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By now many of you have probably read the article I posted a few days ago about Jennifer ... a young woman who died on a scuba dive she never should have been on five years ago. The article was written, with my assistance, by her mother ... Julie Simonds. It was Julie's wish to tell this story in the hope that it might save someone else from a similar experience.
But there was something else Julie wanted to do. Four years ago she decided she needed to see the place where her daughter died. To that end, she learned how to scuba dive, and has worked to make sure that her skills would be sufficient to make this dive. As she did with the article, she asked me to accompany her on this journey ... along with her husband, a family friend, and a young woman who was there the day Jennifer died.
On Wednesday, Julie, her husband Burton, and their friend Polly flew from the east coast to the Seattle area. Thursday we met at Keystone Jetty for a shakedown dive ... to make sure all the gear they brought with them worked right, and to get them properly weighted with the additional undergarments they'd be wearing underneath their drysuits to dive here. It was a typical summer day in Puget Sound ... 62 degrees and cloudy, with a chilly wind blowing out of the north. But the conditions were inviting, with small tides, mild current and very good visibility ... and with some minor delays to get the weighting right, we had a lovely dive.
Here's Julie and Burton just before the dive ...
Yesterday was the day Julie had planned for ... a return to Lummi Rocks, the site where her daughter lost her life in July 2007. The weather proved much more cooperative ... sunny and mid-70's ... just about perfect Pacific Northwest summer weather. At the boat ramp I also met Katie ... who was on the fateful dive five years earlier. We bundled into the boat and headed across Bellingham Bay to the dive site.
From left to right ... Katie, Polly, Julie and Burton ...
Arriving at the dive site, all was peaceful ... some of the locals were there to greet us ...
Julie and I got in first ...
Upon being joined by the others, we dropped below the surface and began our dive. After a time, Julie found a place where she wanted to put a small memorial to her daughter ... a shelf of rock where the token could rest for a time ...
We continued our dive until our air supply said it was time to make our way to the surface.
On the boat, Katie recounted her memories of the day, and Polly read a verse in memory of Jennifer ...
I'd like the memory of me to be a happy one.
I'd like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done.
I'd like to leave an echo whispering softly down the ways,
Of happy times and laughing times and bright and sunny days.
I'd like the tears of those who grieve, to dry before the sun;
Of happy memories that I leave when life is done.
Unlike the others in our group, I never met Jennifer. But if she was anything like her mom ... a woman who turned tragedy into a passion and a celebration of life ... then this was a fitting memorial.
For all the dives I've ever done ... the caves, wrecks, exotic locations, beautiful walls, and memorable experiences with special friends ... this is the dive that I'll remember the most. To Julie ... an amazing woman with a beautiful, positive outlook on life ... thank you for asking me to be a part of it ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
But there was something else Julie wanted to do. Four years ago she decided she needed to see the place where her daughter died. To that end, she learned how to scuba dive, and has worked to make sure that her skills would be sufficient to make this dive. As she did with the article, she asked me to accompany her on this journey ... along with her husband, a family friend, and a young woman who was there the day Jennifer died.
On Wednesday, Julie, her husband Burton, and their friend Polly flew from the east coast to the Seattle area. Thursday we met at Keystone Jetty for a shakedown dive ... to make sure all the gear they brought with them worked right, and to get them properly weighted with the additional undergarments they'd be wearing underneath their drysuits to dive here. It was a typical summer day in Puget Sound ... 62 degrees and cloudy, with a chilly wind blowing out of the north. But the conditions were inviting, with small tides, mild current and very good visibility ... and with some minor delays to get the weighting right, we had a lovely dive.
Here's Julie and Burton just before the dive ...
Yesterday was the day Julie had planned for ... a return to Lummi Rocks, the site where her daughter lost her life in July 2007. The weather proved much more cooperative ... sunny and mid-70's ... just about perfect Pacific Northwest summer weather. At the boat ramp I also met Katie ... who was on the fateful dive five years earlier. We bundled into the boat and headed across Bellingham Bay to the dive site.
From left to right ... Katie, Polly, Julie and Burton ...
Arriving at the dive site, all was peaceful ... some of the locals were there to greet us ...
Julie and I got in first ...
Upon being joined by the others, we dropped below the surface and began our dive. After a time, Julie found a place where she wanted to put a small memorial to her daughter ... a shelf of rock where the token could rest for a time ...
We continued our dive until our air supply said it was time to make our way to the surface.
On the boat, Katie recounted her memories of the day, and Polly read a verse in memory of Jennifer ...
I'd like the memory of me to be a happy one.
I'd like to leave an afterglow of smiles when life is done.
I'd like to leave an echo whispering softly down the ways,
Of happy times and laughing times and bright and sunny days.
I'd like the tears of those who grieve, to dry before the sun;
Of happy memories that I leave when life is done.
Unlike the others in our group, I never met Jennifer. But if she was anything like her mom ... a woman who turned tragedy into a passion and a celebration of life ... then this was a fitting memorial.
For all the dives I've ever done ... the caves, wrecks, exotic locations, beautiful walls, and memorable experiences with special friends ... this is the dive that I'll remember the most. To Julie ... an amazing woman with a beautiful, positive outlook on life ... thank you for asking me to be a part of it ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)
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