DIVING FOR LIFE!

THE DIVE LOG below was recently posted on-line by an avid diver who has spent the last 18 +/- months fighting for his life. He was originally scheduled to make his second visit to Palau for a dive trip in late 2007 but was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma shortly before he was scheduled to head for Palau. Following diagnosis he underwent several rounds of radiation treatment and chemotherapy regimes, enduring months of the tough physical and emotional toll these harsh treatments wreak upon the body.

Amazingly, this diver refused to cancel his trip to Palau and instead just rescheduled it for later. In the meantime he committed himself to fighting this difficult disease with all his might and set himself a goal of returning to diving and eventually to Palau as originally planned.

With diving as his motivator for life he suffered through all of the physically and emotionally painful ups and downs that doing battle with cancer can bring. Yet not once did I ever hear him complain or give up though I’m sure he must have wanted to more than once. Instead he sent out regular upbeat reports about his doctor visitors, latest condition, next treatments, hoped for results, steps to follow, and all this framed against the backdrop of his dream to one day return to diving. DIVING GAVE HIM LIFE!

While it may seem like just another entry in any old dive log, to me it marks a milestone of success in a brave and difficult battle with a dangerous foe and demonstrates the importance of positive-mindedness in all that we do in life. It gives me hope and inspiration.

DIVE LOG: Cork, Ireland, December 2008.

"WELL, TODAY WAS THE DAY! I made my first boat dive of the year today and
boy was it good to be back. We met at Oysterhaven at around 11.15 after allowing for the icy roads and got our gear organised and onto the boat which we then launched.

First task of the day was to head over to the creek directly across from the slip and give a hand to a local fisherman and his crew to put some ropes under a yacht that sank a few weeks ago. With the good deed done it was off to Bream Rock on a nice crisp day with a flat calm sea.

We dropped into 5 metres and swam out over the kelp and gradually dropped to 10m where we met our first lobster of the day and a lot of shrimp but no sign of any conger eels. Moving on we dropped to 15 metres in between the rocks and gullies where we saw more lobster, shrimp, crab and numerous other fish and sea urchins. Brightly coloured sponges and anemones and other plant life were also in abundance.

Keeping the rock on our right we continued through the gullies dropping gradually to 19 metres and at 26 minutes started to profile up and move along in the slight current.

At 12- 14 metres it was up with the SMBs and start for the surface which we reached at 38 minutes, following our safety stop. Water temp was about 9 degrees and visibility
was quite good at over 7 metres.

It was a lovely gentle dive with lots to see and just perfect after being out of the water for so long. Back into Oysterhaven, boat out of the water, out of the dive gear and a nice cup of warming soup and a quick picnic. What a great way to spend a day and being back under water again – JUST BRILLIANT! Boy it’s great to be back!"
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I’m proud to say that the diver who made this log entry is also my eldest brother Rory. I hope and pray for his continued health and for the opportunity to welcome him back to Palau in 2009. Hats off to you Rory and Happy New Year! See you soon!

P.S. Special thanks are due to members of the Cork diving community and especially Cork Sub-Aqua Club who rallied around Rory immediately and who continue to give him the support and encouragement he needs to live. They are truly “buddies for life”. Thank you all. Dermot

Sam's Tours - TOUR OPERATOR OF THE YEAR!

SAM'S TOURS receives "TOUR OPERATOR OF THE YEAR" AWARD!

The Palau Visitors Authority (PVA), Palau's official tourism board, announced their selection of Sam's Tours as "TOUR OPERATOR OF THE YEAR" for 2008. The announcement and award presentation took place during the Annual Christmas Gala of the Belau Tourism Association (BTA), Palau's private sector tourism industry association, recently held at the Palau Pacific Resort (http://www.palauppr.com/)

Awarding winning is not new to Sam’s Tours which has been consistently recognized over the years not only by government and industry bodies for their commitment to development of sustainable tourism in Palau but also by their customers for consistent service excellence.

In 2007 Sam's Tours received a Top 10 Sponsor Award from PVA for "their continual support and sponsorship" and in 2006 the private sector Belau Tourism Association recognized Sam's Tours with their Outstanding Member Award for their "dedication, support and commitment over the years to Belau Tourism Association and its objectives.”

The readers of Scuba Diving Magazine have recognized Sam’s Tours more than any other dive center in Palau or Micronesia with seven “Readers Choice Awards” since 1997 including a Gold List Award for top dive center, top staff, and top value.

Sam’s Tours is the first and only dive center in Palau to receive the Palau Conservation Society “Ten Year Partner in Conservation Award” and is a Corporate Sponsor of the Palau Shark Sanctuary, a shark conservation organization founded in 2001 by Sam’s Tours General Manager, Dermot Keane, to help bring an end to the destructive practice of shark-finning by foreign fishing fleets operating in Palau’s waters. The Palau Shark Sanctuary received a PATA (Pacific Asia Travel Association) Environmental Education Gold Award for their work.

“Sam’s Tours has consistently demonstrated their long standing commitment to responsible tourism development, environmental preservation, and excellence in customer service and while recognition is not what drives us to excel, we sincerely appreciate the acknowledgment of our efforts by our industry peers and our valued customers alike” said Dermot Keane, General Manager, Sam’s Tours.

PALAU - TAKING POSITIVE ACTION TO PROTECT SHARKS!

While there continues to be every reason to be deeply concerned about the damage shark-finning by Palau's licensed foreign fishing fleets and other illegally operating pirate fleets are having on Palau's dwindling shark population, there is finally some positive news to report on Palau's struggle to protect their ever shrinking marine resources, including sharks.

Palau's Division of Marine Law Enforcement is now operating a Marine Observer Program that places trained fisheries observers on some of the licensed foreign fishing vessels operating out of Malakal Harbor, Koror, Palau. This is a small but very positive step in the right direction. The purpose of the marine observer program is to gather data about the fishing practices engaged in by licensed fishing vessels and to monitor compliance with the fishing treaties and or licensing agreements under which these vessels are permitted to operate in Palau's waters. Data gathered by marine observers can be used to help develop and promote better fishing practices intended to reduce unintentional by-catch of sharks, turtles, billfish and other ocean dwellers that are often killed or injured during long-lining for tuna.

Marine Observer programs are not new and alone they may have little or no impact on poor or illegal fishing practices, but when combined with the support of law enforcement and the political will to protect marine resources they become an important window in to fishing industry practices and a valuable tool in holding the fishing industry more accountable for sustainable fishing practices.

I extend my hearty encouragement to Palau to expand the Marine Observer Program and I commend those Palauans in the Observer Program and in Law Enforcement who serve every day on the front lines in the never-ending battle to protect Palau's resources from exploitation and illegal destruction. They are our eyes and ears and are to be commended. Thanks for your hard work.