Episode 5: Beyond Limits: DiveHeart’s Mission to Transform Lives

Episode Transcript
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You are watching the Deadfoot Diver Podcast with Kurt, the Deadfoot Diver. 2 00:00:12,256.326530612 --> 00:00:20,46.326530612 Welcome to the Deadfoot Diver Podcast, where we discuss everything diving, tech diving, and especially diving with disabilities. 3 00:00:20,76.326530612 --> 00:00:27,906.326530612 I am super excited today to have Jim Elliott and Tina Marie Hernandez from the organization DiveHeart. 4 00:00:28,576.326530612 --> 00:00:30,861.326530612 How's it going? Good morning. 5 00:00:30,871.326530612 --> 00:00:31,161.326530612 Great. 6 00:00:31,191.326530612 --> 00:00:32,291.326530612 Thanks for having us. 7 00:00:32,996.325530612 --> 00:00:34,276.326530612 Oh, my pleasure. 8 00:00:34,626.326530612 --> 00:00:43,66.326530612 So I actually just heard about DiveHeart a few months ago, um, while I was doing research for this, uh, podcast. 9 00:00:43,691.326530612 --> 00:00:47,781.326530612 So tell me a bit about Diveheart and how you guys got started. 10 00:00:49,781.326530612 --> 00:00:54,734.626530612 Well, we're in the United States and we are a 501c3. 11 00:00:54,734.626530612 --> 00:01:12,466.326530612 So a registered charity and we are 23 years old this year and it was started by Jim and it grew out of his Get this love of helping people learn how to ski people with disabilities, learn how to ski. 12 00:01:12,926.326530612 --> 00:01:17,396.326530612 And he said, if people can learn how to ski, especially blind people. 13 00:01:17,776.326530612 --> 00:01:20,326.325530612 I wonder what we could do with people in the water. 14 00:01:20,346.325530612 --> 00:01:21,766.325530612 Cause he's always loved to dive. 15 00:01:22,186.325530612 --> 00:01:27,946.326530612 And he decided to take a shot and thought it was going to be a little club thing. 16 00:01:27,986.326530612 --> 00:01:35,516.326530612 And it turned into this worldwide movement really for getting people with disabilities in the water. 17 00:01:35,516.326530612 --> 00:01:35,656.326530612 And. 18 00:01:36,206.326530612 --> 00:01:50,766.32553061 Um, I think our highlight moment for us this year was a woman who, um, never thought she was going to be able to dive again, came to one of our sessions and turned to us at the end of the session and said, you made my year. 19 00:01:51,756.32653061 --> 00:01:53,256.32653061 And that kind of made ours. 20 00:01:53,306.32653061 --> 00:01:53,736.32653061 Yeah. 21 00:01:55,201.32653061 --> 00:01:56,711.32653061 Yeah, that's, that's amazing. 22 00:01:56,751.32553061 --> 00:02:03,21.32653061 I mean, uh, diving with diving helps people with disabilities in so many ways. 23 00:02:03,41.32553061 --> 00:02:03,981.32553061 It's incredible. 24 00:02:03,991.32553061 --> 00:02:04,421.32553061 I've. 25 00:02:04,491.32653061 --> 00:02:14,141.32653061 I learned that this year, uh, from starting as an adaptive diver again, after being a professional diver and then not diving for like 27 years. 26 00:02:14,171.32653061 --> 00:02:30,391.32653061 And actually it was on a snorkeling trip in Cozumel last year that I met a lady who, uh, she actually had to use a walker to get on the boat and she was sitting down next, she sat down next to me and the entire dives, I was watching her. 27 00:02:31,16.32653061 --> 00:02:32,996.32653061 I wasn't even paying attention to the wildlife. 28 00:02:33,16.32653061 --> 00:02:35,96.32653061 I was like, I can do that again. 29 00:02:37,46.32653061 --> 00:02:37,826.32653061 That's true. 30 00:02:38,276.32653061 --> 00:02:42,196.32653061 Yeah, sometimes it's, uh, it comes to people in different ways. 31 00:02:42,466.32653061 --> 00:02:45,836.32653061 We get some volunteers who are so enthusiastic about it. 32 00:02:45,836.32653061 --> 00:02:48,386.32653061 They go up to people in parking lots. 33 00:02:48,386.32653061 --> 00:02:57,96.32653061 And they're like, do you know that you could dive? And it seems a little bit strange, but I think we've actually gotten some new divers out of the. 34 00:02:57,221.32653061 --> 00:02:57,881.32653061 Approach. 35 00:02:58,31.32653061 --> 00:02:58,331.32653061 Yeah. 36 00:02:58,331.32653061 --> 00:02:58,681.32653061 Yeah. 37 00:02:58,731.32653061 --> 00:03:00,241.32653061 Poor guy in a wheelchair gets scared. 38 00:03:00,251.32653061 --> 00:03:02,871.32653061 Somebody runs up to him with a diveheart shirt. 39 00:03:02,871.42653061 --> 00:03:19,246.32753061 I was like, so, but we also do, you mentioned, go ahead, No, I was going to say, um, also you mentioned Cozumel and we were there this year and last year we go there several times a year cause it's cheaper than Florida, but, and we love the current. 40 00:03:19,826.32753061 --> 00:03:20,196.32753061 Yeah. 41 00:03:20,196.32753061 --> 00:03:20,706.32753061 Oh yeah. 42 00:03:20,926.32753061 --> 00:03:22,266.32753061 Yeah, especially after COVID. 43 00:03:22,336.32753061 --> 00:03:24,786.32753061 Everybody in the, yeah, everybody in the U. 44 00:03:24,786.32753061 --> 00:03:24,846.32753061 S., 45 00:03:24,856.32753061 --> 00:03:28,186.32753061 we used to go to Florida four or five times a year during the summer. 46 00:03:28,606.32753061 --> 00:03:34,46.32753061 And we, after COVID, everybody, you couldn't fly to other countries right at that time. 47 00:03:34,246.32753061 --> 00:03:35,346.32753061 So everybody in the U. 48 00:03:35,346.32753061 --> 00:03:35,586.32753061 S. 49 00:03:35,616.32653061 --> 00:03:38,286.32653061 got in their car and went down to the Keys. 50 00:03:38,576.32753061 --> 00:03:40,846.32753061 And all of a sudden it's like booming. 51 00:03:41,146.32753061 --> 00:03:44,426.32753061 And then all the prices went up and they haven't come down like on lodging. 52 00:03:44,426.32753061 --> 00:03:49,346.32753061 And that's, that's the biggest hit for us is finding accessible lodging that's affordable. 53 00:03:49,941.32753061 --> 00:03:50,281.32753061 Right. 54 00:03:50,291.32753061 --> 00:03:51,771.32753061 We're going to try again this year though. 55 00:03:52,161.32753061 --> 00:03:54,521.32753061 We're going to, we need to get back to Florida. 56 00:03:54,521.32753061 --> 00:03:56,881.32753061 It's a beautiful place to dive and. 57 00:03:57,541.32753061 --> 00:04:06,521.32753061 Um, it's great when we bring, uh, the younger set of people, um, who might not be ready for international travel yet. 58 00:04:07,411.32753061 --> 00:04:16,591.32653061 And we just, just did a documentary that came out in November, right before DEMA, the big dive show in Vegas, uh, and it's called the Legend of the Statue. 59 00:04:17,241.32753061 --> 00:04:23,331.32753061 And we pulled in a filmmaker friend, David Marsh, who did an award winning documentary called Adapting to Dive. 60 00:04:24,891.32753061 --> 00:04:30,571.32753061 He did this legend of the statue and we premiered it right before Dima and turned a lot of people onto it there. 61 00:04:30,571.32753061 --> 00:04:35,581.32753061 So it's, it's pretty cool about how the Christ statue down in Key Largo got there from Italy. 62 00:04:35,641.32653061 --> 00:04:36,981.32753061 Uh, Cressy donated it. 63 00:04:36,981.32753061 --> 00:04:38,591.32753061 It's, it's, it's really interesting. 64 00:04:38,601.32653061 --> 00:04:42,141.32653061 It's a short, it's about 30 minutes, but it's pretty cool. 65 00:04:43,531.32753061 --> 00:04:44,431.32653061 I was watching it. 66 00:04:44,441.32753061 --> 00:04:46,91.32753061 It's an incredible documentary. 67 00:04:46,101.32653061 --> 00:04:53,441.32753061 And for anybody out there who is not taking a look at Jim's YouTube channel, uh, for dive heart, check it out. 68 00:04:53,471.32753061 --> 00:04:55,11.32753061 It's absolutely incredible. 69 00:04:55,31.32753061 --> 00:04:58,391.32753061 You will have trouble, uh, keeping a dry eye. 70 00:04:59,606.32753061 --> 00:05:06,846.32753061 any of the videos, um, especially when he's interviewing all the adaptive divers and how much it's changed their life. 71 00:05:07,456.32753061 --> 00:05:15,306.32753061 Um, which I mean, I, as an adaptive diver, totally get, I get that way now, like actually still even, cause it's amazing. 72 00:05:15,316.32653061 --> 00:05:21,976.32753061 It's basically you're free, Yeah, freedom's the word for sure. 73 00:05:21,996.32753061 --> 00:05:30,786.32753061 Um, yeah, we, we, uh, so Cozumel, we, I was going to mention, we, we, we've always knew this was inherently therapeutic. 74 00:05:30,786.32753061 --> 00:05:34,596.32653061 So we started working with university medical centers years ago. 75 00:05:34,936.32653061 --> 00:05:40,56.32753061 And just three years ago, we were approached by Mayo Clinic to present at their annual conference. 76 00:05:40,296.32753061 --> 00:05:42,496.32753061 Well, they came up to us at DEMA, the dive show. 77 00:05:42,496.32753061 --> 00:05:42,686.32753061 Oh. 78 00:05:42,766.42753061 --> 00:05:42,781.22753061 Yeah. 79 00:05:42,781.32753061 --> 00:05:45,781.32753061 And I said, well, where is your conference? And they go, Cozumel, Mexico. 80 00:05:45,961.32753061 --> 00:05:48,621.32753061 And I laughed and I said, well, that makes sense. 81 00:05:48,621.32753061 --> 00:05:51,731.32753061 You, you are approaching me at DEMA, the big dive show. 82 00:05:51,811.32753061 --> 00:05:56,701.32753061 And, uh, so last year we presented on physical disabilities and scuba therapy. 83 00:05:57,121.32753061 --> 00:05:59,221.32753061 This year we presented a cognitive. 84 00:06:00,36.32753061 --> 00:06:25,56.32753061 Disabilities and next year we've been invited back and 1 of our divers, who's the doctor at Rutgers and is also a wheelchair user is the Air Force vet is a paraplegic and he is going to be, um, he's going to be presenting and talking about all the doctor stuff that, uh, that, you know, they'll understand, right? It'll be above our pay grade. 85 00:06:26,736.32653061 --> 00:06:33,396.32753061 which is, which is awesome because I mean, a lot of people discount the medical benefits of scuba diving. 86 00:06:33,936.32753061 --> 00:06:38,96.32753061 And, uh, that's one thing that you cannot. 87 00:06:38,421.32753061 --> 00:06:42,141.32753061 deny anybody who has been involved with it. 88 00:06:42,191.32753061 --> 00:06:44,931.32753061 Anybody who knows anything about hyperbaric medicine. 89 00:06:44,961.32753061 --> 00:06:49,71.32753061 It has a huge amount of benefits, uh, for it. 90 00:06:50,61.32753061 --> 00:07:01,991.32753061 You tell me some of that what you've seen? yeah, we've, we've actually, um, usually the second day of a dive trip, uh, somebody rolls up to us in a wheelchair and says, you're not going to believe this. 91 00:07:01,991.32753061 --> 00:07:04,121.32753061 I've been in chronic pain for like 10 years. 92 00:07:04,521.32753061 --> 00:07:07,141.32753061 This is the 1st time I've been pain free since my injury. 93 00:07:07,451.32753061 --> 00:07:12,671.32753061 In fact, Ian Brown, this doctor who's going to be presenting at Mayo on our behalf next year. 94 00:07:13,161.32753061 --> 00:07:24,481.32753061 is, is the one who said, you know, Jim, when I went home after a week diving in Cozumel, we had a veteran's trip and he said, I was home two weeks pain, pain free. 95 00:07:24,501.32753061 --> 00:07:27,11.32753061 And then the pain, chronic pain started coming back. 96 00:07:27,11.32753061 --> 00:07:39,501.32753061 So if you get them deep enough, we know, um, John Hopkins came to us and said, you know, had 12 vets with spinal cord injuries and PTSD and said, if you go to 66 feet, three atmospheres, there's an extra output of serotonin. 97 00:07:39,761.32753061 --> 00:07:56,941.32753061 Which helps with not only pain management, but during their pilot study in 2011, they found that 80 percent of the PTSD symptoms in the veterans were alleviated, which is why really just, and everybody gets out of the water and they just feel so much better if they can get, you know, get a little deep. 98 00:07:57,166.32753061 --> 00:08:11,386.32703061 Um, we did, we've done 11 years of adaptive scuba symposiums too, where we invite, um, hyperbaric physicians from Duke or rehab docs from Northwestern to come and present on some of the benefits of scuba therapy. 99 00:08:11,386.32703061 --> 00:08:23,936.32703061 So we knew a long time ago that this was therapeutic and just started reaching out to the, uh, the medical community therapists, OTs, PTs, uh, rec therapists as well as, as well as rehab docs and stuff. 100 00:08:23,936.32703061 --> 00:08:25,176.32653061 And Mayo wants to do some. 101 00:08:25,531.32753061 --> 00:08:30,151.32753061 Some research they said to us this year, they want to begin doing some research. 102 00:08:30,181.32753061 --> 00:08:38,271.32753061 They're going to get what is called an IRB, which you need to get at a university medical center to do human, any kind of human research. 103 00:08:38,501.32653061 --> 00:08:40,191.32753061 So we're all looking forward to that. 104 00:08:40,191.32753061 --> 00:08:41,561.32753061 I said, if you get the IRB. 105 00:08:41,956.32753061 --> 00:08:44,506.32753061 We'll get in the water and make sure everybody is safe. 106 00:08:44,516.32753061 --> 00:08:46,56.32753061 You know, that's really what we do. 107 00:08:46,466.32753061 --> 00:08:57,116.32753061 Um, and one of our goals, we're at a point now, 23 years in, is we want to replicate what we see in open water in a, in a warm confined environment. 108 00:08:57,196.32753061 --> 00:09:07,756.32753061 So it took us six years, but we have three patents, uh, in the U S and Canada on the, uh, the design of this pool, uh, the deep pools right now. 109 00:09:07,796.32753061 --> 00:09:09,96.32703061 And we started this process. 110 00:09:09,96.32703061 --> 00:09:09,586.32753061 There were no. 111 00:09:09,806.32753061 --> 00:09:11,196.32753061 pool is 130 feet deep. 112 00:09:11,206.32753061 --> 00:09:20,906.32753061 Now, Dubai, of course, is almost 200 feet deep, but the design is very similar to Nemo 33 in Brussels, which is really the first pool. 113 00:09:21,106.32753061 --> 00:09:29,76.32753061 It's probably about 25 years old, I think, at this point, but they have a couple ledges and then they have a tube, and that's really where the depth comes. 114 00:09:29,221.32753061 --> 00:09:33,151.32753061 From, but you can only put like X number of people in that tube. 115 00:09:33,151.32753061 --> 00:09:36,911.32753061 So if you could put 20 people here, you can't put 20 here and 20 here. 116 00:09:36,911.32753061 --> 00:09:42,271.32753061 Cause if there's an emergency at a hundred feet, you know, you can't, you got to go through two groups of people. 117 00:09:42,271.32753061 --> 00:09:48,331.32753061 So ours terraces up and out, it kind of telescopes and there's a 10 foot ledge at every atmosphere. 118 00:09:48,341.32653061 --> 00:09:56,761.32753061 So 99, 66, 33, and we figured with the staging area included, where you have a three foot area that goes. 119 00:09:57,571.32753061 --> 00:10:00,101.32753061 It, we could put almost 300 people in the pool at once. 120 00:10:00,111.32753061 --> 00:10:01,241.32753061 It's, it's scary. 121 00:10:01,721.42753061 --> 00:10:05,851.32653061 300 people in that pool. 122 00:10:06,251.32753061 --> 00:10:06,741.32753061 Yeah. 123 00:10:06,811.32753061 --> 00:10:07,101.32753061 Yeah. 124 00:10:07,101.32753061 --> 00:10:10,31.32753061 And that's, that's 1 of 3 pools we'll have in the complex. 125 00:10:10,41.32753061 --> 00:10:10,271.32653061 So we will. 126 00:10:10,651.32753061 --> 00:10:12,681.32753061 Assuming they stay in their lane. 127 00:10:14,1.32753061 --> 00:10:14,341.32753061 Yeah. 128 00:10:14,461.32753061 --> 00:10:18,611.32753061 Everyone can ascend to the surface without interfering with anyone else. 129 00:10:18,621.32753061 --> 00:10:28,671.32753061 So they'll have zones, you know, and then it'll be, you know, you know, and if we keep people, we figured 15 teams of 4, 15 feet apart and you go around the whole perimeter at each atmosphere. 130 00:10:28,671.32753061 --> 00:10:29,21.32753061 Yeah. 131 00:10:29,196.32753061 --> 00:10:32,826.32753061 You know, and then the staging area, we figured, yeah, it was about, it was kind of scary. 132 00:10:32,836.32753061 --> 00:10:33,736.32753061 We're like 300 people. 133 00:10:33,736.32753061 --> 00:10:35,366.32753061 That's a lot of people. 134 00:10:35,971.32653061 --> 00:10:36,391.32653061 Yeah. 135 00:10:36,531.32653061 --> 00:10:36,821.32653061 Yeah. 136 00:10:36,821.32653061 --> 00:10:40,851.32753061 But think of the benefits that that pool is going to bring to everybody. 137 00:10:41,281.32753061 --> 00:10:45,496.32753061 And are you guys going to use it for other types of training and stuff as Oh yeah. 138 00:10:45,526.32753061 --> 00:10:45,986.32753061 Yeah. 139 00:10:46,26.32753061 --> 00:10:54,166.32703061 So rehabilitation, recreational training, adaptive training, um, maybe some commercial training. 140 00:10:54,166.32703061 --> 00:11:03,326.32753061 So we're going to try and open it up to as much, um, and to as many people as we can and bring the benefits of diving to as many people as we can. 141 00:11:03,336.32753061 --> 00:11:17,361.32753061 This is our big reach to really, um, expand, uh, offering this type of, you know, this type of experience to so many more people. 142 00:11:17,671.32753061 --> 00:11:28,346.32753061 Cause even if you live in an area where you can dive, there's so many people who don't because of cost, you know, barriers and things like that or fear of the water. 143 00:11:29,236.32753061 --> 00:11:38,356.32753061 One of our big things is trying to expose more younger people, you know, the safety, how to be safe in the water near the water. 144 00:11:38,596.32753061 --> 00:11:43,441.32753061 Um, given that we live in the Chicagoland area, we're by a big body of water. 145 00:11:43,931.32753061 --> 00:11:46,401.32753061 It's not an ocean, but it's still a big body of water. 146 00:11:46,411.32753061 --> 00:11:52,251.32753061 So, um, so those are some of the things we hope to be able to deliver once we have the pool. 147 00:11:52,451.32753061 --> 00:11:52,641.32753061 Yeah. 148 00:11:52,641.32753061 --> 00:12:03,771.32653061 When we, uh, launched, we launched earlier this year in February and we got a, probably a million dollars in publicity, a front page of the Chicago Tribune and other papers and TV and radio and all that stuff. 149 00:12:04,421.32753061 --> 00:12:11,71.32753061 And, um, immediately the president of the American free divers association contacted us with his medical director. 150 00:12:11,71.32753061 --> 00:12:15,71.32753061 In fact, his medical director was on a zoom call with us from Poland. 151 00:12:15,71.32753061 --> 00:12:21,151.32753061 He had just dove the Poland, the deep pool in Poland and, um, free diving stuff. 152 00:12:21,161.32653061 --> 00:12:23,11.32753061 So they're very excited. 153 00:12:23,21.32653061 --> 00:12:24,931.32653061 They said, anyway, we can help you promote this. 154 00:12:24,941.32653061 --> 00:12:31,81.32753061 So we 3 million in in kind donations over the last, you know, several years. 155 00:12:31,371.32753061 --> 00:12:39,745.38733061 Architects and engineers, and we have land donated to us near Great Lakes Naval Base, where that's the only place that Navy divers get trained up in the U. 156 00:12:39,745.38733061 --> 00:12:40,169.34713061 S. 157 00:12:40,169.34713061 --> 00:12:44,531.32753061 is in the Chicago area in a city called North Chicago. 158 00:12:44,891.32753061 --> 00:12:50,871.32753061 So now I have 20 consultants saying, we've helped you this far. 159 00:12:51,951.32753061 --> 00:12:55,811.32753061 Now, if you're going to stick a shovel in the ground, you got to get some cash. 160 00:12:55,821.32753061 --> 00:12:59,121.32753061 So that's the stage we're headed to now after the holidays. 161 00:12:59,576.32753061 --> 00:13:04,176.32753061 Um, all of the people are going to help us get in front of the right people said, wait till the election's over. 162 00:13:04,196.32753061 --> 00:13:05,176.32753061 And so we did that. 163 00:13:05,556.32753061 --> 00:13:10,316.32753061 And now, now we're waiting till new year's is over and then we're going to hit the ground running. 164 00:13:10,316.32753061 --> 00:13:15,861.32753061 So Well, maybe Elon Musk can write a big check for you and just finish it off all in one shot. 165 00:13:16,266.32753061 --> 00:13:19,36.32753061 it, you know, it's, that's what you, it's not what, you know, right. 166 00:13:19,176.32653061 --> 00:13:22,386.32753061 It's, it's get in front of the right people with the story sells itself. 167 00:13:22,386.32753061 --> 00:13:29,276.32753061 I mean, you, you mentioned our YouTube channel and when, whenever a new person wants to volunteer or participate, I'll, I'll. 168 00:13:29,566.32753061 --> 00:13:48,286.32753061 Go to our YouTube playlist and if they have, if they have autism or spinal cord injury, I mean we can pull out, you know, 20 stories on veterans and send that, you know, our military playlist send that to, to a VA hospital and then they share it with people there, and all of a sudden everybody gets it before we ever get together. 169 00:13:48,376.32753061 --> 00:13:48,856.32753061 Right. 170 00:13:49,206.32753061 --> 00:13:55,926.32753061 And we do have some fun and funny videos to that on that YouTube channel too, and our music video. 171 00:13:56,136.32753061 --> 00:13:58,221.32753061 So cool. 172 00:13:58,276.32753061 --> 00:13:58,337.32753061 have a. 173 00:13:58,846.32753061 --> 00:14:00,496.32753061 We have a great, we have a crazy video. 174 00:14:00,496.32753061 --> 00:14:11,666.32753061 I got to tell you about because Tina brought it up is, uh, years ago I was on a trip and had a full face mask and we all had communication units on, right? So we push a button and talk to each other. 175 00:14:12,106.32753061 --> 00:14:16,676.32653061 Well, it was really warm and surgy and I wasn't feeling well. 176 00:14:17,266.32653061 --> 00:14:18,336.32753061 And this is down in Florida. 177 00:14:18,356.32753061 --> 00:14:24,96.32753061 And so I'm, I'm going to throw up and I'm like, Oh my God, I have a, I have a full face mask on. 178 00:14:24,416.32753061 --> 00:14:35,686.32753061 How am I going to throw up? And just on the fly, I thought, well, if I pull the tabs away, and I keep the seal at the surface of my face, and I hit the purge, the pressure will push out. 179 00:14:35,926.32753061 --> 00:14:36,916.32753061 So it was like, Whoa. 180 00:14:39,236.42753061 --> 00:14:42,76.32753061 So I did it and it came off successfully. 181 00:14:42,76.32753061 --> 00:14:46,626.32753061 So I got David Marsh just a couple of years ago to do a video. 182 00:14:46,856.32753061 --> 00:14:49,766.32753061 And we did a demonstration and that's on our YouTube channel too. 183 00:14:49,766.32753061 --> 00:14:56,876.32753061 So Tina said, Tina Marie said, you know, some of the fun stuff, that's one of the fun things, but she was just on a women of dive heart trip. 184 00:14:56,876.32753061 --> 00:15:01,106.32753061 You want to tell them about that? Yeah, I was on a women of dive heart trip and it was. 185 00:15:01,536.32753061 --> 00:15:02,726.32753061 awful out there. 186 00:15:02,726.32753061 --> 00:15:04,76.32753061 We're rocking and rolling. 187 00:15:04,116.32753061 --> 00:15:05,726.32753061 Everyone's not feeling well. 188 00:15:05,726.32753061 --> 00:15:09,216.32753061 We're all like, let's get in the water so that we don't get sick. 189 00:15:09,436.32753061 --> 00:15:11,46.32753061 We're still getting sick at the surface. 190 00:15:12,346.32753061 --> 00:15:23,926.32753061 Almost everybody went down and we had one brand new diver and she's the only one that was using a full face mask and she got sick in her full face mask. 191 00:15:25,316.32753061 --> 00:15:27,696.32753061 And I got to say that. 192 00:15:28,26.32753061 --> 00:15:35,196.32753061 She's a hero of mine now because not only did she get sick, but then she, she created a new signal. 193 00:15:37,36.32753061 --> 00:15:45,536.32753061 Um, for, for us to understand and, um, she rinsed her, her face off and we rinsed out the full face mask. 194 00:15:45,806.32753061 --> 00:15:52,6.32753061 She put it back on and they had to submerge about 5 feet so that they could swim back to the boat. 195 00:15:52,36.32753061 --> 00:15:52,596.32753061 That's it. 196 00:15:52,676.32653061 --> 00:15:54,16.32753061 It was just bad. 197 00:15:55,76.32753061 --> 00:15:58,521.32753061 And afterwards, she's like, Oh, Let's go again. 198 00:15:58,801.32753061 --> 00:16:05,831.32753061 And I'm like, I think I would have just quit diving right then if that had been my experience, but she's a hero. 199 00:16:05,831.32753061 --> 00:16:07,101.32753061 She's like, no, let's do it. 200 00:16:07,101.32753061 --> 00:16:07,801.32753061 I survived. 201 00:16:07,851.32753061 --> 00:16:08,661.32753061 Let's go again. 202 00:16:09,221.32753061 --> 00:16:10,321.32653061 So, it was funny. 203 00:16:10,321.32753061 --> 00:16:21,631.32653061 Some of the instructors after that happened, who were on a trip with Tina Marie, they start texting me going, Hey, Jim, we're watching your, your full face mask throw up video because it's no longer theory. 204 00:16:21,641.32653061 --> 00:16:22,221.32653061 It's not there. 205 00:16:22,551.32753061 --> 00:16:23,181.32753061 It happens. 206 00:16:23,201.32753061 --> 00:16:27,736.32753061 Right? That's awesome. 207 00:16:27,746.32753061 --> 00:16:39,136.32753061 Do you guys use a lot of full face masks in your training? We do we, um, we introduced the full face mask to our very first level of adaptive buddy. 208 00:16:39,506.32753061 --> 00:16:43,266.3270306 And that's because they could be on a team with a person using a full face mask. 209 00:16:43,266.3270306 --> 00:16:48,6.3275306 And it's good for them to know that they exist, how they work, what's going on. 210 00:16:48,566.3275306 --> 00:16:54,751.3275306 And then for the person who's going to lead that team, or a person who's going to Be the lead buddy on a team. 211 00:16:55,221.3275306 --> 00:17:05,601.3275306 Um, they need to have a little bit more, um, training and then for an instructor, um, we asked them to be a full face mask instructor as well. 212 00:17:06,141.3275306 --> 00:17:13,241.3275306 And we put people through some certain exercises for advanced buddy and for instructor and. 213 00:17:13,896.3275306 --> 00:17:21,776.3275306 We want them to be very comfortable with it, know how to dive with one as well as know how to help a person to dive with one. 214 00:17:22,276.3275306 --> 00:17:39,876.3275306 And a lot of times the reason that a person's using a full face mask is either they can't successfully use the standard regulator, or they might have a condition where maybe they have to cough or they have, they get really tired quickly in their mouth. 215 00:17:39,876.3275306 --> 00:17:40,886.3275306 So that's not good. 216 00:17:40,886.3275306 --> 00:17:43,316.3265306 Or we've worked with veterans who've had. 217 00:17:43,871.3275306 --> 00:17:55,611.3275306 Um, face, you know, disformities and so it's easier to to get a full face mask and get it fitted for them than to try and use a standard regulator. 218 00:17:55,611.3275306 --> 00:17:57,951.3265306 So we do have I don't know. 219 00:17:57,951.3275306 --> 00:18:00,791.3265306 What would you say? Maybe 10 percent of the people we work with. 220 00:18:02,411.3275306 --> 00:18:09,491.3275306 End up using a full face mask, and sometimes with the younger people, even, um, it's easier for them. 221 00:18:09,571.3275306 --> 00:18:13,631.3275306 You know, we, we, we go with our standard equipment until it's not working. 222 00:18:13,631.3275306 --> 00:18:17,851.3275306 And the, the person we were working with this time, she, um. 223 00:18:18,176.3275306 --> 00:18:24,546.3275306 She started and knows how to dive with standard equipment, but her preference was the full face mask. 224 00:18:24,556.3275306 --> 00:18:26,76.3275306 She has a traumatic brain injury. 225 00:18:26,156.3275306 --> 00:18:36,766.3265306 Yeah, we started, we started using, 27 years ago when I started teaching people with disabilities to scuba dive, I, um, I thought, you know, there's not going to be anything in this for blind people. 226 00:18:36,766.3265306 --> 00:18:42,246.3275306 This is going to be a waste of time because, you know, they're, you need visual references for your buoyancy and stuff. 227 00:18:42,246.3275306 --> 00:18:42,516.3275306 So. 228 00:18:42,946.3275306 --> 00:18:46,46.3275306 I, until I did the blind training and I'm going, Oh, wow, this is cool. 229 00:18:46,46.3275306 --> 00:18:59,666.3265306 How do we make it better? And that's when we introduced the full face mask with communications and thought if we put their hands on something, now we can talk to them and narrate them through the dive and make it more cool for them. 230 00:18:59,886.3275306 --> 00:19:03,266.3275306 So they can feel stuff and go, Oh, this is the prop of the boat or whatever. 231 00:19:03,646.3275306 --> 00:19:11,506.3275306 And then we started using it for, like Tina Marie said, kids with autism, traumatic brain injuries, Down syndrome, all that kind of stuff. 232 00:19:11,506.3275306 --> 00:19:12,456.3275306 So we use it a lot. 233 00:19:13,686.3275306 --> 00:19:14,116.3275306 Wow. 234 00:19:14,126.3275306 --> 00:19:29,596.3275306 Do you, and do you find with somebody with a significant disability that it takes a lot of extra time to train them in a full face mask for them to get comfortable with it? I don't think it takes a lot of time. 235 00:19:29,676.3265306 --> 00:19:34,926.2275306 Um, we do everything pretty much for somebody with a severe disability and we, and we use them. 236 00:19:34,976.3275306 --> 00:19:40,396.3275306 We, we programs here in Chicago and we use them like every, every session with certain people. 237 00:19:40,756.3275306 --> 00:19:43,736.3275306 And we, we make sure it's on them correctly. 238 00:19:44,76.3275306 --> 00:19:47,526.3270306 Uh, we drop below the surface and make sure the chin is set right. 239 00:19:47,526.3270306 --> 00:19:49,206.3265306 And you know, everything's working. 240 00:19:49,206.3275306 --> 00:19:52,346.3265306 There's no, there's no air leaking at the top and stuff like that. 241 00:19:52,346.3275306 --> 00:19:54,66.3265306 And we really control their equipment too. 242 00:19:54,66.3265306 --> 00:20:01,546.3275306 If, you know, if they need help with ascents and descents or out of air emergencies or any of that kind of stuff, they need an advanced team. 243 00:20:01,546.3275306 --> 00:20:01,816.3275306 So. 244 00:20:02,161.3275306 --> 00:20:07,681.3275306 We created a level of certification in our buddy program called Advanced Adaptive Dive Buddy. 245 00:20:07,911.3275306 --> 00:20:18,741.3265306 So somebody that was a dive master or rescue diver who was really good in the water, but they didn't want to become an instructor, let's say, but they could handle a quadriplegic or something like that. 246 00:20:19,31.3275306 --> 00:20:20,321.3270306 We created that level. 247 00:20:20,321.3270306 --> 00:20:27,531.3275306 And like Tina Marie said, that person has to be really master using a full face mask along with the instructors. 248 00:20:28,581.3275306 --> 00:20:28,921.3275306 Yeah. 249 00:20:29,786.3275306 --> 00:20:54,716.3265306 So, and it's, um, it's interesting that some of the people that do use the full face mask, if they are able, they, um, learn how to bail out of it and use a standard regulator, um, you know, if there was an emergency, uh, we also have protocols so that they wouldn't have to, um, switch out of the mask themselves because we have extra hoses. 250 00:20:54,856.3275306 --> 00:20:55,786.3275306 So like if they're, yeah. 251 00:20:56,101.3275306 --> 00:20:59,161.3275306 Tank, um, is low, which never happens. 252 00:21:00,1.3275306 --> 00:21:09,191.3275306 when their tank is low, we can take our, um, octo and, and click it on to their mask and use our air. 253 00:21:09,251.3275306 --> 00:21:11,381.3275306 Yeah, we have a quick disconnect on full face mask. 254 00:21:11,381.3275306 --> 00:21:17,261.3275306 So we developed a protocol long time ago and it's the same thing they used, uh, when they got the soccer team. 255 00:21:17,596.3275306 --> 00:21:19,166.3275306 Uh, out of the in Thailand. 256 00:21:19,166.3275306 --> 00:21:20,596.3275306 They got the kids out of the tunnel. 257 00:21:20,626.3275306 --> 00:21:21,126.3275306 Oh, yeah. 258 00:21:21,416.3275306 --> 00:21:22,216.3275306 same protocol. 259 00:21:22,216.3275306 --> 00:21:23,6.3275306 We've been using that. 260 00:21:23,6.3275306 --> 00:21:34,246.3275306 We started using it 10 years before that, where we would, I would have a six foot hose with a quick disconnect in my pocket and let's say a high pressure hose blue on the divers kit. 261 00:21:34,546.3275306 --> 00:21:39,686.3275306 Now, all of a sudden that air is gone like that, right? So we just reach up and pop off their hose. 262 00:21:40,71.3275306 --> 00:21:54,931.3275306 Pop out my now they're breathing off of my tank, right? And we like it too because the six foot hose allows us to transfer somebody with the mask on back onto the transom of the boat, right? We get that extra hose to get them back up there. 263 00:21:55,131.3275306 --> 00:22:04,171.3275306 Now the guys on the boat can open the surface breathing port and disconnect the my hose from them and then carry them back to their wheelchair, for example. 264 00:22:04,171.3275306 --> 00:22:08,991.3275306 So it took time to develop all this, but it's really cool and it's really safe. 265 00:22:10,26.3275306 --> 00:22:10,716.3275306 that's awesome. 266 00:22:10,716.3275306 --> 00:22:15,591.3275306 What kind of full face mask do you guys use? We use Ocean Reef mostly. 267 00:22:16,106.3275306 --> 00:22:22,186.3275306 Yeah, we have used, we have used agas and OTS in the past, uh, but those are, yeah, really ocean reef. 268 00:22:22,186.3275306 --> 00:22:39,626.3275306 I love them because we have, especially when they're, when they're clear, you know, all the way around, you can see any water if it gets in the mass, we had a, uh, an incomplete quadriplegic one time she was able to bring her, her hands up to the mask and push it into her face so that the nose block would go into her nose. 269 00:22:40,331.3275306 --> 00:22:41,471.3275306 And then she could equalize. 270 00:22:41,481.3275306 --> 00:22:47,141.3275306 So that's how you equalize with a full face mask, right? It's got the block inside, but you got to push up on it sometimes. 271 00:22:47,381.3275306 --> 00:22:50,641.3275306 So she would, she would reach up to, to push up on it. 272 00:22:50,881.3275306 --> 00:22:58,791.3275306 But there's this, the port right here, the surface breathing port, every time she would come up, she would open it a little bit more and more. 273 00:22:59,41.3275306 --> 00:23:02,11.3275306 And all of a sudden I look in her eyes and she's like, Oh my God. 274 00:23:02,11.3275306 --> 00:23:06,411.3275306 And I look and there's a little spray coming in because she's breathing in and she opened it. 275 00:23:06,501.3275306 --> 00:23:09,51.3275306 It doesn't flood in, but it sprays in a little bit. 276 00:23:09,451.3275306 --> 00:23:10,591.3275306 So she kind of freaks out. 277 00:23:10,591.3275306 --> 00:23:14,701.3275306 So I reach over, I close it and I'm going, I closed it on the boat. 278 00:23:14,721.3275306 --> 00:23:22,351.3275306 How did that, how did that come undone? Well, then I started watching her closely and I started realizing that she brought her hand up. 279 00:23:22,711.3275306 --> 00:23:26,391.3275306 She was turning that, that valve just a little bit each time. 280 00:23:26,661.3265306 --> 00:23:30,551.3275306 So when we got back on the boat, we briefed on what to do and what not to do. 281 00:23:30,551.3275306 --> 00:23:33,691.3275306 So learning experience, right? Always good divers are always learning. 282 00:23:34,726.3275306 --> 00:23:35,36.3275306 yeah. 283 00:23:35,36.3275306 --> 00:23:36,316.3275306 Yeah, absolutely. 284 00:23:36,386.3275306 --> 00:23:42,316.3265306 I mean, you guys, you guys came up with pretty well most of the protocols for adaptive diving. 285 00:23:42,316.3265306 --> 00:23:51,941.3275306 Did you not? We, uh, we, we have a lot of unique stuff that no one else, I mean, no one else, they might be doing it now because our stuff is out there. 286 00:23:52,331.3275306 --> 00:23:54,481.3275306 We launched our program in 2014. 287 00:23:54,481.3275306 --> 00:24:00,151.3275306 So there's a lot, like, I didn't know anybody that was using full face masks at all for people with disabilities. 288 00:24:00,161.3275306 --> 00:24:01,881.3275306 So we kind of introduced that. 289 00:24:02,301.3275306 --> 00:24:04,431.3275306 Um, we have a protocol now where. 290 00:24:05,111.3275306 --> 00:24:14,511.3275306 We, we, I came up on one trip in Cozumel and we had four teams of quads, so I got four teams of four people and the boat comes up and says, get on. 291 00:24:14,521.3265306 --> 00:24:16,631.3265306 And we go, you're not our dive operator. 292 00:24:17,111.3275306 --> 00:24:22,651.3280306 And they go, yeah, your boat, your, I know your boat broke down and it's on the other end of the island. 293 00:24:22,651.3280306 --> 00:24:25,71.3275306 Now, I got four quads with no chairs. 294 00:24:25,521.3275306 --> 00:24:30,391.3275306 with no catheters, with no, I mean, no pads that they can sit on. 295 00:24:30,851.3275306 --> 00:24:34,671.3275306 So we had to improvise really quick just from the side of the boat to the transom. 296 00:24:34,981.3275306 --> 00:24:39,51.3275306 I'm barking orders at instructors and we're getting the right people on the boat to transfer up. 297 00:24:39,341.3275306 --> 00:24:42,161.3275306 I said, get some of those orange, um, life vests. 298 00:24:42,361.3265306 --> 00:24:47,921.3275306 I said, we're going to put them on the life vest until we can, you know, get the, get the, uh, the chairs back and stuff. 299 00:24:48,211.3275306 --> 00:24:52,871.3275306 So they sent a quick boat down and they brought them back, but it taught us because there were no catheters. 300 00:24:52,901.3275306 --> 00:24:54,201.3275306 And if people don't cath. 301 00:24:54,666.3275306 --> 00:25:04,456.3265306 When they get out of the water, they could get something called autonomic dysreflexia, and that Oh, really? their blood that that could make their blood pressure go up and they could actually have a stroke. 302 00:25:04,726.3275306 --> 00:25:07,256.3265306 So we had to get this done really quick. 303 00:25:07,526.3275306 --> 00:25:11,206.3265306 So when everything happened and we got all the materials back. 304 00:25:12,16.3275306 --> 00:25:12,946.3275306 And it was all okay. 305 00:25:13,206.3275306 --> 00:25:17,756.3275306 We decided that we were going to make, now, adaptive divers that needed to cath. 306 00:25:18,106.3275306 --> 00:25:24,146.3275306 They would carry their own catheter in their BCD, and we would carry an extra one with us. 307 00:25:24,306.3275306 --> 00:25:30,756.3275306 So if this ever happened again, everybody would at least be able to catheterize and not have a stroke. 308 00:25:31,366.3275306 --> 00:25:52,336.3275306 Yeah, we see it as part of our responsibility since we get all the hard cases or a lot of them, not all of them, but we get a lot of hard cases and we learn lessons like this, that, you know, we see it as part of our mission to learn from it and then to let everybody else know so that they don't fall into the same, you know, possibility. 309 00:25:52,606.3275306 --> 00:25:58,966.3265306 But, um, what was cool about that experience was it was at the end of 2019. 310 00:25:59,391.3275306 --> 00:26:01,211.3275306 And we all know what happened in 2020. 311 00:26:01,591.3275306 --> 00:26:19,206.3270306 So, um, during the 2020 lockdown, um, we had a, we reached out to medical professionals, to our friends at Dan and Duke medicine and other, you know, um, doctors, and we talked to them about this situation. 312 00:26:19,206.3270306 --> 00:26:32,126.3275306 And we talked to them about, you know, how, what if we lost the integrity of the catheter? What if, you know, the seal broke or something? And each doctor was like, we'd much rather deal with an infection than with a stroke. 313 00:26:32,546.3275306 --> 00:26:50,606.3275306 So, and then, you know, we're thinking about, okay, do we make sure that the buddy has it? Well what if the buddy and the adaptive diver get separated? You know, so it, it came down to, yes, we are going to have the person with a disability who requires the catheter has to dive with the catheter. 314 00:26:50,726.3275306 --> 00:26:51,326.3275306 Catheter. 315 00:26:51,656.3275306 --> 00:26:52,886.3275306 But then we also. 316 00:26:53,831.3275306 --> 00:27:06,791.3265306 Um, had people that were awesome and they went to 100 100 feet with catheters testing the integrity of the seal and making sure that it doesn't break or, you know, what's the best play way to carry it down and things like that. 317 00:27:07,81.3275306 --> 00:27:16,671.3275306 So, those are the type of things that we do that hopefully makes diving safer for everybody, especially people with disabilities Yeah. 318 00:27:16,671.3275306 --> 00:27:18,761.3275306 That's, that's awesome that you guys do that. 319 00:27:18,771.3275306 --> 00:27:22,911.3275306 I would never even thought about the catheter situation on a, on a boat. 320 00:27:22,931.3265306 --> 00:27:24,781.3275306 Like that could be a big, big problem. 321 00:27:26,91.3275306 --> 00:27:27,921.3275306 I learned on the fly. 322 00:27:28,791.3275306 --> 00:27:30,791.3275306 That was yeah. 323 00:27:31,421.3275306 --> 00:27:34,391.3265306 not the best way you want to learn, learn in those situations. 324 00:27:34,391.4265306 --> 00:27:34,818.8270306 Yeah. 325 00:27:34,818.8270306 --> 00:27:35,246.2275306 Yeah. 326 00:27:35,856.3275306 --> 00:27:38,786.3275306 the good thing about that, though, is in diving in Cozumel. 327 00:27:38,806.3275306 --> 00:27:42,156.3275306 You're typically not too far from the shore. 328 00:27:42,506.3275306 --> 00:27:52,766.3265306 So, if there was an emergency, we were going to be able to get that person back to a dock and then call in the people to help if we needed to, but all worked out. 329 00:27:52,766.3275306 --> 00:27:53,26.3275306 Well. 330 00:27:54,596.3275306 --> 00:27:58,686.3275306 Yeah, that that's good that, uh, you guys have that kind of stuff covered. 331 00:27:58,746.3275306 --> 00:28:04,86.3275306 I mean, when I, I was in Jamaica, actually, I was surprised because, um, I had been. 332 00:28:04,616.3275306 --> 00:28:08,196.3275306 Every time I was walking and somebody seen and knew I was diving. 333 00:28:08,776.3275306 --> 00:28:14,836.3275306 And then with my disability, cause I've walked around at the brace all the time and stuff, they're like, Hey, have you ever heard a dive heart? And I'm like, no. 334 00:28:17,206.3275306 --> 00:28:22,266.3265306 And it was, I mean, I had people stopping me in the elevator and telling me about dive heart. 335 00:28:22,966.3275306 --> 00:28:23,556.3275306 That's funny. 336 00:28:23,816.3275306 --> 00:28:24,376.3275306 That's good. 337 00:28:24,386.3275306 --> 00:28:24,936.3275306 That's good. 338 00:28:26,166.3275306 --> 00:28:39,56.3265306 always tell, as I say, when we start a trip, we always, we had 50 people in Cozumel just a couple of weeks ago and we do what we call a go around where we introduce ourselves and talk a little bit about that way. 339 00:28:39,56.3275306 --> 00:28:45,126.3275306 Everybody knows who the instructors are in the room and the dive masters and some people who are adaptive divers. 340 00:28:45,126.3275306 --> 00:28:49,536.3275306 They want to talk a little bit about how they found us or what their conditions are. 341 00:28:50,201.3275306 --> 00:28:52,731.3275306 And it's kind of a great way for everybody to get to know each other. 342 00:28:53,141.3275306 --> 00:29:01,831.3275306 And um, some people discover things about people they thought they knew, which they all of a sudden like, Oh my God, I didn't realize that you've a brother with autism or something like that. 343 00:29:02,191.3275306 --> 00:29:03,161.3275306 And so we, we do that. 344 00:29:03,161.3275306 --> 00:29:06,361.3270306 We do that go around and it really helps on trips. 345 00:29:06,361.3270306 --> 00:29:16,16.3275306 We do that the first night and the last night and the documentary adapting to dive, we're doing it the last night and you saw it, right? Yeah, I seen it. 346 00:29:16,26.3275306 --> 00:29:16,426.3275306 It's awesome. 347 00:29:16,426.4275306 --> 00:29:23,66.3275306 I mean, hardly, hardly anybody had a dry eye in the whole place when you guys were filming it. 348 00:29:23,106.3275306 --> 00:29:34,731.3275306 I mean, which I, I totally get because it's not only that for somebody like me, for instance, Being in an environment like that, that helps me as well. 349 00:29:34,741.3275306 --> 00:29:38,861.3275306 Seeing other people with, with challenges, being able to dive. 350 00:29:38,871.3275306 --> 00:29:46,903.0972381 Like I'm really excited about actually becoming an adaptive Dive Buddy because of that reason, it's going to help me. 351 00:29:47,333.0962381 --> 00:29:48,503.0962381 It's going to help them. 352 00:29:48,663.0962381 --> 00:29:51,983.0972381 It's, I mean, it's an amazing thing to do. 353 00:29:53,228.0972381 --> 00:29:53,968.0972381 Absolutely. 354 00:29:54,8.0972381 --> 00:30:04,908.0972381 There's so many different ways that people need to heal or need to feel hope or need to feel, you know, um, good about, you know, carrying on. 355 00:30:05,258.0972381 --> 00:30:07,218.0972381 And I feel like the programs. 356 00:30:07,658.1597381 --> 00:30:10,748.1597381 And diving just in general helps us all in that way. 357 00:30:12,263.0972381 --> 00:30:16,283.0972381 Oh, yeah, it's that is one of the huge benefits. 358 00:30:16,293.0972381 --> 00:30:19,143.0972381 I found is mental health out of scuba diving. 359 00:30:19,703.0972381 --> 00:30:25,643.0972381 Um, and especially with I, I had years of depression and stuff that didn't. 360 00:30:26,863.0972381 --> 00:30:30,693.0972381 Go away, and I had all kinds of trouble dealing with and stuff. 361 00:30:30,983.0972381 --> 00:30:36,253.0972381 And my wife cannot believe the difference in me in just one year of diving. 362 00:30:36,253.0972381 --> 00:30:37,783.0962381 She's fully behind this. 363 00:30:38,513.0962381 --> 00:30:40,853.0972381 Because of what she's seen the difference in me in. 364 00:30:42,968.1597381 --> 00:30:44,108.1597381 Yeah, it's powerful stuff. 365 00:30:44,108.1597381 --> 00:31:05,673.1597381 We had a guy who I trained in Detroit and he ended up down in Florida at a dive shop and he called me after this guy rolled into the dive shop in a wheelchair and he's the guys just kind of tooling around looking at all the equipment and this friend goes, can I help you? And he goes, Well, I have a spinal cord injury and I used to be a diver and, you know, I missed just the smell of the equipment. 366 00:31:06,43.1597381 --> 00:31:12,33.1597381 And so I came in to just look at the equipment and my friend goes, you know, well, you can still dive. 367 00:31:12,53.1597381 --> 00:31:13,563.1597381 And the guy's like, don't mess with me. 368 00:31:13,573.1597381 --> 00:31:14,703.1597381 He goes, no, you can. 369 00:31:15,263.1597381 --> 00:31:23,973.1597381 And so he got him certified and the guy's wife came in like after, you know, it says, Oh my God, what a difference you've made in my husband's life. 370 00:31:23,993.1597381 --> 00:31:24,953.1592381 Thank you so much. 371 00:31:24,953.1592381 --> 00:31:27,883.1587381 So, you know, awareness is a big part of it. 372 00:31:27,893.1597381 --> 00:31:31,363.1597381 So during the go round, we always say there's two things you want to remember. 373 00:31:31,663.1597381 --> 00:31:32,933.1597381 It's all about adapting. 374 00:31:33,698.1597381 --> 00:31:34,888.1597381 And it's all about branding. 375 00:31:35,368.1597381 --> 00:31:45,68.1587381 So, so when, you know, when you run into people and they go diveheart, it's part of the, our mission is out there to, to create awareness for the brand too. 376 00:31:46,383.0962381 --> 00:31:47,83.0962381 Hi, everyone. 377 00:31:47,83.0962381 --> 00:31:49,143.0962381 Thanks for tuning in to the Deadfoot Diver. 378 00:31:49,513.0962381 --> 00:31:50,603.0962381 Subscribe and share. 379 00:31:50,663.0962381 --> 00:31:52,353.0962381 Your support means the world to me. 380 00:31:52,893.0962381 --> 00:31:57,153.0962381 If you'd like to contribute directly, you can do so at the link in the description at buymeacoffee. 381 00:31:57,793.0962381 --> 00:32:11,613.0962381 com slash deadfoot diver, every donation helps me work towards earning my Adaptive Dive Buddy certification, travel costs to help me assist other adaptive divers and covering further training and equipment costs. 382 00:32:11,903.0962381 --> 00:32:14,683.0962381 Bringing you on even more exciting adventures. 383 00:32:16,93.0962381 --> 00:32:25,123.0957381 Don't forget to check out my guest links in the description and remember grab an adventure and live and don't ever let a disability. 384 00:32:25,123.0957381 --> 00:32:25,833.0952381 Keep you down. 385 00:32:26,216.0962381 --> 00:32:27,136.0967381 Which is amazing. 386 00:32:27,136.0967381 --> 00:32:42,11.1587381 So, what if somebody wants to become an adaptive dive buddy with you? What's the process and the training that they have to go through to do that? Um, right now you would re you know, they could reach out or go to the website. 387 00:32:42,41.1597381 --> 00:32:48,211.1597381 There's a whole page on training and it requires, um, book work. 388 00:32:48,711.1597381 --> 00:32:57,801.1597381 Online training and then in water training and, um, some of our instructors approach it differently for the in water part. 389 00:32:58,111.1597381 --> 00:33:00,321.1587381 The online training takes about 4 hours. 390 00:33:00,761.1587381 --> 00:33:10,151.1597381 The book, it's just however long it takes you to read it and, um, it's available in print, like on a, in a paperback or online. 391 00:33:10,601.1597381 --> 00:33:13,801.1597381 So, like, if you have a Kindle or something like that, um. 392 00:33:14,631.1597381 --> 00:33:23,911.1592381 But then, uh, some instructors do it over a number of, um, like weekends, or they can do it over a four day period. 393 00:33:23,911.1592381 --> 00:33:30,411.1597381 It's roughly three full days of confined water and one full day of open water. 394 00:33:31,421.1597381 --> 00:33:33,1.1597381 And land clinics too. 395 00:33:33,861.1587381 --> 00:33:37,151.1597381 Oh, and a day of land, or one day of land clinics. 396 00:33:37,881.1597381 --> 00:33:40,621.1597381 Two days of confined water and one day of open water. 397 00:33:40,841.1597381 --> 00:33:41,221.1597381 Sorry. 398 00:33:41,861.1597381 --> 00:33:54,571.1597381 Um, and then we're looking this next quarter to hopefully combine our Online training so that you will no longer need to buy the book. 399 00:33:54,951.1587381 --> 00:33:58,391.1587381 You'll just have everything Online for you. 400 00:33:59,291.1587381 --> 00:34:07,551.0972381 So we'll see that's a big project for me this the beginning of this year we want to make it easy for people to use these to which is helpful. 401 00:34:08,291.1597381 --> 00:34:43,651.1597381 Yeah, What, um, so tell me how much, uh, just to bring awareness to this, how much trouble do you guys have getting dive buddies? I don't, right at this point, 23 years in, we really, um, don't have trouble because people find us, they do Google searches, and it's, it's really funny, not only on the training side, but also on the medical side, because in, in 2020, when COVID hit, we canceled 14 trips and 200 pool programs around the U. 402 00:34:43,651.1597381 --> 00:34:44,81.1597381 S., 403 00:34:44,431.1597381 --> 00:34:48,251.1597381 and that doesn't include what we do in Malaysia and other places around the world. 404 00:34:48,611.1597381 --> 00:34:50,471.1587381 And, um, out of nowhere, here. 405 00:34:50,661.1597381 --> 00:35:07,761.1597381 You know, we, we just stopped everything and out of nowhere, five occupational therapy doctoral candidates did their dissertations with us and now we have the ability to offer occupational therapists, physical therapists and recreational therapists, continuing education credits. 406 00:35:07,961.1587381 --> 00:35:14,131.1597381 So we'll get in front of a university group and they'll get credit for, you know, doctors or therapists or whatever. 407 00:35:15,221.0972381 --> 00:35:16,271.0972381 Wow, that's awesome. 408 00:35:16,771.0962381 --> 00:35:22,831.0962381 Cause I, I know up here, I know that, um, Hubert, he always has trouble getting enough dive buddies. 409 00:35:23,371.0972381 --> 00:35:24,711.0972381 He's always short on people. 410 00:35:25,241.0972381 --> 00:35:42,781.0972381 Um, I, that's, that's another reason that I want to get my adaptive dive buddy cert is just so that if I'm on vacation somewhere, and some, I run into somebody who's able to dive but can't because they don't have another dive buddy available. 411 00:35:42,846.0972381 --> 00:35:44,536.0972381 I want to be able to assist in that way. 412 00:35:45,546.1597381 --> 00:35:56,576.1597381 Yeah, well, I think we're going to be moving in that direction just overall because a lot of the conversations I have is we get calls all the time. 413 00:35:56,576.1597381 --> 00:36:03,886.1597381 Where can I dive if I can't go on a trip with you? And then how do we find buddies? And then even the resorts are like. 414 00:36:04,226.1597381 --> 00:36:25,376.1597381 You know, how can we get programs set up so that if someone comes to us and requires an additional, um, assistance that maybe we can use, pardon me, the other people on the island can get trained up and we can trade with them, come and help people who require assistance. 415 00:36:25,666.1597381 --> 00:36:30,356.1597381 But then when you don't, we don't have someone and we have an open spot on the boat, just come and dive. 416 00:36:30,756.1597381 --> 00:36:41,146.1597381 Um, for free as a thank you and we're hoping that programs like that can be successful and then you don't need to travel. 417 00:36:41,206.1597381 --> 00:36:46,506.1597381 I mean, if you, if your buddy is your father or sister or best friend, great. 418 00:36:46,816.1597381 --> 00:36:49,386.1587381 But if you want to travel alone, you can hopefully then. 419 00:36:49,756.1587381 --> 00:36:57,866.1597381 Come to a place and not only is the staff trained up, but now there's buddies that would come and dive with you. 420 00:36:58,296.1597381 --> 00:37:03,626.0597381 And, and make it fun, and you don't have to pay extra money to have it happen. 421 00:37:03,806.1597381 --> 00:37:10,16.1597381 And our, our program also, um, offers a, um, a certification for Pool Buddy. 422 00:37:10,396.1597381 --> 00:37:16,856.0972381 So, if you, like this time of year, right, where nobody's diving in North America, for the most part, I am. 423 00:37:16,856.1972381 --> 00:37:18,725.9972381 Yeah. 424 00:37:18,796.1597381 --> 00:37:19,396.1597381 exactly. 425 00:37:19,656.1597381 --> 00:37:26,786.1597381 But, I mean, you, you know, taking people with disabilities in open water, even in the summer, and, you know, in lakes and quarries is, is daunting. 426 00:37:27,251.1597381 --> 00:37:30,981.1597381 Um, sometimes you have to put them in dry suits and stuff like that, which is crazy. 427 00:37:31,301.1597381 --> 00:37:51,71.1597381 So, so we, uh, we have a pool certification program where in fact, I think just recently we had one in Northern Minnesota where, uh, or Michigan where they were, um, where they were working and getting buddies trained up so they could have regular programs with the local VA hospital or the local rehab center. 428 00:37:51,421.1597381 --> 00:37:55,851.1597381 where they could bring people in on a regular basis and get them out of their wheelchairs, get them in the water. 429 00:37:56,71.1597381 --> 00:37:57,411.1597381 And now everybody's trained up. 430 00:37:57,411.1597381 --> 00:38:06,481.1587381 Yeah, they're not doing open water yet, but at least they can have regular freedom experiences out of their chair by escaping gravity and pools. 431 00:38:06,491.1587381 --> 00:38:09,141.1587381 So every community pretty much has a pool. 432 00:38:09,141.1597381 --> 00:38:09,431.1597381 So. 433 00:38:10,886.0972381 --> 00:38:11,146.0972381 Yeah. 434 00:38:11,146.0972381 --> 00:38:12,146.0972381 Pool programs. 435 00:38:12,726.0972381 --> 00:38:25,206.0972381 So with the, uh, with the pool programs, uh, with your new pool that you're building, what covers the cost for an adaptive diver if they want to join your program? Because diving's not cheap. 436 00:38:26,516.1597381 --> 00:38:37,276.1587381 Right now we put it at roughly a hundred dollars a dive, you know, for covering someone, but with our pool programs today, we don't charge any money. 437 00:38:37,576.1587381 --> 00:38:43,746.1597381 So that's what it costs us to have, you know, to cover a person to dive with us. 438 00:38:43,756.1597381 --> 00:38:58,801.1597381 And that includes, you know, We do, we get all the equipment, we have the buddies come, we do the insurance, insurance is our biggest, uh, expense, um, all the maintenance, all that type of thing. 439 00:38:59,191.1597381 --> 00:39:02,211.1587381 Um, So we budget like 150 a person. 440 00:39:02,411.1597381 --> 00:39:02,741.1597381 Yeah. 441 00:39:02,811.1597381 --> 00:39:03,71.1597381 Yeah. 442 00:39:03,71.1597381 --> 00:39:13,856.1597381 And so if we, if we have 10 people in the water at a given event that we budget in our mind, 1, 500, right? 150 times 10. 443 00:39:14,286.1597381 --> 00:39:19,346.1597381 And so that's kind of how we determine what our budget is and how many programs we can do and stuff like that. 444 00:39:19,346.1597381 --> 00:39:31,376.1597381 So when, uh, when somebody wants to support us, we're like, well, you could support one, one diver for one event for 150, or you could give us, you know, 1, 500 and help 10 divers get in the water. 445 00:39:31,831.1597381 --> 00:39:32,991.1597381 But we don't charge anything. 446 00:39:33,1.1597381 --> 00:39:34,741.1597381 We don't charge the adaptive dive or anything. 447 00:39:34,751.1597381 --> 00:39:35,171.1597381 Right. 448 00:39:35,221.1597381 --> 00:39:44,281.1587381 And you know, when we have the, the larger pool, you know, hopefully that won't change, but you never know what's going to happen. 449 00:39:44,601.1597381 --> 00:39:47,481.1587381 I mean, and that's part of the reason why we're raising. 450 00:39:47,891.1597381 --> 00:39:58,411.1597381 Um, we're not only getting the money to build a pool, but we're also trying to get the money for endowment so that we can continue to offer these types of programs for free. 451 00:39:58,731.1597381 --> 00:40:14,51.1597381 And that's always been our major, um, goal because we don't want it to be a barrier for someone who really needs it, right? Someone who, who they could get so much benefit out of it, it would be, um. 452 00:40:14,441.1597381 --> 00:40:19,171.1597381 It would, you know, it wouldn't be right for us not to be able to get them in the water. 453 00:40:19,451.1597381 --> 00:40:27,891.1597381 So that's part of the money that we're trying to raise is so that we also have the endowment to let people continue to do use the pool for free. 454 00:40:29,46.0972381 --> 00:40:37,340.9972381 That's, that's amazing that you guys do that because a lot of people with disabilities don't have the cash to be able to scuba dive. 455 00:40:38,71.0972381 --> 00:40:55,681.0962381 Um, you know, and it, so you guys are giving thousands of people the advantage to be able to actually do this, that normally would not be able to do this at all, even just based on, on their current financial situation or anything, which is awesome. 456 00:40:56,401.1597381 --> 00:41:05,511.1597381 And we're blessed that, you know, divers are very generous in that, you know, and I was telling someone, they're like, Oh, I'm seeing that new equipment. 457 00:41:05,531.1587381 --> 00:41:08,401.1597381 I'm like, well, you could donate your old equipment to us. 458 00:41:08,791.1597381 --> 00:41:13,801.1597381 And then now you've done a good thing and you can go and buy your new equipment without any guilt. 459 00:41:14,221.1597381 --> 00:41:19,581.1597381 And what we do with that, that donation, that type of donation is we'll evaluate it. 460 00:41:20,396.1597381 --> 00:41:24,376.1597381 We'll say, can we use it in our programs? If we can use it in our programs, great. 461 00:41:24,546.1597381 --> 00:41:43,656.1597381 Or we can put it into what we, um, kind of call the, the area where like if an adaptive diver comes to us and they get trained up and now they want to come or they're coming on a regular basis to the pool, we try and get them kitted up so that they have their own kit and they can come back and forth and they take care of it. 462 00:41:43,666.1597381 --> 00:41:47,736.1587381 And if they come on a trip, they can bring, you know, they have their own equipment. 463 00:41:48,176.1597381 --> 00:42:04,426.1587381 And that really was born also out of covid, right? Because trying to keep everyone's stuff clean and, you know, all the protocols that were required, we found that it was much easier and safer just to have the person keep their equipment this way. 464 00:42:04,426.1587381 --> 00:42:10,456.1597381 They're always using the same 1 and they know where it's been and they are the person who uses it. 465 00:42:10,776.1597381 --> 00:42:16,896.1597381 So, um, because of all these generous people who are able to donate their, their used. 466 00:42:17,221.1597381 --> 00:42:19,851.1597381 Um, loved and used, uh, equipment. 467 00:42:20,111.1597381 --> 00:42:22,991.1597381 If we can continue to love and use it, we will do that. 468 00:42:23,1.1597381 --> 00:42:25,501.1597381 And we give it to, uh, an adaptive diver. 469 00:42:25,551.1597381 --> 00:42:27,221.1597381 Also, it's really funny. 470 00:42:27,481.1597381 --> 00:42:32,401.1587381 You realize how people covet their, their scuba equipment. 471 00:42:32,441.1597381 --> 00:42:33,701.1597381 I mean, they love it. 472 00:42:34,1.1597381 --> 00:42:34,631.1597381 They love it. 473 00:42:34,901.1597381 --> 00:42:36,191.1597381 They don't want to get rid of it. 474 00:42:36,251.1597381 --> 00:42:45,771.1597381 I mean, they've had it in the closet for 30 years, but and they've only used it three times, right? But it's amazing how personal the dive gear is. 475 00:42:45,771.1597381 --> 00:42:47,331.1597381 And people will give us stuff. 476 00:42:47,331.1597381 --> 00:42:49,861.1597381 They will get like wetsuits that are like cardboard. 477 00:42:49,901.1597381 --> 00:42:50,791.1597381 They're so stiff. 478 00:42:51,201.1587381 --> 00:42:55,661.1597381 And we'll take all the wetsuits that we can't use and we bring them to a recycler. 479 00:42:55,931.1597381 --> 00:43:00,981.1597381 And what we do with the recycler then turns them into coasters, like dive heart coasters with our logo. 480 00:43:01,431.1597381 --> 00:43:04,271.1597381 Yeah, or we may have yoga mats and we have welcome mats. 481 00:43:04,271.1597381 --> 00:43:18,531.1587381 So instead of the, the wetsuit going into a landfill, yeah, that's our superhero, uh, one it, instead of going into a landfill, we, um, we then repurpose it and then we, we go to like at DEMA at the big dive show. 482 00:43:18,531.1587381 --> 00:43:23,611.1597381 We just did lava rubber who, who makes them for us and, uh, scuba. 483 00:43:23,611.1597381 --> 00:43:23,961.1597381 com. 484 00:43:23,961.1597381 --> 00:43:28,831.1597381 We kind of all teamed up and we had like a thousand coasters that we were able to share with. 485 00:43:28,971.1597381 --> 00:43:31,171.1597381 People at the, at the show and stuff like that. 486 00:43:31,181.1597381 --> 00:43:35,521.1597381 So it's, it's just a fun, cool way of repurposing stuff. 487 00:43:36,731.0962381 --> 00:43:45,401.0972381 By the way, I'm going to have all the links to your, uh, your site down below here, below the video and, uh, also to your YouTube channel and stuff. 488 00:43:46,566.0972381 --> 00:43:51,546.0972381 Um, so that, uh, hopefully we can get you a lot more viewers and a lot more, uh, donations. 489 00:43:52,361.1597381 --> 00:43:53,1.1597381 I love it. 490 00:43:53,746.0972381 --> 00:43:54,526.0972381 That's awesome. 491 00:43:54,526.0972381 --> 00:44:00,896.0972381 Because I mean, so many people, I know they buy stuff, use something for a year or so, stick it in the closet. 492 00:44:00,896.0972381 --> 00:44:03,266.0972381 Like you said, never touch it again. 493 00:44:04,851.1597381 --> 00:44:05,571.1587381 And it's personal. 494 00:44:05,571.1597381 --> 00:44:10,721.1597381 I mean, the value, some people go, you know, the value to them is incredible. 495 00:44:10,721.1597381 --> 00:44:15,51.1587381 And they'll say, well, I went to a dive shop and I wanted to see if they wanted to buy my old stuff. 496 00:44:15,51.1597381 --> 00:44:17,451.1597381 And of course, dive shops don't want anything to do with your old stuff. 497 00:44:18,341.1597381 --> 00:44:19,871.1597381 So those, I give it the diveheart. 498 00:44:19,891.1597381 --> 00:44:20,331.1597381 So. 499 00:44:22,716.0972381 --> 00:44:23,36.0972381 Yeah. 500 00:44:23,36.0972381 --> 00:44:24,756.0962381 It's like, it's, it's funny. 501 00:44:24,756.0972381 --> 00:44:25,516.0972381 It's the same thing. 502 00:44:25,526.0972381 --> 00:44:33,756.0972381 Like old guitars, right? You know, somebody who's got no, we got an old guitar sitting here that, that apparently Bob Dylan played, but there's no proof of it. 503 00:44:33,766.0972381 --> 00:44:38,826.0972381 So like, it's like, okay, I had this. 504 00:44:38,826.0972381 --> 00:44:39,46.0972381 Yeah. 505 00:44:39,46.0972381 --> 00:44:40,766.0972381 I had this guy dive with this gear. 506 00:44:40,766.0972381 --> 00:44:41,106.0972381 Right. 507 00:44:42,806.1597381 --> 00:44:49,46.1597381 And let me tell you, some of the stuff we get, it looks like Jacques Cousteau would go, this is kind of old. 508 00:44:50,276.1597381 --> 00:44:57,766.1597381 We do keep some retro, we do have some like cool retro double hose regulators kind of on display in our outreach center. 509 00:44:58,76.1587381 --> 00:45:07,866.1597381 And we have a MacGyver, uh, he's wonderful, he runs our dive locker, we have 2, 000 square feet of gear, right? And he'll, we'll get spear guns in, and he'll, he loves, like. 510 00:45:08,241.1597381 --> 00:45:10,291.1597381 Taking things apart and refurbishing them. 511 00:45:10,291.1597381 --> 00:45:14,881.1597381 And he's really good with wood and he, uh, we'll just make it look new. 512 00:45:15,131.1597381 --> 00:45:19,831.1587381 And now we have the whole display of spear guns up on the, you know, up on the wall. 513 00:45:19,831.1587381 --> 00:45:20,541.1597381 It's kind of fun. 514 00:45:20,946.1597381 --> 00:45:23,106.1597381 We don't take anyone spear spearfishing. 515 00:45:23,106.1597381 --> 00:45:25,86.0597381 Yeah, we don't. 516 00:45:25,646.1597381 --> 00:45:27,521.0972381 Let's just no line or something. 517 00:45:31,256.1597381 --> 00:45:31,881.0972381 We'll Yeah. 518 00:45:31,881.0972381 --> 00:45:32,301.0972381 Yeah. 519 00:45:32,846.1597381 --> 00:45:38,396.1587381 We'll help the coral, the coral trees and the, you know, we've done coral restoration dives. 520 00:45:39,76.1587381 --> 00:46:00,71.1597381 And we're trying to do more of that because I think it's really good for all divers to feel like they're giving back to the ocean, right? We all, um, Go down there and we know how beautiful it is, and we know how delicate it is, and it's part of our mission to not just teach people how to dive, but to appreciate and and cherish that environment. 521 00:46:00,341.1597381 --> 00:46:10,651.1597381 So, um, on a couple of our trips, and we'll be doing it more and more often where there's an availability for us to do some coral restoration dives and to learn a little bit about, um. 522 00:46:11,521.1597381 --> 00:46:14,771.1597381 You know, how do we protect our ocean? We we do that. 523 00:46:15,721.0972381 --> 00:46:38,1.1597381 So what do you guys do for the coral restoration dives? We've actually taken our adaptive divers like the team goes down and we do a couple of dives where we're cleaning the trees, you know, that they that they're growing on or clean the little coral babies to to get the fungus off of them or the algae, not the fungus, the algae, um, so that they can continue to grow. 524 00:46:38,21.1597381 --> 00:46:38,441.1597381 So. 525 00:46:38,831.1597381 --> 00:46:43,471.1597381 Um, and you know, each program has their own required training. 526 00:46:43,801.1597381 --> 00:46:47,801.1597381 So we do like a half day of training or whatever the training is required. 527 00:46:47,801.1597381 --> 00:46:48,961.1597381 And then we'll go do the dive. 528 00:46:49,521.1597381 --> 00:46:50,971.1597381 So that's been successful. 529 00:46:51,941.0972381 --> 00:47:00,281.0972381 That's that's awesome, because then you're also getting them involved in doing something active underwater as well, too. 530 00:47:00,831.1597381 --> 00:47:01,281.1597381 Right. 531 00:47:01,301.1597381 --> 00:47:01,631.1597381 Yeah. 532 00:47:01,661.1597381 --> 00:47:13,861.1597381 Cause you know, you don't want to, and everyone wants to feel helpful and have a purpose and you know, it's not just about, Oh, help me, me, me, you know, when they're down there, they, they want to be as helpful as anybody else. 533 00:47:14,56.1597381 --> 00:47:14,716.1597381 That's diving. 534 00:47:14,716.1597381 --> 00:47:15,606.1597381 So that's nice. 535 00:47:16,611.0962381 --> 00:47:22,821.0972381 So I do have a quick question about a couple of questions about your trip to Cozumel, actually. 536 00:47:23,201.0972381 --> 00:47:24,981.0972381 What kind of, uh. 537 00:47:25,591.0972381 --> 00:47:36,986.1597381 What kind of logistics nightmare is it to take 50 divers who are all adaptive to cozumel Well, they're not all adaptive. 538 00:47:37,46.1597381 --> 00:47:44,516.1597381 We had, we had 12 adaptive divers and then we had our total count, I think was 38 divers. 539 00:47:44,806.1597381 --> 00:47:49,456.1597381 Then we had diver adjacent people, caregivers and family and things like that. 540 00:47:50,41.1597381 --> 00:48:03,401.1597381 Um, the way we do, do the math is, um, for every boat that holds between 20 and like 30 people, we'll, we'll, uh, say that you could, we could put four wheelchairs on that boat and we could have two people that ambulate. 541 00:48:03,421.1587381 --> 00:48:12,401.1597381 So maybe a kid with autism or something where they can walk around because you get beyond that many chairs on a boat and then, um, it becomes a problem. 542 00:48:12,471.1597381 --> 00:48:21,681.1597381 But then we, we do the math where if you need an adaptive team, you need two buddies, and if you need an advanced adaptive team, you need three buddies. 543 00:48:21,951.1597381 --> 00:48:23,551.1597381 So now we do the math. 544 00:48:23,561.1597381 --> 00:48:25,541.1597381 We go, okay, we have six people with disabilities. 545 00:48:25,911.1597381 --> 00:48:28,851.1597381 Here's the buddy, the buddies that we need. 546 00:48:29,211.1587381 --> 00:48:31,481.1587381 And before we let any other divers on the boat. 547 00:48:31,536.1597381 --> 00:48:35,866.1597381 You know, we, we try to do that math and make sure we get the right people on the boat first. 548 00:48:35,906.1597381 --> 00:48:36,186.1597381 Right. 549 00:48:36,186.1597381 --> 00:48:45,556.1587381 Cause we do also have guest divers that want to come and, and check it out, or, you know, maybe they, uh, and then we also bring, um, candidates. 550 00:48:45,866.1597381 --> 00:48:49,186.1597381 So maybe they're an instructor candidate or they're a buddy candidate. 551 00:48:49,486.1587381 --> 00:49:08,1.1597381 Um, we're trying to make it so that, um, the candidates who come have already gone through a bunch of their training so that we're not, we used to just, Really put people through the ringer and, and they would train all afternoon into the early evening. 552 00:49:08,201.1597381 --> 00:49:44,736.1587381 And then in the morning, they'd wake up and they'd have to, um, dive, you know, be the, the buddies and, and, and work and it really was challenging and, uh, you know, um, but now we're, we're trying to be a little bit more gentle with people and if they can get a bunch of their They're training done before they come on the trip that helps that it really helps and it it gives us an ability to do extra things like, you know, doing a night dive with people and doing that type of thing because now they're not just completely gassed. 553 00:49:45,181.1597381 --> 00:49:55,281.1597381 At the end of the day, our certification program is the only one to my knowledge out there that requires you as an instructor. 554 00:49:55,291.1597381 --> 00:50:02,761.1587381 And in our case, an advanced adaptive dive buddy, we require you to have experiences before you get that certification. 555 00:50:03,231.1597381 --> 00:50:04,801.1587381 Um, and that means. 556 00:50:05,756.1597381 --> 00:50:08,196.1597381 Where are you going to get that experience? Well, trips. 557 00:50:08,236.1597381 --> 00:50:10,276.1597381 So we don't do trips for the sake of trips. 558 00:50:10,616.1597381 --> 00:50:13,626.1597381 We do trips to get people those experiences that they need. 559 00:50:13,926.1597381 --> 00:50:19,526.1597381 And half of the experiences, if there's 30 experiences you need, half of them have to be in open water. 560 00:50:19,696.1587381 --> 00:50:21,386.1597381 So they all can't be in a pool. 561 00:50:21,606.1597381 --> 00:50:23,146.1597381 So that's what we try to do. 562 00:50:23,156.1587381 --> 00:50:28,576.1587381 Cause I, I trained years ago with a different organization that just did empathy stuff. 563 00:50:28,576.1587381 --> 00:50:30,46.1597381 Like we're going to pretend you're blind. 564 00:50:30,506.1597381 --> 00:50:34,56.1597381 We're going to pretend you're a pair on a quad and here's your card, Mr. 565 00:50:34,56.1597381 --> 00:50:34,816.1597381 Instructor. 566 00:50:35,176.1597381 --> 00:50:44,463.7769795 And after I trained like a thousand buddies and instructors over a number of years, it's like, why aren't they, a lot of them weren't doing anything with their certification. 567 00:50:44,463.7769795 --> 00:50:53,136.1597381 And I realized it was because they did not have the confidence and they did not have the experience to really work with people with disabilities. 568 00:50:53,526.1597381 --> 00:50:55,126.1597381 It was cool why Jim was there. 569 00:50:55,126.1597381 --> 00:50:59,836.1597381 You know what I mean? In the pool, because we would build a SCUBA experience into the training. 570 00:51:00,451.1597381 --> 00:51:07,911.1597381 So you had some kind of hands on before I left the market, but then when I left, I saw a lot of them weren't doing anything. 571 00:51:07,911.1597381 --> 00:51:12,821.1597381 So I just said, we took a six years to develop our program, but we launched it in 2014. 572 00:51:13,151.1597381 --> 00:51:16,81.1597381 So this is our 10th year of being a training agency. 573 00:51:16,431.1597381 --> 00:51:17,201.1597381 And, um. 574 00:51:17,506.1597381 --> 00:51:22,376.1597381 Yeah, I mean, I like to think we're, we're the, the number one or the best one out there. 575 00:51:22,386.1597381 --> 00:51:25,496.1597381 We don't, we don't necessarily, we don't want to like PADI and stuff. 576 00:51:25,516.1597381 --> 00:51:28,176.1587381 We don't necessarily want to certify the most people. 577 00:51:28,406.1597381 --> 00:51:34,306.1597381 We just want to make sure that we're the best and the safest because that's really, really important. 578 00:51:36,71.0962381 --> 00:51:37,261.0972381 yeah, which is awesome. 579 00:51:37,301.0972381 --> 00:51:43,181.0972381 Where are you guys all have, you have training offices around the world, right guys that are doing this. 580 00:51:43,616.1597381 --> 00:51:45,616.1597381 yeah, what we've done now. 581 00:51:45,941.1597381 --> 00:51:58,831.1597381 What we're, we're promoting is, um, when an instructor goes out in the world, um, we used to create teams, but that became a little bit too much for us because we're a very small core group. 582 00:51:59,281.1597381 --> 00:52:02,521.1597381 Um, so what we do is we say, go out there. 583 00:52:02,876.1597381 --> 00:52:04,576.1597381 Create a program of your own. 584 00:52:04,896.1597381 --> 00:52:06,796.1597381 Um, we'll be here to help promote it. 585 00:52:06,806.1597381 --> 00:52:07,956.1597381 We'll be here to help you. 586 00:52:07,956.1597381 --> 00:52:10,6.1597381 If you have questions, we'll be here to help you. 587 00:52:10,266.1597381 --> 00:52:17,316.1597381 If you want to tag along on one of our trips until you feel comfortable or you feel like you have enough people to do this. 588 00:52:17,316.1597381 --> 00:52:25,926.1597381 So we've launched well over 50 other nonprofits, um, helping them get on their feet and, and now it's. 589 00:52:26,131.1597381 --> 00:52:31,491.1597381 Even around the world, right? We have people in the UK that have their own program. 590 00:52:31,491.1597381 --> 00:52:38,351.1597381 We have people in Malaysia and Borneo and, um, in the Philippines, and they all do their own programs. 591 00:52:38,571.1597381 --> 00:52:43,751.1587381 And we're here to again, like what I said earlier, you know, kind of lead the way. 592 00:52:44,521.1597381 --> 00:52:55,431.1597381 share what we know, share, um, how they can be successful and safe and, and get people in the water the way that, you know, people want to need to be. 593 00:52:55,791.1587381 --> 00:53:07,291.1597381 And, um, so then they train their buddies and they, what's wonderful about our training director is she's really good at connecting people. 594 00:53:07,601.1597381 --> 00:53:09,111.1597381 And she's really. 595 00:53:09,346.1597381 --> 00:53:20,726.1597381 Committed to learning what type of journey you're looking to be on as an adaptive buddy or as an adaptive diver or as an adaptive instructor. 596 00:53:20,976.1597381 --> 00:53:22,556.1597381 And so she's able to go. 597 00:53:22,606.1597381 --> 00:53:24,596.1587381 Oh, well, you're in this part of the country. 598 00:53:24,846.1587381 --> 00:53:26,886.1587381 I'm going to send you to this instructor. 599 00:53:27,161.1597381 --> 00:53:29,201.1597381 They're going to help you do blah, blah and blah. 600 00:53:29,411.1597381 --> 00:53:34,631.1597381 Or if you're willing, you know, there's this other instructor who might be a really good mentor for you. 601 00:53:34,871.1597381 --> 00:53:37,861.1597381 You, you know, you're both thinking of trying to do the same type of thing. 602 00:53:37,861.1597381 --> 00:53:39,521.1597381 And so she gets them connected. 603 00:53:39,931.1597381 --> 00:53:43,291.1587381 Um, and she helps make it happen for people. 604 00:53:43,601.1607381 --> 00:53:52,771.1597381 And that's another reason why, I mean, just really proud of the program that we're running right now is that it's not just sign up, pay us, take your course. 605 00:53:53,41.1597381 --> 00:54:05,976.1597381 It's really, um, Because we don't have a gazillion people going through our training at once, um, we're able to do that focus and help people really figure out what they want to do. 606 00:54:06,236.1587381 --> 00:54:12,416.1597381 Yeah, when you train with us, it's almost like when you're done, um, especially like after a trip, you feel like family. 607 00:54:12,841.1597381 --> 00:54:15,861.1597381 And that's really the, the feeling we want to get out there. 608 00:54:16,121.1597381 --> 00:54:21,331.1597381 We were 11 days and I was 11 days in Borneo last year, training instructors in Malaysia. 609 00:54:21,761.1597381 --> 00:54:26,621.1597381 And the instructors there said, please keep making the videos that you do on YouTube. 610 00:54:26,641.1587381 --> 00:54:39,171.1587381 Because now when, when we go talk to a spinal cord injury group, instead of us standing there talking to a bunch of people in wheelchairs, we have like 10 stories that we can play videos now and go. 611 00:54:39,546.1597381 --> 00:54:40,706.1597381 Here's what we do. 612 00:54:40,716.1597381 --> 00:54:46,456.1597381 And now you have somebody in a wheelchair talking about how they were injured and what this has done for them and stuff like that. 613 00:54:46,676.1597381 --> 00:54:53,746.1587381 So it really, really saves our instructors a lot of time when they're trying to get programs going in different markets. 614 00:54:53,746.1597381 --> 00:54:55,476.1587381 And we become a partner. 615 00:54:55,636.1597381 --> 00:55:01,276.1587381 So any way that we can help promote, like we're promoting a training right now in, um, in Seattle. 616 00:55:01,416.2597381 --> 00:55:13,146.1587381 In Portland, Oregon, Portland, Oregon, and we just promoted one right before DEMA in Utah, at the crater in Utah, where they had like 10 people in the water, I think, but so we become partners. 617 00:55:13,146.1597381 --> 00:55:18,936.1587381 We try to help promote what they do, and that's part of the benefit of being, you know, with DiveHeart, too. 618 00:55:20,131.0972381 --> 00:55:20,411.0972381 Yeah. 619 00:55:20,411.0972381 --> 00:55:28,441.0972381 Which is amazing that you, you guys do that because, um, which is definitely a benefit for people in the States. 620 00:55:29,231.0972381 --> 00:55:31,371.0972381 To be able to have that kind of access to stuff. 621 00:55:31,381.0972381 --> 00:55:41,121.0962381 Cause like I said here, non existent, I mean, even, even when I was, uh, trying to figure out my gear and stuff this year, it was all me. 622 00:55:41,561.0972381 --> 00:55:50,501.0972381 I, I had, luckily I had a patient buddy who is a dive master that I dove with them the majority of the time. 623 00:55:51,61.0972381 --> 00:55:56,261.0972381 And, um, who also had a, a good spring fed pond that we could use to do testing in. 624 00:55:56,956.2597381 --> 00:56:21,476.0597381 Okay. 625 00:56:21,716.0972381 --> 00:56:23,646.0972381 at a place called the Tugs. 626 00:56:24,361.0972381 --> 00:56:31,341.0972381 So the first shipwreck actually is like 50 feet straight out from the steps and it's in five feet of water. 627 00:56:31,841.0972381 --> 00:56:38,321.0962381 So the reason I wanted to do that was because that way, at least if my dive got scrubbed, I got to see a shipwreck. 628 00:56:38,331.0972381 --> 00:56:39,331.0972381 So I didn't care. 629 00:56:40,751.1587381 --> 00:56:41,121.1587381 Right. 630 00:56:41,171.1587381 --> 00:56:56,1.1597381 Well, you know what we find is you need champions, you know, for any program to be successful, you need to find a champion that's willing to do get the people together, because once you have that that lead, it just. 631 00:56:56,411.1597381 --> 00:56:58,481.1597381 Things seem to fall into place. 632 00:56:58,481.1597381 --> 00:57:00,941.1597381 You know, you're able to find more people that want to do it. 633 00:57:01,281.1597381 --> 00:57:09,1.1597381 It's just, um, you know, I guess people get intimidated, you know, being, being that lead person can be a little overwhelming. 634 00:57:09,1.1597381 --> 00:57:19,101.1597381 Sometimes we, um, I would, if I wanted, if I were you, or let's say I wanted to grow this in Canada, I would probably reach out to the. 635 00:57:19,266.1597381 --> 00:57:31,386.1597381 Medical community to the therapy community, OTs and, and PTs and rec therapists and rehab docs and say, Hey, we want to do here what they're doing and with dive hearts doing around the world. 636 00:57:31,666.1597381 --> 00:57:37,936.1597381 And here's some of the videos that you could watch and you send them a few of the best videos that we have just short ones. 637 00:57:38,356.1597381 --> 00:57:40,156.1597381 And then all of a sudden they're like, Oh, my gosh. 638 00:57:40,176.1597381 --> 00:57:41,466.1597381 And if they're divers. 639 00:57:41,716.1597381 --> 00:57:42,996.1597381 Then they really get it. 640 00:57:43,56.1597381 --> 00:57:46,466.1597381 And that's, that's kind of what Tina Marie's talking about champions. 641 00:57:46,816.1597381 --> 00:58:02,906.1587381 Um, I went right to our university medical center when I first started dive heart and went to the head of physical therapy and started talking and they weren't divers and it was, they, they, they dug what we were doing, but they, until an OT came on board, who was a professor who was a diver. 642 00:58:03,651.1597381 --> 00:58:07,681.1597381 Came over to our offices and sat down and really got dug into it. 643 00:58:07,701.1597381 --> 00:58:10,671.1597381 And he was, oh my God, I had no idea. 644 00:58:11,31.1597381 --> 00:58:11,921.1597381 This is amazing. 645 00:58:12,181.1597381 --> 00:58:15,351.1587381 And since then we've done like five research studies. 646 00:58:15,351.1597381 --> 00:58:19,971.1587381 We did the first study with them on autism and scuba therapy. 647 00:58:20,261.1597381 --> 00:58:22,481.1597381 So, you know, you just need somebody. 648 00:58:22,641.1587381 --> 00:58:30,131.1597381 And when that person goes away for whatever reason, then it kind of, there's a drought again, you know what I mean? So you just kind of keep looking for those people that will help you. 649 00:58:31,441.0962381 --> 00:58:32,31.0972381 Yeah, no. 650 00:58:32,51.0962381 --> 00:58:35,281.0972381 Cause we definitely need to eventually get a program set up. 651 00:58:35,476.0972381 --> 00:58:36,16.0972381 here. 652 00:58:36,506.0972381 --> 00:58:42,386.0972381 Um, I know I was talking to, I'm gonna have actually lindy Leggett from the scuba gym in Australia. 653 00:58:43,221.1597381 --> 00:58:43,641.1597381 All right. 654 00:58:43,826.0972381 --> 00:58:45,176.0972381 gonna as well. 655 00:58:45,226.0972381 --> 00:58:50,776.0972381 And I mean, her program is amazing as well for the therapy stuff that those guys do. 656 00:58:51,476.0972381 --> 00:58:59,216.0972381 Um, I mean, they've got some pretty incredible videos too of people that have not been able to use their limbs at all, barely out of the water. 657 00:58:59,216.0972381 --> 00:59:03,526.0962381 And then now they're actually able to do stuff underwater with it, which is amazing. 658 00:59:03,577.768829 --> 00:59:05,767.668829 Okay. 659 00:59:05,787.606329 --> 00:59:15,887.605329 when, um, tell me about a bit more about what people can do to go and help you get this pool built so that we can, uh, help a lot more divers. 660 00:59:17,212.668829 --> 00:59:20,282.668829 Well, we need to meet influencers and affluencers. 661 00:59:20,292.668829 --> 00:59:24,742.668829 So an influencer like yourself is sharing our story with people. 662 00:59:25,92.668829 --> 00:59:32,382.668829 Uh, an, an affluencer would be somebody with Who could write a check, right? So meeting, meeting the right people is really important. 663 00:59:32,592.668829 --> 00:59:36,932.668829 Our largest donor doesn't dive and we didn't know them at all. 664 00:59:36,962.668829 --> 00:59:42,272.668829 And they just saw one of our documentaries called turning point and they called the next day. 665 00:59:42,292.668829 --> 00:59:49,72.668829 And this woman says, my husband and I sat here and cried, where do we send the check? And then every year they've increased that. 666 00:59:49,487.668829 --> 00:59:53,577.668829 And so that the people we who are going to help us build this pool, we have not met yet. 667 00:59:53,867.668829 --> 00:59:57,997.668829 So we need to get in front of people and corporations and things like that. 668 00:59:58,327.667829 --> 01:00:05,257.668829 People that want to see this happen on our continent, right? Because it's going to serve people in Canada and all of North America. 669 01:00:05,517.668829 --> 01:00:07,717.667829 And it'll be the only one like it in the world because. 670 01:00:08,282.668829 --> 01:00:17,732.668829 Like I said, it took us six years to get three patents, and it's nothing like any of the pools that are out there now, and it can serve a lot of people, and it'll be nice warm water. 671 01:00:17,732.668829 --> 01:00:27,12.668829 It's going to be our architects want to make it geothermal and solar, so it'll be pulling up more, you know, energy and things like that from the earth and the sun. 672 01:00:27,112.668829 --> 01:00:29,482.668829 But we're also looking, you know, I believe. 673 01:00:29,862.668829 --> 01:00:34,112.668829 The ocean's made up of droplets of water and that's how this pool is going to be built. 674 01:00:34,492.668829 --> 01:00:40,572.668829 And I, uh, my goal is to see as many people be a part of building this pool as possible. 675 01:00:40,782.667829 --> 01:00:51,812.668829 So right now we're looking for, um, I think a hundred people to create a personal donation page for like 2, 500. 676 01:00:52,122.668829 --> 01:00:55,882.668829 And you can ask all your friends to help donate to that. 677 01:00:56,442.668829 --> 01:00:58,772.668829 donation page that will go towards the pool. 678 01:00:59,112.668829 --> 01:01:07,812.667829 Or if you're a small business or a large business, we're looking for, you know, corporate sponsors to become part of our, um, founding 50. 679 01:01:08,272.667829 --> 01:01:21,202.668829 And that would be a 20, 000 donation, um, from your company or corporation or, you know, and those will be helping to make up our first couple million, you know, towards, towards the end goal. 680 01:01:21,202.668829 --> 01:01:25,252.668829 And, and the more people that we have doing those smaller. 681 01:01:25,547.668829 --> 01:01:29,167.668829 donations, they will build up to the large money that we need. 682 01:01:29,427.668829 --> 01:01:29,587.668829 Yeah. 683 01:01:29,587.668829 --> 01:01:35,457.668829 The cool thing about the fundraising pages is it's really, you're not writing a check out of your own pocket necessarily. 684 01:01:35,697.667829 --> 01:01:41,17.668829 You're creating this up and then you're pushing it out there to your friends and everybody in your community and stuff. 685 01:01:41,17.668829 --> 01:01:42,857.668829 And now it's like a team thing. 686 01:01:43,147.667829 --> 01:01:45,237.668829 You know, everybody has is invested in it. 687 01:01:45,237.668829 --> 01:01:46,307.668829 Like Tina Marie was saying. 688 01:01:47,582.605329 --> 01:01:48,952.606329 Yeah, that, that's awesome. 689 01:01:48,952.606329 --> 01:01:50,482.606329 Actually, I'm gonna do that for you guys. 690 01:01:50,482.606329 --> 01:01:54,912.606329 I'm gonna set up a donation page on my site for you guys as well. 691 01:01:55,427.668829 --> 01:01:56,37.668829 I love it. 692 01:01:56,47.668829 --> 01:01:56,577.668829 Thank you. 693 01:01:57,397.606329 --> 01:02:04,837.606329 I want to help and I, I want to be there when this pool opens to try it and come down and see the reaction on some of these guys when they get in the water. 694 01:02:05,382.668829 --> 01:02:06,62.668829 Yeah, right. 695 01:02:06,142.668829 --> 01:02:19,437.605329 I'm sure there is going to be a line, I can imagine that's the, that's the one thing at least though, that with the pool that you're building, you're going to service so many people. 696 01:02:19,807.606329 --> 01:02:24,647.606329 It's going to help you guys immensely be able to support more adaptive divers with it. 697 01:02:24,817.606329 --> 01:02:28,457.606329 Just because of the flexibility you've got with 150 foot pool. 698 01:02:29,212.668829 --> 01:02:36,712.667829 right? It'll be a game changer and it'll, I think it'll exponentially grow scuba in general, just for the general public even. 699 01:02:36,712.668829 --> 01:02:40,792.668829 Cause I mean, obviously people who don't have disabilities will be able to come and use it too. 700 01:02:40,792.668829 --> 01:02:48,572.668829 Instructors will be able to train military, commercial firefighters, you know, all that will be able to, we've identified like a hundred revenue streams. 701 01:02:48,992.668829 --> 01:02:50,742.668829 And if they all come to fruition. 702 01:02:51,17.668829 --> 01:02:54,687.668829 They all should help contribute to our, our budget and things like that. 703 01:02:55,817.606329 --> 01:03:10,397.606329 Oh, And then we send them out into the world so that they can go dive all the beautiful places that they can, you know, which is amazing Well, thank you very much. 704 01:03:10,447.605329 --> 01:03:12,937.606329 I am so glad to have you guys on today. 705 01:03:12,947.605329 --> 01:03:23,827.668829 It has been an absolute pleasure I'm gonna have links to all your stuff down below it here and let's try and get you guys a lot of money raised Hopefully so that we can get that pool built for you thank you. 706 01:03:24,277.667829 --> 01:03:25,87.668829 I like that idea. 707 01:03:26,192.606329 --> 01:03:26,592.606329 All right. 708 01:03:26,602.606329 --> 01:03:29,462.606329 So thank you for watching the Deadfoot Diver podcast. 709 01:03:29,492.606329 --> 01:03:34,462.606329 I'm Curt, the Deadfoot Diver, and I will see you next time on the Deadfoot Diver podcast.

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