The diving trade body, DEMA, 2006 Scuba Tour made a special stop in Rockaway Point, New York, USA on July 6-9 at the Disabled Sports USA 2006 Adaptive Water Sports Festival as part of their nationwide Wounded Warrior Disabled Sports Project. The Festival provided the opportunity for U.S. Soldiers and Marines severely injured in Iraq and Afghanistan to experience scuba diving and other water sports like sailing and water skiing.
Over the course of the four-day event twenty-four injured U.S. Soldiers and Marines, many with single and multiple amputations, along with their family members were introduced to adaptive scuba diving in the comfort of the Scuba Tour’s 30-foot by 20-foot, four-foot deep, 17,000-gallon pool. The Scuba Tour staff joined with multiple dive shops and organizations, specially trained volunteers from Disabled Sports USA, and firefighters from the New York City Fire Department including many heroes from September 11th to teach the sport to these service men and women.
"Being part of an event like this provides us with a wonderful way to give something back to the service men and women who have risked their lives in Iraq and Afghanistan and introduce them to a sport that can help them maintain a healthy, active lifestyle," said Tom Ingram, Executive Director of DEMA. "Offering people with physical disabilities the chance to participate in an adventure sport like scuba diving demonstrates that there is no limit to what they can achieve. I’m deeply pleased that many of the Wounded Warriors and their family members have expressed interest in pursuing Scuba certification from the participating dive shops, thereby benefiting both themselves and the retailers."
DEMA’s Scuba Tour is a proud sponsor of the Wounded Warrior Disabled Sports Project.
