PRESS RELEASE
January 13, 2004
SNORKEL
BOB’S OUTFITS UNIONVILLE, PA FIREMEN
BUTLER, PA– Unionville Fire Chief Mark
Lauer expressed gratitude today for a donation of masks, fins and
snorkels by The Snorkel Bob Foundation in
Hawaii. Snorkel Bob Brand equipment will now be part of rescue efforts here.
Unionville
rescue diver Terry Kibler said the department lost two divers in
swift water in '01, when things went bad on a body recovery. "That
was tough for the whole crew. Reorganization included morale building.
What a lift,
when we
asked Snorkel Bob for gear, and he sent it. We were frankly amazed. He sent
us Bubba snorkels too, which was more exciting than a five alarm fire."
The Unionville Fire Department is a small, volunteer crew 50 miles north
of Pittsburgh with the only dive team for two counties. "This is a rural area with strip
mines, creeks and places kids shouldn't go, but they do," said Kibler. "Visibility
at the local state park is six inches in frigid water. We risk our lives.
Having excellent masks, fins and snorkels lets us focus on the job and not
worry about
the gear."
Snorkel Bob Foundation Executive Director Robert Wintner said the foundation
primarily supports reef defense around the world. "But we decided to help
out in Unionville because they're dealing with extreme conditions with no margin
for error. They may save lives that will one day help us save reefs. We're in
this together." Wintner said Snorkel Bob Brand gear was first chosen
for rescue operations by the Maui and Kauai water rescue teams. The Snorkel
Bob
Foundation donated $45,000 in snorkel gear earlier this month to the Peace
Corp's reef reclamation
project in Samoa, Tonga, Kiribati, Vanuatu, Palau and The Federated States
of Micronesia.
PRESS
RELEASE
August 22, 2003
UPCOUNTRY
ROTARY SIGNS ON TO $45,000 REEF DEFENSE
WITH SNORKEL BOB FOUNDATION
KULA,
MAUI, HAWAII-"We're pleased to take part," Upcountry
Rotary President Tim Wheeler said. "Reef defense is what defines
us as citizens of Hawaii, or it should at any rate. The Snorkel
Bob Foundation has shown us how." Wheeler announced here today
that his club will give $500 to The Snorkel Bob Foundation's work
through the Peace Corps to save reefs in the South Pacific, and
seek matching funds as well from the Hawaii Rotary District 5000. The
Rotary Club of Maui pledged another $1,000 to support the project.
Snorkel Bob Foundation Director Robert Wintner said, "We're delighted
with Upcountry Rotary's response and Hawaii District 5000’s interest
in the dying reefs of Palau, The Federated States of Micronesia, Tonga, Samoa,
Kiribati and Vanuatu. The Rotary juggernaut has proved formidable in getting
the word out and raising the needed support." The Snorkel Bob Foundation
has agreed to donate $45,000 worth of masks, fins and snorkels through Coastal
Resources, the Peace Corps, Pleasantville, NY Rotary and Upcountry Maui Rotary. "If
the other Maui Rotary Clubs sign on, we will send a message to the world that
Maui cares, and a more important message to our sister reef communities that
island life with a dead reef might as well be in Lodi."
Tim Wheeler added, "Wild ginger is choking the native grasses in the Waikomoi
Preserve, so every rainfall carries tons of dirt to our reefs. It makes no
difference where reefs are defended; the effort will benefit our reefs and
all life in Hawaii."
Wintner
said the Snorkel Bob Foundation's gear donation requires about 10%
Rotary funding, with the balance underwritten by The Snorkel Bob
Foundation in Hawaii. The gear will be primarily of Snorkel Bob Brand.
PRESS
RELEASE
January 8, 2003
REEF
DEVASTATION AND SALVAGE IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC
MAUI,
HAWAII–The Snorkel Bob Foundation announced here today
that it will contribute 420 complete skin dive sets valued at
$45,000 to 40 seaside communities in Palau, The Federated States
of Micronesia, Tonga, Samoa, Kiribati and Vanuatu to help rescue
the reef habitat and species.
In an effort
to thwart reef destruction, this campaign is spearheaded by the
Peace Corps, with logistical support from the Coastal Resources
Center of Rhode Island and the Pleasantville, New York Rotary Club.
Rotary reef facilitator Ron Ricci said, “We needed a project,
and we have friends at Coastal Resource now working on this. Several
of our members are avid snorkelers and divers. Snorkel Bob’s
came up, because of that company’s reputation and professed
position. We saw the puzzle parts fitting together, so we asked
for the gear, and Snorkel Bob said yes.”
The Peace
Corps and Coastal Resources have focused on these Pacific islands
for the devastation occurring on their reefs, and the chance of
salvaging what remains. Implementation calls for on-site education
in over 40 communities in the six pacific countries, so residents
can understand their long term dependence on a healthy reef system.
The campaign will focus on reef value, reef community and reef
balance to those individuals entrusted with reef protection.
Snorkel
Bob Foundation Executive Director Robert Wintner said, “No
organization can save a reef with human population nearby, unless
those humans want the reef saved. The dramatic point of good snorkel
gear is not recreation here but rather communion. Now these people
can see what they’ve been missing. Many of these reefs have
been devastated by dynamite and cyanide to support the pet fish
industry, the sea shell trade and the abominable sale of freeze
dried sea horses and blow fish. No reef harvest is sustainable.
Killing a reef and its denizens is a crime against nature that
will not go unpunished. With this small step in these 40 communities,
we now have a better chance than we had yesterday.”
The Snorkel
Bob Foundation recently donated twenty tons of fuel to the Sea
Shepherd Conservation Society’s flagship the Farley Mowat
in its quest to confront a Japanese whalers in Antarctica, in efforts
to enforce the United Nation’s World Charter for Nature.
CONTACT:
Joan Lloyd
808-879-8575/808-269-0102 or joanl@snorkelbob.com
