Naval Station Everett Outdoor Recreation Programs offered a Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) scuba
certification course for active duty military, retirees, DoD employees and their families July 7-13.
According to Steven King, dive instructor, the purpose of the course is to give the participants something fun to do and,
in addition, to give them a skill in which they can grow.
“Our desire is to train these students to be confident open-water divers,” said King. “We do this so that they can travel
places to dive or they can dive locally and have fun doing it. Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) is the one who gets
the ball rolling, but we provide the instruction services."
The basics to scuba are taught in three parts. Then if the student so desires, they can sign up for advanced scuba training.
“The course consists of multiple class room sessions covering all the knowledge needed to become a diver,” said King.
“Then, we have our pool session where the students learn the physical skills essential for diving. We then have our open
water checkout dives, which is basically a way for the student to prove to the instructor that in real situations they can
handle the tasks at hand and be able to perform the skills necessary.”
Each participant was encouraged to be actively involved, have fun, and above all to learn.
“You have to want to be here, otherwise it won’t be fun,” said King. “I think this is something good for personnel to do in
their spare time because it’s relaxing and it’s a fun thing to do.”
According to King, there is a certain level of expectation when approaching this course.
“Each skill has to be performed confidently, which does not mean they have to be perfect, but they have to perform each
skill adequately,” said King. “Perfection comes with time. I believe the student should come here with the expectation
that they will be challenged. It’s not an easy thing to do for most people, but they should expect that.”
Personnel wanting to learn must supply their own mask, fins, snorkel, hood and booties.
“The single Sailor, if they are looking for something to do, especially when they are away from family, this is the best
thing to do,” said Manuel Semana. “Just being able to dive would give them the opportunity to go places. I wanted to
get my children involved as well. It’s great family time. To anyone seeking adventure, I would most definitely recommend this.
For more information, contact Outdoor Programs at (425) 304-3575.