These NJ Residents Got Naked At Sandy Hook For A Cause

WOODBRIDGE, NJ — On Saturday, July 10 about 100 people gathered, in the nude, at Gunnison Beach at Sandy Hook.

This is not news, as Gunnison Beach is New Jersey's only legal "clothing-optional" beach and has been that way since the late 1970s.

However, what is news is that on this particular Saturday, the 100 people who met in the buff did so to raise money for the Fistula Foundation, which helps women overseas who have suffered fistulas in childbirth.

The charity nude beach day was organized by Woodbridge resident Thomas Francine, 34.

In total, Francine's event raised $5,275, all of which will go directly to the Fistula Foundation, which provides life-changing surgery for women in extremely poor and developing parts of the world.

Three attendees personally each donated $586, which is the cost of one fistula-repairing surgery per woman. The Fistula Foundation has an anonymous donor matching all donations specifically to Nigeria for the month of July, so that donation of $5,275 will actually be doubled, said Francine.

Francine said he tries to visit Gunnison Beach at least a few times every summer.

"I don't consider myself a nudist. It's not like I'm trying to be naked all the time wherever I can," he said. "But as a child and young adult, I was extremely shy. And I found that being naked in front of other people was really powerful and helped me overcome my shyness. Exposing your flaws to the world can be a powerful experience, even if it's just for one day or a brief skinny dip."

The second Saturday in July, or July 10, is always International Skinny Dip Day, which celebrates the natural experience of a clothing-free swim, and concludes National Nude Recreation Week.

As a Gunnison Beach regular, Francine said he wanted to do something special this year to mark the day and raise money for charity.

"I don't know anybody who has had a fistula, but I had seen the documentary 'A Walk to Beautiful' and it really made an impression on me," he said. " I thought there was a potential there and it could also bring a lot of people into skinny dipping who otherwise would not have tried it."

Fistulas are a tragic problem in some of the poorest countries in the world, across Africa and parts of Asia. According to the Fistula Foundation, they occur when a woman tries delivering a baby but does not have access to emergency medical care, such as a C-section.

"She often labors in excruciating pain for days. Tragically, her baby usually dies," the Foundation wrote. "During her prolonged labor, the mother’s contractions continually push the baby’s head against her pelvis. Soft tissues caught between the baby’s head and her pelvic bone become compressed, restricting the normal flow of blood. Without adequate blood supply, sections of tissue soon die, leaving holes — known as 'fistulae' — between the mother’s vagina and her bladder or rectum. It is these holes that cause incontinence. If untreated, the woman will uncontrollably leak urine, stool, or sometimes both, for the rest of her life."

Women who suffered from fistulas are usually shunned from their communities, forced to live in huts away from their husband and the rest of her community. Even today, an estimated one million women in the world suffer from fistulas.

"Unable to control the leaking of her body’s waste, she suffers with chronic infections and pain. Too often, her smell drives away her husband, family and friends," wrote the non-profit.

All $5,275 of the money he raised will go directly to the Fistula Foundation, said Francine. Attendees are his event showed up at Gunnison Beach on July 10 to partake in many activities: Two group skinny dips in the Atlantic Ocean, beach volleyball and a water balloon toss. They were asked to donate what they could, via cash, check, PayPal, Venmo or via this fundraising page he launched: https://skinnydipday.org/nj/.

Francine said he was blown away by the generosity.

At the same time, Francine organized either other skinny dip events across the country, in Pennsylvania, Missouri, South Carolina and Michigan. As New Jersey is one of the few places in the United States that has a legal nude beach, those events were done at lakes or in the backyards of private homes, he said.

"I chose the Fistula Foundation specifically because these women have been injured in childbirth and they have a lot of shame about their bodies. And I wanted to choose an organization that does 'effective giving,'" he said.

A bit of Googling showed him that the website Charity Navigator has given the Fistula Foundation a four-star rating for 15 years in a row, an honor less than 1 percent of charities worldwide receive.

The next Skinny Dip Day is July 9, 2022 and there will definitely be an event at Gunnison Beach again, promised Francine.

"This movement is growing and I want to do it next year and I think it's going to be even bigger," said Francine. "I think we're going to have even more people skinny dipping for the first time and we'll raise even more money for charity."

"I love Gunnison Beach," he added. "It's a cool place. I think the type of people who go there are open-minded, friendly people, a little bit more so than other places. To learn to be accepting of your body and your flaws and other people's flaws — it's a big confidence booster and a big adventure."

Watch the Emmy-award winning documentary, "A Walk to Beautiful"

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