Four local honourees have been named as the newest additions to the International Scuba Diving Hall of Fame, which is based in the Cayman Islands.
Each year, individuals in the dive industry, both locally and internationally, are honoured at an annual induction ceremony, which will be held this year on 28 Sept.
Among the local honourees are the late Captain Ertis Ebanks, Barbara ‘Barbie’ MacDowell, Joanna Mikutowicz and Andrew Ebanks.
Ertis Ebanks, a pioneer in the water-sports industry, was one of the first people to offer snorkelling tours to visitors in the early 1950s.
MacDowell is a knowledgeable divemaster who showcases the wonders of Sister Islands dive sites as a staff member at Reef Divers at the Cayman Brac Beach Resort.
Mikutowicz is the owner of Divetech and a dedicated member of the Cayman Islands diving community, with a focus on training and employing Caymanians and championing marine conservation.
And Andrew Ebanks, being recognised as an emerging honourees, is a PADI instructor and third-generation seaman who is continuing his family legacy in the Cayman Islands water-sports industry as the founder of Islandlife Watersports.
“The Cayman Islands is blessed to have passionate and hardworking people working in our diving and water sports industry. Along with our diverse dive sites, it’s their hospitality that causes divers to return year after year or for newcomers to discover a new passion,” the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism said in a statement.
The international inductees this year are John Thet of Myanmar, co-founder of Asian Geographic Magazine; Claudio Guardabassi, who helped develop the diving industry in Brazil; and Margo Peyton, of the US, who developed Family Dive Adventures and Kids Sea Camp.
The induction ceremony will be held at the Indigo Hotel from 6pm on Saturday, 28 Sept.
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