Womens Divers Hall of Fame

Hall of Fame

  • I have heard of NONE of these women

    Votes: 26 61.9%
  • I have heard of SOME of these women

    Votes: 9 21.4%
  • I have heard of MOST of these women

    Votes: 3 7.1%
  • I have heard of ALL of these women

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I would like to be one of these women someday

    Votes: 4 9.5%

  • Total voters
    42

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gr8lakesdiver

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I was interested in the role women played in the History of Diving and came across the "Hall of Fame". Incredible women having done incredible things. But I did not know any of the 2002 inductees. Do you?

Monique J Bellefeuille
Commander Debra Bodenstedt
Joan M. Follmer
Martha Watkins Gilkes
Connie Johnson
Audrey Mestre
Carolyn Pascal-Guarino
Sherry A. Reed
LCDR Erica Sahler
Susan Sammon
Claudia Serpieri
Mia Jean Tegner, PhD
Sue J. Trukken
Sally A. Wahrmann
Birgitte Wilms
Julianne Ziefle


:balloon:CONGRATS :bounce:
 
These women are an inspiration. I have really caught the diving bug and as a biologist, who knows where this take me? I voted to be like them someday!
 
Can anyone tell us anything about these achievers? I love to hear about women in diving!
 
Originally posted by art.chick
Can anyone tell us anything about these achievers? I love to hear about women in diving!
Maybe we should divide up and each take a name for future posting?
 
Hi all-

Being fairly new at this I am not sure how long a message can be so I copied just a couple of the bios to bring over here. The full lists and bios are available at www.beneaththesea.com. Each day I'll copy a few more for all to share.

Danielle Alary
Danielle was certified in 1982. She is an award-winning speaker, writer, photographer and multimedia producer. Danielle is currently an underwater photography columnists for Diver magazine. She has co-authored more than 450 articles. Danielle was the recipient of the Diver of the Year Award for the Arts at Beneath the Sea (in 1995) and has also won the coveted Silver Diver Award at the Antibes World Festival of Underwater Images (in 1997). In addition she chaired the photo jury at the 2000 edition of that prestigious event.

Susan Bangasser, Ph.D.
Susan investigated and wrote articles on the physiological aspects of women divers during the late '70s and '80s. She co-authored Women Underwater, the first book about women and diving. Her interest in safe diving for women resulted in surveys of divers and promotion of investigation of controversial issues of diving during pregnancy and susceptibility to decompression sickness. Susan also established a support hotline to help resolve issues and concerns for women divers.


Monique J Bellefeuille
Monique started diving in 1982 (PADI). She is co-founder of the Ottawa chapter of Save Ontario Shipwrecks and is an active speaker at many US and Canadian scuba shows. Monique has donated thousand of hours to marine archeology research and studies. She has had hundreds of articles published in both Canada and the USA (in French and English). She is founder of several non-profit photo contests. She states "I want to take commercialism out of contests; it is art, ecology, preservation and sharing with others the love of the sea and its inhabitants."


Janet Bieser
Janet was first certified in 1977. She is a SSI Platinum Pro 5000 diver and is certified as a PADI divemaster (1000 logged dives), an IANTD nitrox diver and an NSS-CDS Apprentice Cave Diver. In 1981 Janet was the first woman to dive the Republic and the second to dive theAndrea Doria. She is an experienced trimix diver, avid spearfishermen, heavy salvage diver, and holds a 100-ton Master Captain's license. She captains theR/V Wahoo and manages Custom Breathing Media in Rocky Point, NY.


Commander Debra Bodenstedt
Deb has been a United States Navy diving and salvage officer since 1983. She's been a commanding officer of a diving unit responsible for underwater ship repair and a diver during the salvage of the space shuttle Challenger. Deb also was the first woman to qualify as a submarine rescue chamber operator and the director of the Atlantic Fleet Diving School. She has dived on the historic USS Monitor at a depth of 240 feet and is a qualified scuba and surface-supplied mixed-gas diver.
 
Wow, thanks for the info. It's really neat to learn about these women. I think about how easy it has been for me to get information about diving before I started. (ie this board) These women had none of that information and it's because of them and women like them that it was available to me. Give me a new respect for those that have been doing it for years and fought to get themselves into a mans world under the sea.

Jessica
 
Here are a few more bios.

Rena M. Bonem, Ph.D.
Rena is a professor of geology and biology at Baylor University. Her research centers on the development, human impact, and recovery of living coral reefs. Rena's diving activities began with certification in 1971, and in 1975 she became an instructor for YMCA and PADI. She chaired the YMCA Coral Reef Specialty in 1977 and has been a member of their National Advisory Committee since 1989. Rena is a fellow of the Geological Society of America and the American Association for the Advancement of Science and a life member of the American Academy of Underwater Sciences.

Mary J. Bonnin
Mary's diving career has spanned 24 years and she currently holds the position of Master Chief Petty Officer in the US Navy. After graduating at the top of her class (in both air and mixed gas diving), she went on to become the only woman in the US Navy to qualify as Master Diver. Mary has trained over 1,000 military divers and worked in ships' husbandry, salvage and rescue. During her last tour she served as the leading naval diving safety authority. The Naval Undersea Museum in Keyport, Washington has dedicated their meeting room as the Mary Bonnin room.

Dr. Jolie Bookspan
Jana Bradley
Jana was certified in 1978 and became a member of the Underwater Society of America and the Midwest Diving Council that same year. She has held offices for a total of 52 different terms on the local, regional and national level. Jana chaired the Freediving/Scuba Nationals in 1990 and published the 40-year history of the MDC in 1999. She is a scuba skills competitor, boat driver for spearfishing competitors and her honors include the MDC Diver of the Year and President's Award.


Tamara Brown
Tamara began her diving career in 1982. She learned the trade of commercial diving and in 1987 she took over her father's operation of Divers Academy of the Eastern Seaboard, Inc. (Camden, NJ). Tamara is certified in underwater bridge inspections, ROV operations, non-destructive testing and underwater welding. She is an advocate for commercial diving safety and has assisted writing training standards for such. She is past President of the Association of Commercial Diving Educators.


:eek:ut:
 
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