choose the art for her two new flavors, Wyland — the world-renowned marine artist and environmentalist — was the perfect choice.

Terry Kraszewski, CEO and co-founder of Whale Tails and owner of Ocean Girl, and Wyland show off the new packaging he created for her line of tortilla chips. Courtesy 

“I was trying to find a way to work with the most famous marine artist in the world,” Kraszewski said. “Wyland is called the Michelangelo of the sea — he’s my favorite.”

The partnership will feature one of Wyland’s famous seascapes on each of the three flavors of Whale Tails: the newly released Hawaiian barbecue will feature “Dawn of Creation,” the new blue corn flavor will feature “Orca Journey” and the original yellow corn will feature “Hawaii Endangered Species.”

The rich colors and details which have made Wyland’s work so successful are also characteristics which make for an ideal, eye-catching graphic.

“Our merchandisers and grocers are so excited because this packaging just jumps out at you,” Kraszewski said. “We’re thrilled to be associated with him.”

The partnership, however, goes far deeper than art. Both Whale Tails and Wyland have always held fast to their goals of, as the Wyland foundation mission statement describes it: “promoting, protecting, and preserving the world’s ocean, waterways, and marine life.”

In order to pursue this shared aim, Kraszewski has announced that she will donate 10 percent of the profits from the new bags of chips to the Wyland foundation.

“The more I learned about Wyland, the more I found out we’re doing exactly the same thing: education,” Kraszewski said. “That’s the key to making a difference: teaching children to be good stewards of the sea.”

Steve Creech, the vice president of Wyland, says that the revenue raised from the chips sales will primarily go towards their “clean water mobile learning center.” This program, which is currently located at the San Diego County Fair, travels to schools across the nation to educate children about “urban runoff, habitat destruction and the importance of collaboratively managing water as a shared resource.”

This commitment to ocean life has also been integral to both the product and the mission of Whale Tails since its inception in 2006. Whale Tails began in Ocean Beach as a stovetop experiment after a day of surfing, when Kraszewski and her co-founders realized that the anatomy of a whale’s tail would also lend itself to the perfect tortilla chip.

“The same shape that allows whales, weighing over a ton, to move through the water is also a natural shape for loading up a couple of scoops of grilled pineapple/mango salsa or perhaps a mound of fresh guacamole,” the company website states.

Aided by appearances in “Snack of the Day” on Rachel Ray and “Road Tested with the Neelys” on the Food Network, Whale Tails has grown quickly from its humble beginnings.

The chips’ health merits – they are all-natural, organic, kosher, gluten-free and made from non-GMO ingredients – and distinctive flavors have since earned them inclusion in Whole Foods throughout California, as well as various aquariums, delis and amusement parks.

And while she couldn’t be happier about the success, Kraszewski sees it primarily as a means to a much more important end.

“To me, the whale tail is the symbol of ocean conservation,” she said. “We’re trying to make a difference in our environment and our ocean, one chip at a time.”

http://www.lajollalight.com/2011/06/30/la-jolla-entrepreneur-teams-up-with-wyland/

Sales of a Healthy Snack Will Help Funding of Ocean Conservation Efforts

San Diego, CA, June 14, 2011 – Whale Tails Tortilla Chips announces an exciting new partnership with the Wyland Foundation. With Wyland’s artwork featured on chip bags and Whale Tails’ launch of two new chip flavors, this partnership reflects a commitment to work together in playing a pivotal role in the future of our oceans.

“The Wyland Foundation matches our company’s ideals,” said Terry Kraszewski, CEO and Co-Founder of Whale Tails Tortilla Chips. “We are excited that a portion of the sales of our new bags will go to such a dynamic non-profit organization dedicated to protecting our oceans and marine life through creative ‘hands on’ approaches to education and stewardship.”

Founded by the world-renowned artist Wyland, who is best known for murals depicting whales and marine life, the Wyland Foundation works to bridge the gap between art and science through education programs, public arts projects, and community events. Now, Wyland’s brilliantly rendered art will be featured on the packaging for Whale Tails Tortilla Chips’ line of all-natural tortilla chips.

“Wyland licensed three original oil paintings to use for our new flavors. Our Hawaiian Barbeque with a hint of sun-dried mango, features ‘Dawn of Creation,’ painted by Wyland in 2003. The Blue Corn with Chia Seeds’ bag showcases ‘Orca Journey,’ painted by Wyland in 1990. Our original flavor, Yellow Corn with Alaea Hawaiian Sea Salt features ‘Hawaii Endangered Species,’ created by Wyland in 2006,” said Kraszewski. “Proceeds from our sales will go toward helping thousands of school children learn about ocean conservation, which is the real inspiration energizing this partnership. It’s a perfect fit, for a perfect shape that makes perfect sense for everyone!”

“Partnering with Whale Tails Tortilla Chips is a great opportunity for our foundation that will help us support teachers, develop educational materials, and expand our outreach,” said Wyland. “We’ve already brought ocean conservation tools to more than one million children, now we look forward to reaching the next million.”

Healthy snacking and helping the environment has never tasted so good. Whale Tails Tortilla Chips are now available in three flavors and use only natural, organic, kosher, gluten-free, non-GMO ingredients. Whale Tails Tortilla Chips are sold at Whole Foods in Southern and Northern California, many aquariums and local specialty food stores.

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Whale Tails Tortilla Chips founded in 2006 is quickly adding retail accounts after being featured as Snack of the Day on Rachael Ray, along with a segment on the Food Network’s popular series: “Road Tasted with the Neelys.” Whale Tails was selected as the 2010 funding recipient of Whole Foods Local Producer Loan Program for meeting their high standards of business practices in creating and distributing the most innovative new brand of organic tortilla chips on the market today.

Follow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/whaletailschips

About Wyland:

Marine life artist Wyland has done more than any other artist to raise awareness of the beauty of life on our blue planet. His Wyland Foundation is actively engaged in teaching millions of students around the country about our oceans, river, lakes, streams, and wetlands. He is an official artist for the U.S. Olympic team, hosted his own shows on Discovery Channel, PBS, and is perhaps best known for his Whaling Wall murals, a series of monumental environmentally themed artworks that are seen by more than one billion people every year. More at http://www.wylandfoundation.org/

From late December to early April, San Diego celebrates the migration of thousands of California Gray Whales. Their annual journey takes them from the Bering Sea, past the San Diego coast, to the protected warm waters off Baja California, Sonora and Sinoloa. The longest migration route of any mammal, the gray whales travel nearly 13,000 miles round trip each year.

Businesses along San Diego’s Big Bay invited everyone to the the third annual Free Community Event “Big Bay Whale Festival” at the Embarcadero Port Pavilion on Broadway Pier. For the entire month of January, San Diego celebrates Big Bay Whale Days with “Whale of a Deal” DISCOUNT COUPONS to experience the Big Bay and witness firsthand the annual gray whale migration along our coast. The event  featured free whale and dolphin watching cruises for kids 12 and under.  The Whale Festival was held in the newly developed Port Pavilion on the Broadway Pier, located on the corner of Harbor Drive and Broadway in Downtown San Diego.

The free Whale Festival offered a wide variety of interactive and hands on displays to spark the interest and imagination of any child including a walk-through whale, live sea creatures, face painting, art projects, and a bounce house. Attendees enjoyed a “CONCERT FOR WHALES” featuring Nadro John. Also performing was Eve Selis and her band. Local artist Roni Sumer contributed the original beautiful art logo for Big Bay Whale Days and Whale festival.

High-lightening  the festival food area was San Diego’s favorite organic tortilla chip company Whale Tails Chips. These locally made chips are in the shape of a whale’s tail. The company was started by local surfers with a love of organic food and a mission for ocean conservation. Whole Foods Markets recently rewarded their efforts to reduce plastic in our oceans with a “Local Producer Loan” to finish development of the first “Ocean-Friendly”tm tortilla chip bag that will be released in 2011 along with two new flavors.

The food area also included Doc Popcorn, Matheny Wagon Works, Miguels Catering, Joes Crab Shack, and the NEW Gourmet Food Truck, ” Patty Melt”, with Chef Deborah Scott.

Other 2011 Whale Festival Exhibitors included American Cetacean Society San Diego Chapter, Barona Culture Center and Museum, Birch Aquarium at Scripps, Chula Vista Nature Center, I love a Clean San Diego, San Diego River Park Foundation, Sierra Club San Diego Chapter, Gray Whale Coalition, Harbor Excursion and Hornblower Cruises and Events

Whale watching season has become one of San Diego’s favorite times of the year. The Big Bay Whale Days and Whale Festival provide the community with the best place to learn about California gray whale ecology and conservation and find information about opportunities to interact with the whales safely and affordably.

Participants were encouraged to ride Amtrak California Pacific Surfliner to participate in Big Bay Whale Days

SPICY CRANBERRY SALSA delicious, especially when scooped up with tortilla chips.

Cornbread-Tortilla Chip Thanksgiving Stuffing

Left Over Thanksgiving Turkey becomes Game Day Nachos

by Carolyn Kraft on 11/15/2010

ACS Conference program and Whale Tail tortilla chips

This weekend I attended the American Cetacean Society’s 12th International Conference and had a blast learning more about whales and dolphins, meeting great people and hanging out with fellow whale and dolphin fanatics. My brain is still swimming with information (no pun intended), so I’m going to give it a little break before writing about some of the amazing cetacean science I learned from top experts and researchers.

Instead, I feel compelled to share a fabulous discovery I made at the ACS conference: Whale Tails tortilla chips. I’m telling you these are the best chips I’ve ever had! Plus, each chip is shaped like a whale’s tail. This is extra cool for dipping because it looks like a whale is diving into your guacamole.

But the best part is that the founders of Whale Tails tortilla chips donate a portion of their proceeds to ocean conservation organizations. So if you want to eat really good tortilla chips and help the ocean, then check out these chips.

And don’t worry, I’m not going to make a habit of plugging products, but in this case I just couldn’t resist.

“An Ocean of Thanks Carolyn for attending the ACS Conference and the kind words about our mission driven product” ……the Crew at Whale Tails Chips