HANALEI, Kaua'i — Kaua'i surfer Bethany Hamilton was a shy 13-year-old in 2003 when a tiger shark attack took her left arm and flung her into the national media spotlight.

Today, Bethany has lost her braces, gained composure before a camera and sprouted to a willowy 5 feet 11.

She's a solid contender in international pro surfing contests and presides — with her family's help — over a thriving cottage industry that includes books, videos, inspirational speaking engagements and cosmetics.

"I'd never take my arm back for anything," Bethany recently told The Advertiser. "So much good has come out of it."

Bethany's story of turning a tragic loss into a gain has inspired thousands of her fans, especially teenage girls.

"Just by me surfing with one arm, it's given a lot of people hope (as they) are going through tough times in life," she said.

People admire Bethany for "getting up and doing it after such a heavy blow," said Russell Lewis, her surfing coach for the past 10 years. "But it's not just surfing. She's 18 and she's really enjoying life. She has no hangups about her arm. She's adapted to it really quickly. And it pretty much inspires everyone around her."

Bethany nicknamed what remains of her left arm "Stumpy." The stump is too short to operate a working prosthesis, so Bethany early on decided there was no use to a fake arm.

She's comfortable in tank tops or bathing suits and as a result, people are comfortable around her.

Bethany's grit and spirit aren't qualities she acquired since the accident, her friends and family say. They've always been there.

"She's the same Bethany she was before the accident. That's one of the remarkable things about her," said Steve Thompson, Hamilton's pastor at North Shore Christian Church. "Here, she's a regular person and that's how we view her," he said.

Yet, even at her church, tourists sometimes attend services hoping to meet the famous teenager, Thompson said.

'BRAND BETHANY'

Soon after the accident, Bethany made dozens of TV appearances, from newscasts to spots on "Oprah," "Ellen DeGeneres," "Larry King Live" and more. Fan mail and requests for appearances were so overwhelming that Bethany's family sought help.

Family friend Roy Hofstetter became Bethany's agent, protecting what he calls "Brand Bethany Hamilton." The family doesn't disclose Bethany's income, but Brand Bethany is clearly thriving.

Bethany's biography, "Heart of a Soul Surfer: A True Story of Family, Faith and Fighting to Get Back on the Board," made the Los Angeles Times best-seller list and has sold 810,000 copies.

Bethany also has been the focus of several other books. A 30-minute documentary about her was distributed to 7,000 churches and is playing at independent film festivals. Filming may start this fall on a feature-length film about Bethany.

She is sponsored by at least 10 businesses, including surfwear maker RipCurl, which pays her a monthly salary.

The entire Hamilton family — parents Tom and Cheri and older brothers Noah, 26, and Tim, 21 — contribute to Bethany's career.

And as for the surfing, Bethany's ranked 10th out of the more than 100 women competing in the Association of Surfing Professionals' qualifying contests, which some call the minor leagues of pro surfing. The top five at the end of the season will move up to the ASP women's world tour.

Bethany is optimistic about her chances of getting into the "majors" after her first year competing as a pro.

"I think I have the surfing ability, in the right waves," she said. "And if I get the right waves and compete smartly, then I think I can do it."

Lewis said Bethany is "an extraordinary athlete and works to be the very, very best she can without any excuses."

"She's got the biggest heart," he said. "She'll out-paddle girls with two arms. It should be impossible, but she does it."

FAITH DRIVES HER

Surfing is still at the center of Bethany's life.

In addition to surfing twice a day most days, Bethany also bikes, runs, does strength training and jiu-jitsu. Her mornings start with Bible and devotional reading and she attends church and Bible study regularly.

Bethany and her family have attended the North Shore Christian Church in Kilauea since it was formed several years ago and previously were members of another North Shore church.

Bethany says her faith "is the reason why I am still here today and why I can surf and do everything I do."

Tom Hamilton recalled a comforting sense he had after the initial shock of his daughter losing her arm.

"God kind of spoke to me in my heart, that she'd go on and accomplish things," he said.

"She's touched people's lives and brought people hope who don't have hope."

Two girls from the Mainland with life-threatening medical conditions recently came to Kaua'i to meet Bethany, thanks to the Make a Wish Foundation, Hamilton said.

"Their wish was to meet Bethany. Bethany spent the day with them and their parents and gave them surf lessons," he said. "She poured her heart out to them. One of the parents said it was one of the most amazing things they'd ever seen, how their daughter's whole countenance changed."