Zak Jones

[mdb]

I just received word that a very gifted diver, Zak M. Jones, died while doing a rebreather dive in east Florida. Zak starting hanging around dive stores when he was about 13 years old. He was certified in his teens. Diving was his life. We are thinking about his wife and Zak.

 

[JGibeault]

Zak was a wonderful, outgoing instructor and mentor. He will be missed. But his funny stories will live on for a very long time.

 

[Al Mialkovsky]

Always sad to hear. No other details?

 

[mdb]

Always sad to hear. No other details?

We do have some details, make of rebreather, depth, etc. When more information is available I will post. For now, we are just thinking about Zak: www.zakjonesdiving.com/bio.html

 

[allistoy]

I had the short pleasure of meeting and having Zak as one of my instructors during an IDC course at Pro Dive in June and your correct his great sense of humor and diving skills will truly be missed. My thoughts are with his family on this tragic day. He was one of those people you meet in life who leave a lasting impression on everyone they encounter.

 

[Vayu]

Condolences to the family... Zak seemed like a great diver and a young man at that. Everyone dive safely. It is unfortunate the scuba community must take this loss.

-V

 

[BigJetDriver]

My condolences to his family and friends. It sounds as if the scuba world has lost a very good and well-liked member.

 

[Eidolon]

Zak could teach anything to anyone. He held the first (and maybe the only) PADI IDC in Belize for Belizeans and I believe that they all passed. He was such a skilled diver I can't believe he's gone from a diving related incident. Half of my certification cards have his name on them. The diving world has lost a great diver, teacher and friend.

 

[USIA]

I've been in the diving business for nearly 20 years, and Zak Jones was without a doubt one of the most professional and passionate people I have ever encountered. He attacked Scuba Diving with a passion that I have rarely seen. He was a brilliant person and could have made a lot more money in a different industry. I remember a conversation we had a few years back and he was considering leaving the industry to concentrate on some business proposals he had. A month later I called him and asked how things were going, and he told me there was no way he could ever leave the diving industry.
The last time I saw him was this summer at the Northwest Dive News Treasure Hunt. Our booths were side by side and we spent most of the day talking diving. He had just been offered the job at Pro Dive and was so excited about he and his new wife moving to Florida to get paid for what he loves. I'll never forget his smile or his passion. We have lost one of the greats this week and I hope all of us keep his Father, Sister, and his wife Robyn in are prayers during this holiday season. God Bless, Mr. Jones.

 

[sblue]

I had just met Zak when he finally received his rebreather. He was so excited that he stopped what he was doing to show me his new "baby". The same thing happened when he was getting ready to assist with the B-17 recovery: completely stopped what he had been doing in the front of the dive shop, lead me to the back, pulled out this big box and, with a excited smile on his face, showed me all the gear provided by the sponsors.

Had it been anyone else, I would have thought the only reason they were doing it was for the free gear. But it was Zak... the gear was icing on the cake. He was excited about the diving he was about to do; sharing his experience--in it's entirety--with someone else; and having them (or me) be as excited about it as he was. It worked. I was excited for him and about his trip. I kept tabs on the endeavour and made sure I made a special trip to the shop when he returned...I wanted to hear all about it.

Sometimes, we live vicariously through someone else's adventures and it's our own private secret. Zak wanted us to live through him. I think it's because he knew we would join him someday and have our own exciting stories--he wanted us to join him.

Many of us will continue to have adventures due, in part, to what Zak taught us. Which I believe, is what he would've wanted.


-Shoni


For those in the area, I understand there will be a memorial service for Zak at the Seattle Aquarium on Dec. 4th from 7-9pm. "There will be a memorial board where you can post pictures, special memories that you might write down or, any type of memento you may have that would like to share with everyone."

Regretfully, I won't be able to attend. So I posted my memories and thoughts here.