We Love Long Beach

Long Beach, a city hugged around its own little chunk of the Pacific Ocean, seems to have been built for people like Wayne Wilms. Wilms has been in the Marine industry one way or another, since he was twenty years of age. He lived in his VW van parked around the city for several years so he could be close to Marine Stadium where he enjoyed his favorite past time, water skiing. He became most well known for his bare-foot water skiing, a skill which brought him much esteem when he set a record for going 70 MPH in 1970. “There wasn’t much money in it,” says Wayne. “You could pay for gas, and some food…but it was fun!”

Today the owner of Long Beach Boat Movers works in a boat yard fixing trailers, motors, and everything in between. It is his knack for fixing things that earned him the nickname, “The Wiz”. He claims that, as a boy, instead of dreaming of owning a plane, or even a house, he had aspirations of owning a junkyard. Surrounded by discarded motors and orphaned boat parts, it would appear as though this part time longshoreman fulfilled his childhood dream.

Unfortunately, Wayne’s passion for restoration was tragically interrupted at the beginning of 2008. His daredevil son, Randy, who shared his father’s talents and “wiz-abilities” was killed in a dirt bike accident at the age of twenty. In an attempt to comprehend what happened, Wayne spoke to each witness on the police report, including the nurse who rode with his son in the ambulance.

After all the facts were checked, Wayne emerged with a remarkable perspective of tragedy: “It’s like a fraternity no one wants to belong to…My friend’s daughter was murdered and no one was ever prosecuted…I have to be thankful that I at least know what happened.”
Perhaps this father’s appreciation for closure is what drove him and his brother to travel to Las Vegas to witness the sentencing of O.J. Simpson last winter. When the Wilms brothers arrived, they learned only a select few would be given tickets to watch the proceedings inside the courtroom. Surprisingly, both Wayne and his brother were selected to gain admittance. However, upon discovering that Ronald Goldman’s father had not received a ticket, Wayne unselfishly handed his over and said, “I know how important this is for you.”