Dan started diving before most of us were born, way back in 1954, and was one of the true scuba pioneers. Originally from the Southside of Chicago, Dan was a member of the first class of YMCA instructors and helped establish diving programs at the Ys throughout the Chicago area and certified over 5000 divers. Additionally, he was one of the founders of the Illinois Council of Skin and Scuba Divers and ran the Cook County Sheriffs underwater recovery teams.
Dan moved to Florida in the early 60s (I guess that makes him one of the first warm water wussies, too
) and spent the rest of his life in and around the water. His underwater film work has been shown worldwide and won many awards, helping bring the underwater world to the attention of a wide audience. He owned and operated several dive boats and ran trips to the Bahamas on a regular basis. He was also an early supporter of Divers Alert Network, hosting research trips on his boats and contributing money when DAN was just a fledgling organization. A dedicated conservationist, Dan helped establish and run the Mother Ocean Foundation, an outreach organization dedicated to ocean-related community education.
Maintaining his ties to Chicago, Dan also served for years as a Board member of the Our World Underwater scholarship program and was the recipient in 1992 of the Our World Underwater Achievement Award.
He was a nice guy, too. Winston Churchill said that there are few men who are both great and good. Dan Wagner was one of them.
Florida Today Obituary
Our Mother Ocean Foundation
Dan moved to Florida in the early 60s (I guess that makes him one of the first warm water wussies, too
) and spent the rest of his life in and around the water. His underwater film work has been shown worldwide and won many awards, helping bring the underwater world to the attention of a wide audience. He owned and operated several dive boats and ran trips to the Bahamas on a regular basis. He was also an early supporter of Divers Alert Network, hosting research trips on his boats and contributing money when DAN was just a fledgling organization. A dedicated conservationist, Dan helped establish and run the Mother Ocean Foundation, an outreach organization dedicated to ocean-related community education.Maintaining his ties to Chicago, Dan also served for years as a Board member of the Our World Underwater scholarship program and was the recipient in 1992 of the Our World Underwater Achievement Award.
He was a nice guy, too. Winston Churchill said that there are few men who are both great and good. Dan Wagner was one of them.
Florida Today Obituary
Our Mother Ocean Foundation
