MaST Program

07 March 2009


Today the water in the Puget Sound was choppy. Uh...no...it was downright surf like. And while California divers brave the surf and think nothing of it, my Advanced Open Water class chose not to breach the surf, rather, we did a bit of surface fish sighting.


The MaST program (Marine and Science Technologies) is a pet project of mine. Based at the old commercial training dock at Redondo Beach in Des Moines, Washington, it offers the public, both here and away, a look under the water of the Puget Sound.


I've been the Volunteer Dive Coordinator for the program and have gone on collection dives for tank residents. My interest in the center is two fold.


First, it offers kids, the most important generation in any time period, a chance to develop an appreciation for marine life and an understanding of why we need to preserve the marine habitats where we live.


My other interest is in building a program. The MaST program is headed towards having a diver in a full face mask with a camera film and talk to kids on the surface about the creatures they are encountering. Not only the kids dockside...but kids as far away as South Africa, via the technology that is available to us today.


For more information on this program see HERE or to get involved with help as an interpreter or diver, contact me and I'll get you placed in the program.