Oct 7, 2026

POWER and the Surfrider Foundation Help Protect Indian River Inlet’s North Beach

If you’ve ever caught a wave along the north side of the Indian River Inlet, you’ll know it’s one of the best breaks on the Delaware coast. You might also notice the dunes separating the beach from a key roadway haven’t been the same since Hurricane Sandy tore through in 2012. But steady progress is being made with the help of nonprofits like the Surfrider Foundation and volunteers like POWER’s Vice President of Creative Sean Flanagan.

Dune restoration is a slow, painstaking process that takes years of work and dedication. Even the slightest change can set restoration efforts back. Surfrider recognized that a key contributor to the destruction of the inlet’s dunes came from people walking along them. They determined that North Beach lacked adequate signage to educate beachgoers about the dangers posed by off-path foot traffic to these fragile and incredibly important ecosystems. Something needed to change, and that’s where POWER stepped in to help.

Watch our documentary “Impact Zone” to see the communal effort it takes to bring North Beach back, and continue reading below for more information.

The Impact Zone

Hurricane Sandy’s gale-force winds stripped away vegetation and sand along the Delaware coastline, leaving the dunes weakened and vulnerable to further erosion. For a local surfing landmark, that damage from over a decade ago will not repair itself. It takes deliberate, sustained restoration work from a group of dedicated volunteers.

Part of the North Side’s restoration effort involved a communal planting of beach grass to enable the sand bypass plant from South Beach to become operational. Beach grass is a vital coastal plant that stabilizes dunes and protects shorelines from storm erosion, creating safe habitats for local wildlife. But planting the grass only goes so far; it needs to survive to succeed.

Using Our Resources for Good

For more than four decades, the Surfrider Foundation has worked alongside communities to protect the oceans, beaches, and waves that define them. Flanagan, a lifelong Delaware Beach surfer and Surfrider member, knew he could contribute in more ways than one—so he nominated the Surfrider Foundation for a Nominate for Good grant. Nominate for Good is a philanthropic platform within our greater POWER for Good umbrella that encourages POWER employees to champion causes they care about for a company donation.

His nomination resulted in a $10,000 grant to fund the design, printing, and placement of signage along the North Side dunes. The signs educate beachgoers on the importance of dunes ecologically and encourages them to stay off the fragile grass roots by using designated dune crossings instead.

To maximize the impact of the donation, Flanagan enlisted POWER’s in-house design team to create the clean, bold artwork for the signs. By handling the design internally, the team saved Surfrider an additional $2,500 in design fees, allowing more of the donation to go toward producing more signs. Thanks to efforts like these, North Beach has a fighting chance to recover: one dune, one sign, and one volunteer at a time.

At POWER, our mission is to realize the potential in every home, community, and individual we serve—whether that means remodeling a home, restoring a beach, or investing in the communities we operate in. Want to learn more about the work we do and what it’s like to be part of POWER’s culture? Explore career opportunities here.

Want to get involved? To learn more about the Surfrider Foundation Delaware Chapter, go to https://delaware.surfrider.org/

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