Stay-Focused 2008
January 28, 2008 marked the 5-year anniversary for Stay-Focused. We have accomplished a lot in five years and look forward to building on our success in the year ahead.
Emmylou Harris Benefit Performance for Stay-Focused.
Emmylou Harris put on an amazing solo performance on February 5th in Grand Cayman.
The sold-out event marked our 5-year anniversary and set the stage for an exciting year.
Local favorites, Sean and Shane of Hi-Tide played for a couple of hours before Emmy took the stage. Many thanks to our gracious hosts, Julian and Glenna Black, for hosting this very special evening.
Photo taken by Courtney Platt
In May, we launched a new initiative, the Stay-Focused/Sunrise NYC Adventure, inviting four trainees from the Sunrise Adult Training Centre (Grand Cayman) to visit New York City for three days of fun and educational activities. The trainees were, Roland Ebanks, Anita Ebanks, Mackie Smith and Tessa Terry.
Roberta Gordon, Director of the Sunrise Adult Training Centre and a Director of Stay-Focused (Cayman) Ltd., and Mary Fortney joined the group for their visit May 28 - June 1st.
Many thanks to our generous sponsors for making the trip possible.
Cayman Airways, GreenlightRE, Genesis Trust & Corporate Services Ltd., Walkers and Classic Executive Limousine.
Summer Programs 2008
Our first program of the summer (June 26 – July 1) was a Reunion trip for divers we certified in 2007. The group included Gwena and Gerry Herman, who coach the Bennett Blazer team (Baltimore, MD), Dr. JenFu Cheng and his wife, Renu,
Ben Strafuss and his two sons, Justin and Andrew, Ryan Chalmers, Kayla Rhodes, Jill Ratliff, and Colbie Bratlie.
Our second program of the summer (July 3 – 9) included four, first-time divers (Brittney Bergeron, Cheyenne Leonard, Kiya Smith and Andrew West) from Las Vegas, NV. Joining the group were: Dr. JenFu Cheng, and Stay-Focused alumni Jackie Cimino, who served as the group’s mentor, and Ryan Chalmers. Congratulations to Brittney, Cheyenne, Kiya and Andrew – our four newly-certified Stay-Focused divers, bringing our total to 30!
Many thanks to the core team of diving instructors, Marty Banks, Tony Chisholm and Richard Smart, and the diving instructors who volunteer their time to help out for their excellent teaching ability and commitment to Stay-Focused.
Our third program of the summer took place August 7 – 13, with six, first-time divers, including our first mother and daughter team. Participants included Katie Chasar, Chelsea Crytzer, Jessica Ebanks, Derry Hill, Ryan Neiswender, and Joenell Parsons (Jessica’s mom). Joining the program were Trisha Yurochko, a Stay-Focused Board member and diving regular, newcomer John Dorn, head of the adolescent unit at Children’s Specialized Hospital in Mountainside, NJ, Brian Siemann, a Stay-Focused alumnus who served as a mentor for the first-time divers, and Ryan Chalmers, another Stay-Focused alum, fresh off his week of diving in Little Cayman as part of the Dive with a Researcher (DWAR) program. Jake Zalewski, Ryan’s dive buddy in Little Cayman, also joined the group to help out.
Many thanks, as always, to our core team of Stay-Focused diving instructors, Marty Banks, Tony Chisholm, and Richard Smart, as well as the diving instructors who joined us on their days off to help out: Andy Croft, John “Freddy” Frederick, Lauren Janssen, Sarah Lown, and Paul Thompson).
Congratulations to our six, newly-certified divers bringing the total of Stay-Focused divers to 35!
Special Thanks!
Many thanks to all the Stay-Focused sponsors, especially the Courtyard Marriott and Red Sail Sports in Cayman, for their generous and ongoing support.
Courtyard Marriott Grand Cayman
Red Sail Sports Grand Cayman
Best,
Roger Muller
Founder/President
September/October 2008
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Fundraising 2008
While fundraising is an ongoing activity, much of the support that enables Stay-Focused to offer its programs is provided by sponsors. A complete listing of our sponsors is provided in the Partners section of this site.
TexTAM 2008
Founded in 1990, CTAM Texas is a chapter of the Cable and Telecommunications Association for Marketing — the most powerful and up-to-date management and marketing society in the industry. CTAM’s annual event, TexTAM, took place on March 26 & 27th in San Antonio, TX. For the third year, Stay-Focused was invited to the event as the beneficiary of its charitable contribution. A donation of $5,000 was given to Stay-Focused in support of our programs this year. Many thanks to Mary Bourne-Marth, President of CTAM, TX, and the generous sponsors of TexTAM for their ongoing support!
Photo by L.A. Shively,
LAShively.com
BeachTAM 2008
The Florida chapter of CTAM held its annual event, BeachTAM, in Ft. Lauderdale, FL, June 12th, and also designated Stay-Focused as the beneficiary charity. Many thanks to Nicole Gruenebaum, Director, Affiliate Sales, South East Region, NBC Universal, and all the sponsors and participants for their generous support. A live auction over cocktails at the end of the day netted $11,000 for Stay-Focused!
Stay-Focused
Founder/President, Roger Muller, carried the event banner to Cayman for the “money” shot below.
Thank you CTAM Florida and BeachTAM!
Island Companies Ltd.
(Grand Cayman)
Pictured below (l – r) is Roger Muller and Ryan Chalmers, a Stay-Focused alumnus, receiving a check from Island Companies Ltd. (ILC) Managing Director, Renard Moxam in early July. Mr. Moxam presented the check for $1,145 to Stay-Focused as part of the company’s ongoing support for Stay-Focused. The funds were raised through the sale of glass-blown turtles in ICL stores earlier this year.
Aqua Lung/SeaQuest
Many thanks to Ted Foreman, Regional Sales Manager, Caribbean, Aqua Lung/SeaQuest, for his support of the Third Annual Stay-Focused Underwater Bike Ride held last February. Winner of the donated BC/regulator was Jackie “Jaxx” Kienas of Sunset Divers (Grand Cayman). Roger Muller caught up with Jaxx in July to present her with her prize.
Cayman Islands Marathon 2008
Stay-Focused divers Ryan Chalmers (above right) and Brian Siemann will be the first two wheelchair athletes to compete in the Cayman Islands Marathon on December 7, 2008. Stay-Focused has registered two, 4-person relay teams in the marathon. Stay-Focused I will include Roger Muller, Founder/President of Stay-Focused, Paul Drake and Julian Black, both Directors of Stay-Focused (Cayman) Ltd., and Brian Siemann. The Stay-Focused II team will include Stay-Focused diving instructors Marty Banks, Tony Chisholm, and Richard Smart, and Ryan Chalmers.
In the words of Brian Siemann, “I want to participate in the Cayman marathon because it will be a great experience and an event I will never forget. Being one of the first two wheelchair athletes to compete in the marathon will give me the chance to race in an area where I never thought I would race, and it will also allow Ryan and I to show Caymanians we are versatile athletes - we can SCUBA dive as well as compete in other sports like track. My own personal goal is to set a new Personal Record (PR) for my normal 6.5 race.”
Many thanks for sponsoring Ryan and Brian!
*****