Dive Friends Bonaire is starting the new year with several new faces! We thought it would be nice to introduce you to the new crew. Here they all are!
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Alexandra (or Alex2 as we call her since we already have an Alexandra) comes to us from Honduras where she was last teaching. She is originally from California but learned to dive in the cold water of the Virginian quarries. Luckily the cold didn’t put her off diving but she did move to warmer waters to complete her PADI IDC. She enjoys working with the diverse crew at Dive Friends. Here favourite fish on Bonaire is the ocean trigger fish.
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Coleman is originally from Oklahoma, USA. He first learned to dive on a vacation in 2004. He fell in love with diving and being under water. After 8 years of being a “vacation only” diver, he decided to take the leap and become a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor in 2012. Since then he worked in Thailand, the Maldives and the Bahamas before coming to Bonaire. He loves to see his students make the transformation from snorkels/swimmers into divers. His favourite sea creature is the frog fish.
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Daniel was born in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. After spending eight years serving in the Dutch army, he decided to change paths and make his hobby into his career. Before coming to Bonaire, he was teaching in Thailand, Indonesia and The Bahamas. He loves that once you are under water, you are completely “in the moment” and you don’t need to worry about anything else. He is also a tech diving instructor and has recently been promoted to manage Planning and Logistics between the Dive Friends Bonaire locations./
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David is from Barcelona where he began free diving at 14. He fell in love with the ocean and took up scuba diving in his early 20s. Within a few years, he was a dive instructor and has worked all over the world. He loves the feeling of weightlessness in the water and enjoys sharing this with his students.
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Edward is from the Netherlands where he braved the cold and completed his open water training. He then quickly moved on to the warmer waters of Bonaire and worked his way from the advanced course to Dive Master. Upon returning to the Netherlands, he completed his IDC and is now sharing his passion with new divers on the same reefs where he did his training. He loves exploring the hidden underwater world and is particularly fascinated with ship wrecks. He enjoys working with Dive Friends because we are like one big family and there are a lot of opportunities to learn new skills.
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Ivo is from the Netherlands and grew up watching the fish in the aquarium next to his bed. Once he turned 18 and could finally drive, he was able to drive to a nearby town for diving lessons. He loves meeting other people with the same hobby and also loves teaching new students to dive; he loves to watch them grow and become better divers.
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Jeroen is originally from Brabant in the Netherlands. After 30 years of working in restaurants and bars, he decided to change his life. He always loved to play on and in the water so scuba diving was the logical next step. He has since turned his weekend hobby into a new carrier on Bonaire. He enjoys his work as a divemaster with the DFB team and he enjoys learning new things daily.
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Joost is from the Netherlands. After having lived and worked in Asia and Australia for the past 5 years, he decided to make the jump to the other side of the world to try his luck. He loves the silence deep down and never gets bored of what the oceans have to offer us. Every dive is a good dive!
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Luke is originally from the UK and he has been diving since he was 12 years old. During his universities studies, he did marine research on the island of Martinique which confirmed his love for the underwater world. He then decided to become a dive instructor so he could share his passion with others and has since working in Thailand, Greece and now Bonaire!
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Peter grew up in the north of the Netherlands. When he was 20, he learned to dive during a vacation on Bonaire. He fell in love with Bonaire and the diving life style. Within a few years, he decided to change his life and make the big move to Bonaire, where he then became a diving instructor. Two years on, he still loves his new life on Bonaire. He also loves to share it with his students and to teach them about our beautiful underwater environment.
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Veer discovered Bonaire on vacation. At that time, she was terrified of the water and did not even dare to snorkel. However, when she returned home she realised that she had fallen in love with Bonaire and decided to move there. She also decided that she could not move to Bonaire without being a diver so she conquered her fear and got certified in the Netherlands! She has since completed the AOW course and loves being able to explore another world. Being on the reef is like being in a fairy tale with all the strange colours and shapes.
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Zara started diving in the cold quarries of Pennsylvania and hasn’t stopped since. She has a passion for Marine Biology and loves try to spot and learn about new species. She especially loves turtles and seeing baby turtle can make her whole week!
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See and read about all our staff members on our Crew Page.