News
Scuba charity Deptherapy honours Members and Supporters with Awards at DIVE 2017
Scuba Diving rehabilitation charity Deptherapy honoured its Programme Members, Supporters and Corporate Sponsors in an Awards Ceremony on Saturday 21st October during the DIVE 2017 show weekend.
The Deptherapy Awards Ceremony, the first of its kind for the charity, took place in conjunction with the Pharoah Dive Club 10th Anniversary Bash at the Village Hotel, Solihull. The evening event, which was attended by over 200 ticket holders and organised by Steve and Clare Rattle, was a celebration of ten successful years of Pharoah Dive Club and Roots Red Sea. The Anniversary Bash was also recognition of the special partnership that exists between Deptherapy and the Egyptian dive resort, which hosts the majority of the charity’s overseas training programmes.
Deptherapy Ambassador, Board Member, PADI AmbassaDiver and Scubaverse Contributor Gary Green hosted the Awards. Gary started the proceedings with a moving presentation about his time in the British Army, his medical discharge and subsequent battle with PTSD, and how his discovery of scuba diving through Deptherapy had literally saved his life. Eloquently describing both his personal journey and the transformative power of scuba diving, Gary was given a standing ovation at the end of his presentation.
Fourteen Awards, each individually sponsored and beautifully etched onto Welsh slate, were presented during the evening. The winner of each Award had been selected from a nominated shortlist by a Judging Panel that comprised Deptherapy’s President Air Vice-Marshall Jon Lamonte, Chair Richard Cullen and Vice Chair Daimon Haywood, Alice Farrow from Cobseo (The Confederation of British Service Charities) and Stuart Croxford, Consultant to the Royal Foundation’s Endeavour Fund.
As the Awards were presented, the winner’s inspirational stories were shared. One of the most emotional presentations was The Endeavour Award, which was given to the individual Programme Member who in the Judges’ opinion “best encapsulated the Royal Foundation’s Endeavour Fund criteria of Ambition, Adventure and Achievement and who has best utilised their endeavours to promote and catalyse their recovery.”
The Endeavour Award was given to former Infantryman in the Mercian Regiment, Steve Atkin, who has conquered both serious physical and mental injuries, including acute PTSD that rendered him unable to leave his home for several years.
Steve Atkin encapsulates the spirit of Deptherapy. Steve credits the charity with “giving me back my direction in life, rebuilding my shattered confidence and broken soul, as well as returning a Father and Husband to my family.”
Now a Deptherapy Ambassador and PADI AOW, Deep and Wreck Diver, Steve actively supports other Programme Members in their recovery.
Steve’s Atkin’s Award, as with all the Awards of the evening, were presented by special guests Major General Paul Nanson CBE, Commandant of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, who was accompanied by his ADC Major Tony Bryant, and Air Vice Marshall and renowned Underwater Photographer Paul Colley.
The full list of Deptherapy Award Winners is as follows:
- Overcoming Adversity – Winner: Ben Lee
Sponsored by: Matt and Charlotte Davey - Outstanding Fundraiser – Winner: Danny Martin
Sponsored by: Bookings Made Easy SL - Achiever of the Year – Winner: Andy Searle
Sponsored by: Sam and Rowan Egan - Outstanding Ambassador – Winner: Gary Green
Sponsored by: Dive Worldwide - Outstanding Contribution – Winner: Chris Middleton
Sponsored by: Here 4 Life.co.uk - Best Corporate Sponsor – Winners: Divecrew, Roots Red Sea and PADI EMEA
- Supporter of the Year – Winner: Sam Egan
Sponsored by: Denise Himsworth - Special Award for Personal Commitment – Winner: Aquatic Element’s Ride to Remember Cycling Team
- Lifetime Achievement Award – Winner: Dorothy ‘Dot’ Eaton
Sponsored by: JPN Ltd - Peoples’ Choice Award (as voted on social media) – Winner: Ben Lee
Sponsored by: Swiss Watch Exchange Ltd - The Endeavour Award – Winner: Steve Atkin
Sponsored by: Sarah Waddington Solicitors Ltd - The Judges’ Award and Contribution to the Development of Deptherapy presented to Richard Cullen
Sponsored by: Decotta Law
The Pharoah Dive Club 10th Anniversary Bash and Deptherapy Awards raised over £6,000 for the charity. Additional donations over the course of the DIVE 2017 weekend raised an extra £2,000 in much-needed funds.
Deptherapy would like to thank all their Supporters, Corporate Sponsors, Programme Members, Nominees and Winners, including all those individuals on the Deptherapy Board and in the wider Deptherapy Family for a tremendously successful event and their continued support.
For more information about the work of Deptherapy and Deptherapy Education visit their new website at www.deptherapy.co.uk.
Marine Life & Conservation Blogs
Creature Feature: Dusky Shark
In this series, the Shark Trust will be sharing amazing facts about different species of sharks and what you can do to help protect them.
This month we’re taking a look at the Dusky Shark, a highly migratory species with a particularly slow growth rate and late age at maturity.
Dusky sharks are one of the largest species within the Carcharhinus genus, generally measuring 3 metres total length but able to reach up to 4.2 metres. They are grey to grey-brown on their dorsal side and their fins usually have dusky margins, with the darkest tips on the caudal fin.
Dusky Sharks can often be confused with other species of the Carcharhinus genus, particularly the Galapagos Shark (Carcharhinus galapagensis). They have very similar external morphology, so it can be easier to ID to species level by taking location into account as the two species occupy very different ecological niches – Galapagos Sharks prefer offshore seamounts and islets, whilst duskies prefer continental margins.
Hybridisation:
A 2019 study found that Dusky Sharks are hybridising with Galapagos Sharks on the Eastern Tropical Pacific (Pazmiño et al., 2019). Hybridisation is when an animal breeds with an individual of another species to produce offspring (a hybrid). Hybrids are often infertile, but this study found that the hybrids were able to produce second generation hybrids!
Long distance swimmers:
Dusky sharks are highly mobile species, undertaking long migrations to stay in warm waters throughout the winter. In the Northern Hemisphere, they head towards the poles in the summer and return southwards towards the equator in winter. The longest distance recorded was 2000 nautical miles!
Very slow to mature and reproduce:
The Dusky Shark are both targeted and caught as bycatch globally. We already know that elasmobranchs are inherently slow reproducers which means that they are heavily impacted by overfishing; it takes them so long to recover that they cannot keep up with the rate at which they are being fished. Dusky Sharks are particularly slow to reproduce – females are only ready to start breeding at roughly 20 years old, their gestation periods can last up to 22 months, and they only give birth every two to three years. This makes duskies one of the most vulnerable of all shark species.
The Dusky Shark is now listed on Appendix II of the Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species (CMS), but further action is required to protect this important species.
Scientific Name: Carcharhinus obscurus
Family: Carcharhinidae
Maximum Size: 420cm (Total Length)
Diet: Bony fishes, cephalopods, can also eat crustaceans, and small sharks, skates and rays
Distribution: Patchy distribution in tropical and warm temperate seas; Atlantic, Indo-Pacific and Mediterranean.
Habitat: Ranges from inshore waters out to the edge of the continental shelf.
Conservation status: Endangered.
For more great shark information and conservation visit the Shark Trust Website
Images: Andy Murch
Diana A. Pazmiño, Lynne van Herderden, Colin A. Simpfendorfer, Claudia Junge, Stephen C. Donnellan, E. Mauricio Hoyos-Padilla, Clinton A.J. Duffy, Charlie Huveneers, Bronwyn M. Gillanders, Paul A. Butcher, Gregory E. Maes. (2019). Introgressive hybridisation between two widespread sharks in the east Pacific region, Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution 136(119-127), https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2019.04.013.
Blogs
Join Pharaoh Dive Club for Red Sea Splash Family Summer Camp in August 2024
3rd AUGUST 2024 – 1 or 2 WEEK PROGRAMMES
Daily water programme with Snorkelling & Scuba Diving.
Beginners or qualified, something for all.
Leave the kids with the Splash Team for days of Excitement, Fun & Adventure!
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
There are various options for accommodation with options for 2, 3, 4 or 5 guests.
Eco Huts provide accommodation for families of up to 4. The best option to enhance the adventure and closest to camping with basic facilities. For August we will provide central air cooling for all the Eco Huts.
Deluxe Chalets are only suitable for 2 guests. Fully air conditioned rooms with private bathroom and other facilities.
Boutique Rooms are available for families of up to 5.
Individual bespoke rooms fully air conditioned with private bathroom and other facilities.
Eco Huts: £675 per adult / £425 per child / Under 8 FREE of charge
Deluxe Chalet: £830 per adult / £505 per child / Under 8 FREE of charge
Boutique Room: £925 per adult / £550 per child / Under 8 FREE of charge
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
This is a truly unique opportunity to have a Family Desert Adventure totally away from it all! You will be based at the remote Roots Red Sea on the coast of the Egyptian Eastern Desert, 140km south of Hurghada city.
Red Sea Splash main focus is Snorkelling & Scuba Diving but that’s not all, we provide a rounded week of activities in support.
Pool& Field Games – Arts & Crafts
Marine Biology Workshops
Cultural Activities – Orienteering Adventures
Roots Red Sea have established strong links with the local communities of Hamerwain & El Quseir affording our guests to have a true taste of the local culture, SPLASH CAMP embraces this opportunity and bring in the local children to join in the fun with our adventure seekers.
During the day, families are welcome to take part in all activities together or the kids can be left with the SPLASH CAMP team while the parents enjoy the facilities or go diving themselves!
At the end of the day, its family time while the SPLASH CAMP team take a break. For those with the energy, there are family evening activities planned a few evenings.
Open Air Movie Night – Desert Star Gazing Walk & Talk
El Quseir Evening City Tour
The second week is very special, we head off on the Big Blue for a liveaboard safari around Fury Shoals.
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
U-8 Splash Club
Sadly we can’t offer Scuba Diving to the Splash Club but we can have lots of fun Snorkelling & Free Diving!
Splash Club includes:
Certified Snorkel Course – Marine ID Games – Intro to Free Diving
Arts & Craft Sessions – Adventure trails – Cultural Playtime – Pool Games
U-12 Explorer Club
In addition to an exciting snorkelling and Free Diving Programme in the Splash Club we can take you under the water on SCUBA to a whole new world of fun and wonder. If you are under 10 your first breath under water will be as a Bubblemaker and continue with daily Seal Team Missions. From 10 we will complete a Discover Scuba Diving experience in the amazing Red Sea. Alternatively we offer a full junior certification programme to become an international qualified Scuba Diver.
U-16 Adventurer Club
For qualified Scuba Divers regardless of age it’s the Adventurer Club and exploration of the local reefs and marine life. There will be 2 dives every day with the Open Ocean marine field station team who will introduce you to Red Sea marine life and workshops on marine research. Alternatively there are opportunities to continue your scuba diving certifications with our instructional team.
Parents are welcome to join the club activities and join the courses.
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
Big Blue might seem like the new kid on the block, but the team behind the highly acclaimed liveaboard is far from that. They have been running Red Sea safaris since the late 1980’s and were in fact part of the early pioneers who ventured out to the unknown on vessels that in today’s world, really shouldn’t have left the harbour! It’s that experience and the years of operating the award-winning Roots Red Sea resort which truly set Big Blue apart from the crowd!
Large lounge area, spacious sun deck and terrace deck.
Airy restaurant with five tables with up to six chairs per table, serving a varied and delicious menu with special dietary requirements catered for.
The spacious cabins have side by side beds and a large walk in wet bathroom.
Ample dive deck for divers & snorkelers.
Safety is everyone’s priority, whether you are relaxing on board, swimming, snorkelling or diving.
On board Big Blue is fitted with smoke alarms, emergency lighting and a fire alarm system. The lower corridor has a full-size door fire exit at the bow and open stairs to the stern. There are evacuation plans in each room along with life jackets, glass breaker tool and a fire extinguisher.
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
Red Sea Splash at Fury Shoals is a very rare opportunity to get involved with marine biology expedition for children and adults. Open Ocean biologists are on board to provide fascinating and entertaining facts about the marine life you will see. The team will provide workshops on marine life identification and survey methods both of which, should you wish, you will have the chance to put into practice during your safari.
The week is open to snorkelers, scuba divers and non divers too!
Fury shoals is perfect for first time mariners as it offers plenty of protection from the weather.
We board at Port Ghaleb on Saturday evening and prepare to set sail early on Sunday morning.
Heading south, our first day will be diving the reefs of Abu Dabbab before sailing overnight to reach our ultimate destination the Fury Shoals.
Here we will spend four days swimming, snorkelling and scuba diving amazing reefs. This includes guaranteed DOLPHIN encounters at Sataya Reef! After the last dive we haul anchor and head back to Abu Dabbab for our final two dives before disembarking our boat BIG BLUE.
Camp Extension Cost*
Adult £650 per adult
Under 16 £350 per child
BOOK NOW: INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM / TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
FURTHER INFORMATION – INFO@PHARAOHDIVECLUB.COM
TEL: +44 7598 329059 or +20 100 6822000
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