Sail Fish Scuba Family
Dive Shop Team
This page consists of our Sail Fish Scuba Family, While we work hard as a team to make sure our customers have the best experience possible, we also have fun and enjoy each others company. This is what makes Sail Fish Scuba so successful! Good friends, smiling faces, & creating everlasting memories.
Owners
When Jen bought Chris his first scuba lessons in 2002, he told her, “I don’t even swim.” “Class starts next week,” she replied. “Learn quick!” Four years later, Jen put their house on the market and said, “We’re moving to Florida. I hate snow!” They became scuba instructors and worked for dive shops in Oahu, St. Thomas, and Key Largo before finally opening their own shop, Sail Fish Scuba, in 2011.
Jen spent years helping other scuba shops build their businesses but that only inspired her to want to open her own dive company. Taking the best of what she’d learned, and adding a few special touches of her own, Jen envisioned Sail Fish Scuba, a small, less-crowded scuba operation where customer service is the highest priority and guests are treated more like family than customers.
Crew
Mike was still a Florida State Trooper the first time he came into Sail Fish Scuba looking for two folks who’d been in a traffic accident the day before. (We weren’t hiding them, honest!) “I been diving all my life,” he told us. “But if I wanted to do this professionally when I retire, how would I do that?” Within minutes, Mike was signing up as a DM intern and filling out the paperwork for AOW, Rescue, DSAT Gas Blender, and EANx specialties. So… that’s how he did that.
Tom has a Facebook page named Old Guy Diving, but that’s not how we think of him. He runs a couple of miles on his days off and works as hard as anyone on his days on, so we just think of him as another member of the Sail Fish Scuba team. Certified since 1965, a dive instructor since 2012, Tom joined us in the spring of 2018 we haven’t worn him out yet. The only things he misses from his prior life in Virginia are his children (now grown) and his ultralight airplane.
Rick and Mike are old friends so when Mike was completing his DM internship, and Rick was having a bad experience with another shop (no names!), Mike brought Rick to Sail Fish Scuba, where he signed up as a DM intern. A former firefighter and paramedic, Rick brings a world of experience to our little band of brothers and he became a valued member of the team right from the start. Whether he’s leading a dive or guiding a group of snorkelers, Rick’s enthusiastic professionalism is always well received.
Captain Bill takes the helm of our dive boat, DEEPER, most days and our “guest experience” is one of safety and comfort in his capable hands. Introduced to Jen and Chris by a mutual friend, Bill joined Sail Fish Scuba in 2015. A former marina owner and diesel mechanic, Bill’s expertise extends far beyond the fly bridge and makes him a most valued member of our team. Bill is also a Divemaster but, as he says, “Captains are mostly like cats. They don’t like to go in the water.”
Lauren did her first scuba dive in Belize in 2014, and like many new divers, she only got to blow bubbles every couple of years for a while after that. That is until 2021, when she started focusing on advanced certifications, earning her Rescue Diver and Master Diver status. Then she joined Sail Fish Scuba for the summer of 2022 as a Divemaster intern, and immediately proved that she would be a valuable addition to the team. We’re so glad she did, and so are our guests!
Luke was a workout regular at CrossFit Key Largo, where he met Jen and Chris. Once they started talking about diving, a new life’s plan emerged: why not intern as a Divemaster during his summer break from college? One thing led to another (doesn’t it always?) and Luke found that he enjoyed diving and working with guests as much as they enjoyed being guided by him. What had once been a hobby became a passion. And the rest, as they say, is history.
Yup, short for Colt 45, cause this little man is quite the powerhouse!
Colt was adopted 30 Nov 2022 at our local Upper Keys Animal Shelter, and has made a wonderful new addition to our STAFF Team.
He is a mix of Terrier, Beagle, and Chihuahua. Which makes him what they call a Mexican Pit Bull, not joking!
Colt had a real hard start to life before coming into our loving fur-ever home, but he has come 360 in every way since becoming a member of our little family.
