>Laura Madrano will speak about her efforts with Dive Kulture, the group's activities over the last year, and her plans for the future. Dive Kulture offers scuba diving training, environmental education, job/internship placement and social support services to inner city at-risk and proven-risk (with criminal records) youth in Boston. The program addresses the challenges that urban youth face related to poverty, violence, physical and mental health, unemployment and academic distress through a unique adventure that teaches them respect for people and the environment as well as life skills they need to be successful in this society.

Laura is a licensed mental health clinician and works as a clinical supervisor at the Latin American Health Institute (LHI), a public health agency, focused on providing services to the Latino community in the Boston, Brockton and Lowell areas. She is originally from Spain and her ideas formed Dive Kulture. Laura holds a M.A. in Family Therapy from the university of Salamanca (Spain), and a B.S. in Marine Biology from James Cook University (Australia).

Nudibranchs are among New England’s most beautiful sea creatures. Luminous colors, wild shapes, incredible variety – in other words, they pack an awful lot into an inch. Join Jerry Shine for a photographic look at more than 25 different species, with an emphasis on when, where and how to find them in New England waters.

Jerry Shine is the author of A Shore Diving Guide To New England. His writing and underwater photography have appeared in more than 100 publications worldwide.

Now that the dive season is in full swing, let's continue our exploration of destination diving with a close look at the islands of Fiji. Mark Potter of MASS Diving has just returned from another exciting trip to the islands and will be sharing his experience with us. His presentation will include travel details, information about the islands, observations about the people and accommodations…and of course a wealth of underwater photos.

Mark Potter is the owner of MASS Diving in Natick. He has been a certified scuba diver since 1980 and a PADI instructor since 1986. Mark has more than 3500 dives to his credit, and is also an avid destination diver leading about five exotic group trips each year. Fiji is certainly a popular destination for Mark. This most recent outing is Mark's sixth visit to this interesting Pacific archipelago.

We have a special treat this month. Club members Jim McKnight and Mike Walsh will discuss their personal dive trips to Indonesia and share their amazing photos. The Indonesian archipelago has great bio-diversity both on land and under the sea. Jim will make a photo presentation covering the marine life and the famous Komodo Dragon. It's a "dog eat dog world" -- or in a marine context it's "fish eat fish ocean". In the oceans of Indonesia, everything is taken to extremes. Indonesia possesses the greatest diversity of marine life species and in the many ways this diversity is expressed is the ability of species to use camouflage; either to remain hidden from prey or to ambush prey. This is a specialty presentation focusing on photographs of hidden creatures.

Jim, together with his wife Nancy and two children, took up scuba diving while living in Thailand in 1995. Since then, Jim has logged over 400 dives and has been taking digital underwater photos for the past five years. Some of Jim's most interesting dive trips include Truk Lagoon (2005), Bikini Atoll (2006), Lembeh Strait, Indonesia (2007) and Komodo Island, Indonesia (2009). In addition, Jim has been on a number of MWDC trips to North Carolina and Canada. Locally, Jim pursues the New England lobster most weekends throughout the summer. Jim is also a member of the Camera Club of Central New England and the Leominster Art Association.

Mike received his open water certification in 1980 and has since earned trimix and cave certifications. Mike took up underwater photography in 2000 and now spends his warm water dive time hunting down the most exotic photographic subjects as passionately as he spends his cold water dive time hunting down good old New England lobsters and scallops. Among a wide variety of diving experiences, Mike has searched for 20 million year old shark teeth fossils in the deep/dark rivers of the southeastern US, recovered artifacts from a sunken World War II German UBoat off Rhode Island and explored shipwrecks in Massachusetts Bay.

Scuba divers are trained on traditional breathing systems with limited gas supplies -- and limited bottom time. Rebreather technology overcomes many of the limitations found with traditional scuba setups. This promises a new era in diving as rebreather development continues and becomes more affordable. Tom Huff from Northeast Scuba will share a practical talk on rebreathers covering CCR (Closed Circuit Rebreather) history, nitrox issues, basic design and operation, setup and testing, diving considerations, tear down and cleaning, and common myths and misconceptions.

Tom Huff has owned Northeast Scuba since 1996. With almost 40 years as a diver, Tom was first certified in 1973, received his PADI Instructor rating in 1977, and began teaching instructors in 1980. Tom has also been a technical diving instructor and instructor trainer since 1999. Tom has dived notable wrecks including the Andrea Doria, U-869, the Carolina, and the Palmer/Crary. Today, Tom has over 600 hours diving on a closed circuit rebreather, and he teaches open circuit and closed circuit rebreaters to the advanced trimix level.

Invasive species have become a reality for the marine waters of New England. The Massachusetts Bays Program (MBP) is involved in protecting marine resources from the devastating affects of invasive species. Peter Phippen, MBP regional coordinator, will present a talk on marine invasives monitoring efforts. He will discuss the sites being observed from Cape Ann to New Hampshire, identify the invasive species that have been discovered so far, and show divers how they can help in the monitoring effort.

Peter Phippen is a hydrogeologist with 25 years of experience in the field of water resources management. He holds and B.S. in hydrology from Michigan State University, an M.S. in hydrogeology from Boston University, and an M.A.L.D. in environmental landscape design from the Conway School. Currently the Coordinator of the Eight Towns and the Bay Committee, a division of the MassBays National Estuary Program and the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission, Mr. Phippen has planned, coordinated, and implemented projects for upper north shore municipalities addressing coastal pollution and restoration issues for the passed five years. He has extensive experience coordinating with regional environmental organizations and managing a variety of projects including local Coastal Pollution Remediation grants, Greenscapes North Shore, Coastal Wetlands Restrictions remediation projects, Environmental Outreach Guides, and Smart Growth.

In January 2008, Richard Brady and Michael Prange joined a group of eight divers on a trip to Truk Lagoon, the site of a major WWII battle in which at least 48 ships from the Japanese navy and merchant marine were sent to the bottom in February 1944. Truk Lagoon, considered to be WWII wreck-diving capitol of the world, was first explored by Jacques Cousteau in 1969, and ever since has been the subject of numerous diving expeditions. Most of the wrecks lie within recreational diving depths, and the rest are within range of trimix divers. There are so many wrecks that in eight days of diving, with typically four dives per day, they were able to dive virtually a different wreck on each dive. In this presentation they will share their experiences, both on shore and on the wrecks, including a trimix dive to the San Francisco Maru at 200'.

Michael Prange began diving in Southern California in 1975, and has been fanatical about it ever since. Whenever a business trip takes him close to water, dive gear is always in tow. This has provided opportunities to dive in Bali, New Foundland, Norway, England and the Persian Gulf, in addition to a few vacation trips to the Caribbean, Borneo and most recently to Truk Lagoon. Although exotic dives are always appreciated, he does most of his diving in local waters. Throughout his diving career there has always been a camera in hand, be it photo or video, and it should be no surprise that he enjoys opportunities to share his images and talk about diving. In 2001 he became one of the first US divers to be certified on the Inspiration rebreather, and in 2004 had upped this certification to full trimix. His recent dives have ranged from 30' dives helping out the state underwater archaeologist to 230' dives with local deep-wreck enthusiasts.

Richard Brady is a Communications System Engineer working for The MITRE Corporation and lives in Tewksbury Ma. His initial introduction to diving was in 1958 when his older brother came home from the service and let him use his gear and dive off Cohasset, Ma without a wet suit. He soon learned how to make a wet suit! He next dove in the late 60's without certification! As he looks back on those dives he is amazed that he survived. He came back to diving in 2000. He is currently certified as a PADI Master SCUBA Diver and does most of his diving in the Cape Ann area.

Jeff Godfrey will discuss scientific diving including regulation, standards, certification and ways that avocational divers can become involved in scientific diving. The presentation will include pictures and video from recent UConn projects including work at the Monitor, Thunder Bay, Stellwagen Banks and Grey's Reef National Marine Sanctuaries and Antarctica.

During his 30-year diving career, Jeff has acquired extensive experience in scientific diving, including eight years of scientific diving at Utah State University (USU) and 10 years as the Diving Safety Officer for the University of Connecticut. Jeff has served on the board of directors of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences for the past six years and currently serves as President of the Academy. He has also authored and edited several papers and proceedings.

Richard Simon will talk on his role in the Bermuda Cave Project. In March of 2008 he was approached by Terrence Tysall, who asked if Richard could help him out on a cave project in Bermuda. So, in the summer of 2008, Richard packed seven suitcases and boarded a plain for Bermuda. Bermuda is a microcosm of the rest of the world, which makes it ideal for a cave diving project. Richard had no idea he would dive some of the most beautiful caves ever seen.

Richard is currently attending Eastern Connecticut State University pursuing a degree in business. A Boston Sea Rovers’ Frank Scalli Internship winner, Richard is now a PADI and a TDI dive instructor holding both recreational and technical ratings. He has been running Privateer Divers LLC. since it formed in 2007. Richard is an avid diver; especially enjoying cave and wreck diving.

Woody Tinsley is Padi Master Scuba Diver Trainer and has been a diving as a professional for ten years. He is the owner of the newly formed Sharkiteuthis Diving Co., a scuba and photo training company. Woody has done over fifty fossil hunting dives and as a result has had two articles published. Woody is also the senior Crime Scene Investigator in East Hartford, CT.

Jeff and Dennis will give a presentation on diving the USS Oriskany. The focus will be on sharing their experiences and recommendations along with some great pictures and video. They hope their presentation will inspire you to dive the “Big O” and that their recommendations will help you plan the trip.

Jeff is an experienced technical diver who was able to take advantage of the challenge in venturing to the flight deck and the immense portion of the ship below. Dennis is an experienced diver with Advanced Open Water and Nitrox certifications which enabled him to thoroughly enjoy diving the carrier’s island structure.

Dr Wood will present a slide show and discuss macro photography in New England, including thoughts on equipment and technique and what can be accomplished with a compact digital setup.

Dr Wood has been an avid underwater photographer for the last eight years with a particular love for the cold waters of New England. Macro photography of the varied and interesting sea life of our native waters has been a special interest. Beyond this region, his diving has also taken him to the St. Lawrence Seaway, North Carolina, the Caribbean, Fiji, British Columbia, and Antarctica (although New England is still his favorite place to dive). When not diving, Dr Wood works as an otolaryngologist on Cape Cod.

Mr. Mark Miller will present a slide show and talk on marine invertebrates from both local and distant waters. Highlights will include colorful and exotic animals, some dangerous, some harmless, and all fascinating.

In the 35 years since being first certified as a PADI diver in the Pacific Northwest, Mr. Miller has logged over 10,000 dives in places like Truk Lagoon, Bikini Atoll, Kwajalein, Guam, Palau, Pohnpei, the Hawaiian Islands, and from British Columbia to Mexico, and Maine to Cozumel.

A marine biologist, and former commercial diver, he was also a pioneer in technical wreck diving in the far Pacific. He is the author of several books on scuba diving and maritime history, as well as numerous magazine articles and scientific papers. When not diving, he spends his surface intervals producing documentary and educational videos and teaching Oceanography.

The presentation will highlight research currently being conducted by the Massachusetts Shark Research Program. It will include new information on the biology and ecology of our local shark species, while touching on the conservation and management of these often misunderstood creatures.

Dr. Gregory Skomal is an accomplished marine biologist, underwater explorer, photographer, and author. As the principal investigator of the Massachusetts Shark Research Program, he has been studying and diving with sharks for over 25 years. He has written numerous scientific research papers and has appeared in a number of film and television documentaries, including programs for National Geographic, Discovery Channel, and PBS.

Dive Kulture is designed for at-risk and proven-risk, inner-city teens and young adults, Dive Kulture offers scuba diving certification together with environmental education and placement in jobs in the environmental industry. The program offers therapeutic outreach and long-term aftercare services to youth and their families by trained clinicians. Scuba diving is an activity very few inner-city youth are able to try.

More info on the organization Laura works for can be found at:
http://www.dive-kulture.com/about_us.html

Doug Scott will present "Finding the Stella-Marion Shipwreck". Doug and his students of A+ Certification at Natick High School embarked on an exciting adventure to help Dr. David Switzer of Plymouth State University document a steamboat wreck site on Newfound Lake, NH.

The 49.5' Stella-Marion was built in 1900 by Ambrose Adams and used to haul logs, ferry passengers and to deliver mail around the lake. It burned and sank in 1917. Dr. Switzer documented the site in 1984, but the site had been lost after several attempts to relocate it. The first ROV built by A+ was "Nosinki" which helped relocate the wreck. To document the site with color video footage the students built "SeaMoose" an underwater ROV (remotely operated vehicle) that is controlled from the surface using a joystick and laptop.

The trip was a success; students got great footage of the entire wreck. Mr. Blackburn dove with SeaMoose during the trip and got great footage of SeaMoose in action. All footage has been donated to the Hebron Historical Society and Newfound Lake Region Assocation for addition to the lake history archives. Local NH volunteers provided eight pontoon boats for the students to work from.

The project was funded by The Natick Education Foundation, Mass Tech Leadership Council and several private donations, diving gear was supplied by Mass Diving of Natick. The trip was featured in The MetroWest Daily News, Natick Tab, and FOX 25 TV News.

Once Italy joined the Entente Powers in April 1915, a notable part of World War One at sea got confined in the Adriatic sea. Allied forces wanted to close the Otranto Straits and bound the Austro-Hungarian influence in the Mediterranian.

In this presentation we will focus on the most important wrecks of the Adriatic from WWI:

• SMS Zenta
• RN Regina Margherita
• SMS Szent Istvan
• S/S Brindisi
• RN Giuseppe Garibaldi
• S/S Re Umberto
• S/S Linz

Ilir will also list some of the undiscovered and highly important losses. The presentation will be based on the findings of the expeditions that Ilir has led and ones organized by IANTD Expeditions.

The Steamship Portland, lost with all hands in a devastating storm at the turn of the last century, was thought to be beyond the reach of scuba divers. In August of 2008, a group of Massachusetts divers pushed the boundaries of technical diving and visited this untouched wreck. Bob Foster will take you along on the first dives to the Portland, lost for almost 100 years after sailing into the "perfect storm" of November 26th, 1898. This elegant paddle-wheeler carried over 190 passengers and crew as it left India Wharf in Boston bound for Portland Maine, and was last seen as night fell off the coast of Cape Ann. The wreck was discovered in 1989 and positively identified in 2002, lying over 450 feet deep in what is now the Stellwagen Bank Underwater National Marine Sanctuary.

Join Bob and fellow divers Slav Mlch, Dave Faye, Paul Blanchette and Don Morse as they become the first to visit the Portland in 110 years.

Bob has been an active diver since 1972, and became interested in wreck diving while living near the Great Lakes in the 80's. He has been searching for shipwrecks in Massachusetts Bay for the last 8 years, and has discovered and documented over 15 including the YF-415, Brenton Reef Lightship, and Augustus Snow. In 2007, Bob was among the first divers to visit the Palmer/Crary wrecks, 360 feet below the surface in Stellwagen Sanctuary. Bob's wreck diving interests have also taken him to Lake Superior and to the Florida Keys, as well as to New York/New Jersey to dive the U-869 and the USS Spikefish.