INDIAN ROCKS BEACH, Fla. — The light crash of the waves in the morning on Indian Rocks Beach is a tranquil sound and one all welcome, especially Olivia Bush as she's out there almost daily. 

She's been a native to the area her whole life, and since she was just 5 years old, she's been honing and perfecting her craft — the art of surfing — on her hometown beach. 

“So my mom and dad both surfed and then my sister and my other younger sister and my brother, so all five of us learned to surf,” Bush said. “It's just something fun we all love to do together as a family.” 

Now a 27-year-old professional with more than two decades of surfing under her belt, she's chosen to share her love of surfing with others. Bush is an instructor with her sister's local surf school in the area, Sister Jo's Surf School. 

The surf school opened in 2018 after Olivia's sister, Savanah Jo Carden-Bush, saw a need for a hyperlocal surf school. It became Pinellas County’s first surf school.

The school is established and strong now as the sisters provide a range of lessons and experiences for locals and tourists alike.

If surfing just isn't your cup of tea, they also offer private lessons for paddle boarding and skim boarding year round. 

It's an experience that will test your skills and balance and bring a new level of connection with the ocean and the beauty of historic Indian Rocks Beach.

“I believe you can really learn at any age, so no age is too old or too young," Olivia said. "We've taught people from age 4 to age 60. It's really a unique sport because you get to be out there in the water and out there in God's creation, and it's really beautiful.” 

Sister Jo's Surf School is open seven days a week. For more information and to book a lesson, visit the school’s website.