MY MISSION

Provide a better alternative than the typical dive shop in Fort Lauderdale and be the best scuba diving instructor possible.

I will provide and deliver diver education which promotes and practices safe diving without comprising fun or positive energy. As a result this will produce proficient scuba divers that will be inspired and empowered to explore the world’s aquatic environments.

MY VISION

Learning to scuba dive will be safe, fun, affordable, easily accessible, and most importantly meet the needs of each individual student. A scuba instructor will make his divers feel like family and continue to provide superior service for future generations and their families in Fort Lauderdale.

MY CREDENTIALS

PADI # 288355
◦Master Scuba Diving Trainer
◦Open Water Scuba Instructor
◦Divemaster

SDI
◦Open Water Scuba Instructor

MY STORY

I am originally from Brooklyn, New York but I spent most of my childhood in the suburbs just outside Washington, DC. My passion for scuba diving and the ocean started as a young boy snorkeling in Fort Lauderdale while on vacation with my family. Each year growing up we would take an annual vacation to the South Florida area. In 2004, at the age of 15, my uncle decided to mix up the routine and invited me to join him on a scuba diving adventure in Roatan, Honduras.

There I earned my Open Water certification. I was ecstatic and immediately began searching for dive shop Locations in my local area. Before departing I was able to find a local dive shop in Maryland and complete my classroom and pool training. When I arrived in Roatan I did my first ocean dives in clear tropical waters and immediately fell in love with the sport.

In high school and into early my twenties I went diving whenever I had the chance mostly when on family vacation to sunny Fort Lauderdale, Florida. During this time I really found my passion for working with children while volunteering at my local rec center. I was an assistant coach there for the Junior Varsity basketball team as well supervised the after school program for kids ages 8-15.

In 2011 that same uncle purchased a condo as an investment in Ft Lauderdale. He handed me the apartment keys and offered to jump start my career in the scuba diving industry by paying my tuition and allowing me stay in the condo during my instructor training. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity. I was finally able to find a career I was passionate about, truly enjoyed, and it even allowed me to work with kids.

My mentor and training

I trained under course director, "The Commander," Richard Hartley, at Sea Experience at the time. During his career Richard trained thousands of students to be PADI Instructors and was responsible for starting the successful scuba careers of countless individuals. I consider it a true honor to have been trained by him and unfortunately only a few months after completing my IDC, The Commander unexpectedly passed away on November 2, 2011 from natural causes.

I will be forever grateful for every thing he taught me and particularly for being tough on me during training. He will never be forgotten. The Commander's philosophies and teachings are passed on to my own students at Tigertail Lake. Here Open Water students swim through a plane sunk in his memory. RIP Richard Hartley "The Commander."

Losing my mentor at such an early point in my career was difficult, however I do consider myself extremely lucky. I have had many other mentors and great support from students and family in continuing to follow my passions and be a full time dive instructor.

After becoming an OWSI (Open Water Scuba Instructor) I mastered my trade by working as a Divemaster and scuba instructor for both Club Med in San Salvador Island and at the dive shop, Sea Experience in Fort Lauderdale where I did all of my training.

Over the years I have developed business relationships with boats and captains all over Fort Lauderdale and Key Largo. I only dive with the safest and most reliable charters in the area. In addition I have logged over 2,000 dives in these waters and trained hundreds of scuba divers. Many of these divers have been children, young professionals, and even a professional athlete.

The scuba diving industry has a well known reputation for underpaying their staff and instructors. This makes it very difficult if not impossible to sustain scuba diving instruction as a primary source of income. This is why turn over rates are extremely high and the majority of instructors either have other full time careers or give up quickly and move on to something else. It didn't take long before my entrepreneur mindset took control and I decided to start working independently of any dive shop.

In order to keep Classes affordable and be available full time I intentionally keep overhead costs low by not having my own boat charter or retail space. I am very proud of the fact that I have designed this entire site from start to finish without any type of formal training. This site is a constant work in progress and I also manage all aspects of the business including search engine optimization and social media marketing

我为什么加入 Couchsurfing

HOW I PARTICIPATE IN COUCHSURFING

anyway I can by hosting, attending events, or just meeting people

COUCHSURFING EXPERIENCE

Attended several events, I threw a pre-superbowl/ UFC CS party at my house in Fort Lauderdale, and have already had my first surfer. I can not wait to continue meeting wonderful people and doing wonderful things through couch surfing

兴趣

When I am not teaching scuba or diving in Fort Lauderdale I really enjoy other hobbies which include playing basketball, watching NBA + NFL games and spending time with my family sometimes taking them diving too. Its funny but even on my days off I am still in the water spearing for Hog fish.

MORE THAN ANYTHING ELSE I LOVE TO TRAVEL!

• fish
• causes
• education
• athlete
• coach
• instructor
• partying
• clubbing
• boating
• shopping
• traveling
• billiards
• socializing
• fishing
• surfing
• scuba diving
• snorkeling
• sports
• basketball
• swimming
• business
• communications
• teaching
• entrepreneurship
• languages
• volunteering

音乐、电影和书籍

The Hurricane, Casino, Scarface

Jay-Z, Sublime, Bob Marley

Rose that Grew From Concrete, E.A.R.L., The Big Friendly Giant

我做过的一件不可思议的事情

An eclipse @ BT's... Also killing a lion fish :D

教，学，和分享

Teach scuba diving. Learn new languages. Share my home, cultural, and personal experiences

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