Dive Pirates derives its name and philosophy from the combination of diving adventure and the romance of the Caribbean, especially the panache of pirates. Traditionally, pirate crews would take care of injured crew members by making them peg legs, hooks, eye patches, etc. Disabled crew members were not banished from the ship, but were given new tasks that they could perform and be useful to the rest of the crew. They were also given a pre-determined cut of the booty in exchange for their contribution. Dive Pirates continues that spirit by bringing the Adaptive Divers along with the rest of the crew and cutting them in on the priceless booty of Scuba Diving in the Caribbean.
Description of SCUBA and Adaptive SCUBA?
Self Contained Underwater Breathing Apparatus (SCUBA) is a popular sport created and made famous by Jacques Cousteau. Although it was once a sport for only the strongest of swimmers, it is now a sport that is enjoyed from ages 10 to 80 and beyond. Resorts and dive boats operate around the world and the sport has generated a specific travel industry. Air travel to the Caribbean makes most dive destinations within 2-5 hours from most US cities and this accessibility has helped grow the sport.
Instruction and safety is self regulated by the Recreational Scuba Training Council. Members include the instructional agencies of Scuba Schools International (SSI), Professional Association of Dive Instructiors (PADI), National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) and others. These agencies have agreed to a common set of minimum requirements for the safe training of individuals to achieve a rating of Open Water Diver. An Open Water Diver needs to be able to be comfortable in the water, understand the operation of his/her equipment, be able to plan dives within the limits of nitrogen decompression and be able to perform minor rescues. All agencies also offer and encourage continuing education for divers.
Instruction and safety is self regulated by the Recreational Scuba Training Council. Members include the instructional agencies of Scuba Schools International (SSI), Professional Association of Dive Instructiors (PADI), National Association of Underwater Instructors (NAUI) and others. These agencies have agreed to a common set of minimum requirements for the safe training of individuals to achieve a rating of Open Water Diver. An Open Water Diver needs to be able to be comfortable in the water, understand the operation of his/her equipment, be able to plan dives within the limits of nitrogen decompression and be able to perform minor rescues. All agencies also offer and encourage continuing education for divers.
Adaptive Scuba is a training philosophy that addresses the specific needs of a disabled individual, trains to that specific disability, and then prepares that individual to dive with mainstream Open Water Divers. We do this by including as many standard skills as possible and by jointly training with an Adaptive Buddy that can fill in the gaps for the disabled diver. These divers are a team that can dive in most locations with Open Water Divers.
Adaptive Divers are usually those with spinal cord injuries (paraplegic), neurological disorders, or amputations. For those divers that are quadriplegic or blind, we train them as Escorted Divers that require a team of 3 other divers to dive safely. Both Adaptive and Escorted Divers can dive in the mainstream diving community.
Dive Pirates’ Adaptive Scuba program is managed under the auspices of Scuba Schools International. The training program for instructors was created by SSI Course Director, Stacey Minton, in 2001. Open Water Divers or Dive Leaders from other agencies that wish to learn to work with Adaptive Divers or become Specialty Instructors are welcome to become trained and join our crew.
Brief History
Creation of the Club Dive Pirates was originally a social club of divers started by Barbara Thompson of Houston,Texas, Sophie Wimberley of Houston, Texas and Nettie Evans of Linton, Indiana that enjoyed practical jokes on dive trips and sharing them on a website, www.divepirates.org. Initially, money was raised to sell T-shirts and special Scuba Do Rags TM. In 2003 after learning Adaptive Scuba Instruction from Stacey Minton, Barbara, Sophie and Nettie expanded the club as a fund raising organization for Adaptive Scuba and began to look for candidates and funding to train them. Sergio Marquez of Scuba Houston in Houston, Texas and Stacey’s New Mexico Scuba Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico started Dive Pirate Clubs and raised funds for their local “chapters”.
In 2004, The Scuba Houston chapter began to focus on the needs for returning Iraqi vets who were amputees as a result of wounds received in combat from a tip provided by Theresa and Martin Cortez of San Antonio, Texas. This led to a formal fund raiser gala at the Houston Downtown Aquarium early in 2005. The attendees were generous and we were able to take 4 adaptive divers and their buddies along with our able-bodied divers to Brac Reef Beach Resort in Cayman Brac.
The success of this trip was both overwhelming and humbling. Nettie’s husband Bob joined the trip along with Tracey and Martine Hamilton of Dallas, Texas and Ginnie and Chris Pulliam of San Antonio, Texas. These indivduals formed a core group of Dive Pirates committed to forming a non-profit organization, training more instructors, teaching as many injured veterans as possible, and expanding nationwide. They were later joined in forming a Board of Directors for the non-profit that would eventually also include Lou Brown of Christoval, Texas, Byrdie Thompson of Tulsa, Oklahoma, Nancy Walker of San Antonio, Texas and Dave Kuhary of Cleveland, Ohio.
