Board of Directors
Mike Racine - President
Mike
retired from Onyx Software in 2001 as Executive Vice President in charge
of Services. He was a founding equity owner at Onyx and served there
from its organization in 1994. As a member of the executive team during
that time, Mike helped lead and grow the company from 4 to 725 employees
and $0 to $120 million in revenue. At its peak, Mike oversaw a services
organization of $50 million in revenue and 225 employees. The service
groups at Onyx included system integration, technical support, education,
information systems, and facilities.
Prior to Onyx, Mike played various project management roles at Microsoft Corporation in their IT organization. Projects focused on development of internal business systems in the areas of email, helpdesk call tracking, and sales consolidation, reconciliation, & reporting.
Mike
holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Rangeland Management from Utah
State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from
the University of Oregon. In addition to his role at Pacific Northwest
Aquatic Association, Mike serves on the board of directors at the Cascade
Land Conservancy in Seattle.
He is 48 and the husband of Wendi and father of Madeline.
James Trask - Vice President
James E. Trask
Current Occupation: Cashier
Retired First Sergeant – U.S. Army, 25-years
Chairman – Marine Advisory Council, Metropolitan Parks of Tacoma, 2 years
President – Pacific Northwest Aquatic Association, 4 years
Manager – Boeing Aerospace Company, 19 years
Education: AA degree in Criminal Justice, Certifications in Project Management, Applied Economics, Computer Applications, Business Management and Lean Manufacturing. Diver since 1998, Advanced Open Water Certification
Position in WSA requested: President and or Executive Director of Operations
I will bring to this organization the ability to create a teaming environment which will allow it to move forward as the leading dive organization in the Northwest. I will do everything needed for “Enhancing our Waters for Divers”.
Karlista Rickerson - Treasurer
Avid
scuba diver specializing in sites near Vashon Island and the mid Puget
Sound region for the past 20 years. No special skills related to marine
science other than a photo record of the changes that have taken place
in various sites.
Currently Treasurer of Washington Scuba Alliance, an organization that has worked with Washington State Parks to try and refurbish some of the "old" artificial reef sites put in place by the Washington State Dept of Fish and wildlife.
Very interested in establishing MPA, safe places for scuba divers and marine life, maintaining safe beach access for the public, and helping with marine life educational events.
Geoff Pentz
First certified in Ventura California in 1969; Geoff has been an active diver since that first dive off Santa Cruz Island. He was certified in 1987 as a NAUI instructor in Bremerton, Washington. A year later he was hired by NAUI as part of HQ field staff as the North Pacific Branch Manager, which he did for 3 years. Geoff purchased Sound Dive Center in 1991; 1 1/2 years later he installed the areas first Nitrox system and taught ANDI nitrox programs. He introduced rebreather diving to the recreation divers when the Dragger Dolphin became available several years later, teaching and certifying divers through TDI.
Geoff holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Evergreen State College, is a NAUI Instructor Trainer/Course Director and a past instructor/trainer for Red Cross WSI, Lifeguarding and Canoe/Kayaking. He has certified TDI instructors in Nitrox and Dolphin Rebreathers.
Geoff and his wife own Sound Dive Center in Bremerton Washington, certifying divers in PADI, NAUI, SDI/TDI and Dan Courses. They own the rights to develop Reefballs in the northwest. He and his wife Betsy have 6 children. Geoff, at age 53, is a retired Aquatic Director from the Central Kitsap School District in Silverdale, in 2001.
Goals for WSA include development of UW reefs in State, City, and County Parks and establishing a complete UW Trail and artificial reef system through out the state. He supports the sinking of ships for diver recreation with eco-appropriate methods.
Mike Cooper
I have been diving since 1986. I am qualified as both a recreational and technical diver. I am a PADI scuba diving instructor. I am a member of the leadership team for the Washington Ships2Reefs efforts. I am also a volunteer with SCORE, which is associated with the Small Business Association, and also TaxAide, which is sponsored by AARP.
Rick Myers
I have been in the dive business since 1974, first as a commercial diver (10 years) and also managing a dive harvest fleet. I have had my 100 ton Captains Lisc. for 19 years and started Bandito Charters Inc. in January of 1997. Since then I have operated the charter business full time. I have worked retail in the dive industry and have taught diving from 1993-2001 @ Pacific Lutheran University, University of Puget Sound and Curtis High School and Underwater Sports. Between 1988 and 1996 I owned and operated a drywall and painting company with between 15 and 50 employees.
Janna Nichols
Janna Nichols is a scuba instructor focusing on Marine Life Education. As a volunteer for the
REEF organization she has conducted over 300 marine life surveys in
various parts of the world, manages the local REEF organization's website
and email list to over 500 local divers. She has spoken to many NW dive
clubs about marine life and teaches at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. She
has also taught Fish and Invertebrate ID classes for the SeaDoc Society,
Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group and Puget Sound Action Team at the
Port Townsend Marine Science Center, the Seattle Aquarium, and various
other locations throughout the northwest. She is currently involved
with the invasive tunicate problems in Washington state, and helping
with the low dissolved oxygen problem in Hood Canal.
One of her favorite activities is photographing Pacific NW Fish and Invertebrate life and she has shot and cataloged well over 3000 photos, which she shares with local marine life educators as well as being a collaborator with the worldwide FishBase online. She also serves as Washington State University's Dive Safety Officer for their scientific diving program in Vancouver.
She holds a BS in Engineering Technology from Brigham Young University and is a native Washingtonian who enjoys diving, camping, bicycling, motorcycling, snowshoeing, geocaching, her family and grandchildren, and has her own website design business.
Ships to Reefs Committee:
J.D. Rowe
JD
is an active diver who started diving 25 years too late! He's been diving
since 97 and has done over 2000 dives locally and internationally. He's
a PADI Dive Master and he is an active member of the local dive community.
He is one of the co-leaders of the effort to establish and maintain
the boundary line and buoys at Seacrest. This boundary line was the
result of working with the City of Seattle to keep the coves open to
diving. We have been working and maintaining this volunteer effort at
Seacrest since early 2000. The Seacrest coves now have surface buoys,
a diver shower, stairs, and we have established a good working relationship
with the City.
Giving something back to a sport he loves is what keeps him involved and active. Over 150 of his dives have been work dives at one site or another in the Sound. He has been an Edmonds Underwater Park volunteer since 97, and spends much of his spare time working on the park. He donates his time, money and efforts there on a regular basis.
He's the President of the Boeing Sea Horse Dive Club and has held most of the positions on the Executive Board at one time or another. He dives extensively in warm and cold water including Fiji, Cozumel, Roatan, Bonaire, Port Hardy, Campbell River, Barkley Sound, Neah Bay, etc. He has over 40 dives on the ARSBC ships sunk in British Columbia as artificial reefs. He is an avid (obsessive?) underwater photographer and if he's not working underwater he is taking photos.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Manufacturing Engineering Technology from Pittsburg State University and has worked in the Aerospace industry for the last 18 years. He is a lead on a section of a revolutionary new commercial airplane program. His above water hobbies include welding, fabrication, boating, machining and Imagineering.
The S2R effort is vital to the future of diving in Washington State. We are losing dive sites in Puget Sound due to many reasons; sedimentation, progress, deterioration, pollution control, access, etc.
We need to sink a ship in Washington State for diver recreation. No other reason, not for tourism dollars, fish habitat, equipment sales, dive charters, etc., just for scuba recreation. All the other benefits are simply icing on the cake once we place a vessel. It's time to make a positive move for the diving community and sink a properly prepared ship or better yet, a series of ships.
Mike Racine - President
Mike
retired from Onyx Software in 2001 as Executive Vice President in charge
of Services. He was a founding equity owner at Onyx and served there
from its organization in 1994. As a member of the executive team during
that time, Mike helped lead and grow the company from 4 to 725 employees
and $0 to $120 million in revenue. At its peak, Mike oversaw a services
organization of $50 million in revenue and 225 employees. The service
groups at Onyx included system integration, technical support, education,
information systems, and facilities.Prior to Onyx, Mike played various project management roles at Microsoft Corporation in their IT organization. Projects focused on development of internal business systems in the areas of email, helpdesk call tracking, and sales consolidation, reconciliation, & reporting.
Mike
holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Rangeland Management from Utah
State University and a Master of Business Administration degree from
the University of Oregon. In addition to his role at Pacific Northwest
Aquatic Association, Mike serves on the board of directors at the Cascade
Land Conservancy in Seattle.He is 48 and the husband of Wendi and father of Madeline.
James Trask - Vice President
James E. TraskCurrent Occupation: Cashier
Retired First Sergeant – U.S. Army, 25-years
Chairman – Marine Advisory Council, Metropolitan Parks of Tacoma, 2 years
President – Pacific Northwest Aquatic Association, 4 years
Manager – Boeing Aerospace Company, 19 years
Education: AA degree in Criminal Justice, Certifications in Project Management, Applied Economics, Computer Applications, Business Management and Lean Manufacturing. Diver since 1998, Advanced Open Water Certification
Position in WSA requested: President and or Executive Director of Operations
I will bring to this organization the ability to create a teaming environment which will allow it to move forward as the leading dive organization in the Northwest. I will do everything needed for “Enhancing our Waters for Divers”.
Karlista Rickerson - Treasurer
Avid
scuba diver specializing in sites near Vashon Island and the mid Puget
Sound region for the past 20 years. No special skills related to marine
science other than a photo record of the changes that have taken place
in various sites.Currently Treasurer of Washington Scuba Alliance, an organization that has worked with Washington State Parks to try and refurbish some of the "old" artificial reef sites put in place by the Washington State Dept of Fish and wildlife.
Very interested in establishing MPA, safe places for scuba divers and marine life, maintaining safe beach access for the public, and helping with marine life educational events.
Geoff Pentz
First certified in Ventura California in 1969; Geoff has been an active diver since that first dive off Santa Cruz Island. He was certified in 1987 as a NAUI instructor in Bremerton, Washington. A year later he was hired by NAUI as part of HQ field staff as the North Pacific Branch Manager, which he did for 3 years. Geoff purchased Sound Dive Center in 1991; 1 1/2 years later he installed the areas first Nitrox system and taught ANDI nitrox programs. He introduced rebreather diving to the recreation divers when the Dragger Dolphin became available several years later, teaching and certifying divers through TDI.Geoff holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from Evergreen State College, is a NAUI Instructor Trainer/Course Director and a past instructor/trainer for Red Cross WSI, Lifeguarding and Canoe/Kayaking. He has certified TDI instructors in Nitrox and Dolphin Rebreathers.
Geoff and his wife own Sound Dive Center in Bremerton Washington, certifying divers in PADI, NAUI, SDI/TDI and Dan Courses. They own the rights to develop Reefballs in the northwest. He and his wife Betsy have 6 children. Geoff, at age 53, is a retired Aquatic Director from the Central Kitsap School District in Silverdale, in 2001.
Goals for WSA include development of UW reefs in State, City, and County Parks and establishing a complete UW Trail and artificial reef system through out the state. He supports the sinking of ships for diver recreation with eco-appropriate methods.
Mike Cooper
I have been diving since 1986. I am qualified as both a recreational and technical diver. I am a PADI scuba diving instructor. I am a member of the leadership team for the Washington Ships2Reefs efforts. I am also a volunteer with SCORE, which is associated with the Small Business Association, and also TaxAide, which is sponsored by AARP.
Rick Myers
I have been in the dive business since 1974, first as a commercial diver (10 years) and also managing a dive harvest fleet. I have had my 100 ton Captains Lisc. for 19 years and started Bandito Charters Inc. in January of 1997. Since then I have operated the charter business full time. I have worked retail in the dive industry and have taught diving from 1993-2001 @ Pacific Lutheran University, University of Puget Sound and Curtis High School and Underwater Sports. Between 1988 and 1996 I owned and operated a drywall and painting company with between 15 and 50 employees.
Janna Nichols
Janna Nichols is a scuba instructor focusing on Marine Life Education. As a volunteer for the
REEF organization she has conducted over 300 marine life surveys in
various parts of the world, manages the local REEF organization's website
and email list to over 500 local divers. She has spoken to many NW dive
clubs about marine life and teaches at the Oregon Coast Aquarium. She
has also taught Fish and Invertebrate ID classes for the SeaDoc Society,
Hood Canal Salmon Enhancement Group and Puget Sound Action Team at the
Port Townsend Marine Science Center, the Seattle Aquarium, and various
other locations throughout the northwest. She is currently involved
with the invasive tunicate problems in Washington state, and helping
with the low dissolved oxygen problem in Hood Canal.One of her favorite activities is photographing Pacific NW Fish and Invertebrate life and she has shot and cataloged well over 3000 photos, which she shares with local marine life educators as well as being a collaborator with the worldwide FishBase online. She also serves as Washington State University's Dive Safety Officer for their scientific diving program in Vancouver.
She holds a BS in Engineering Technology from Brigham Young University and is a native Washingtonian who enjoys diving, camping, bicycling, motorcycling, snowshoeing, geocaching, her family and grandchildren, and has her own website design business.
Ships to Reefs Committee:
J.D. Rowe
JD
is an active diver who started diving 25 years too late! He's been diving
since 97 and has done over 2000 dives locally and internationally. He's
a PADI Dive Master and he is an active member of the local dive community.
He is one of the co-leaders of the effort to establish and maintain
the boundary line and buoys at Seacrest. This boundary line was the
result of working with the City of Seattle to keep the coves open to
diving. We have been working and maintaining this volunteer effort at
Seacrest since early 2000. The Seacrest coves now have surface buoys,
a diver shower, stairs, and we have established a good working relationship
with the City.Giving something back to a sport he loves is what keeps him involved and active. Over 150 of his dives have been work dives at one site or another in the Sound. He has been an Edmonds Underwater Park volunteer since 97, and spends much of his spare time working on the park. He donates his time, money and efforts there on a regular basis.
He's the President of the Boeing Sea Horse Dive Club and has held most of the positions on the Executive Board at one time or another. He dives extensively in warm and cold water including Fiji, Cozumel, Roatan, Bonaire, Port Hardy, Campbell River, Barkley Sound, Neah Bay, etc. He has over 40 dives on the ARSBC ships sunk in British Columbia as artificial reefs. He is an avid (obsessive?) underwater photographer and if he's not working underwater he is taking photos.
He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Manufacturing Engineering Technology from Pittsburg State University and has worked in the Aerospace industry for the last 18 years. He is a lead on a section of a revolutionary new commercial airplane program. His above water hobbies include welding, fabrication, boating, machining and Imagineering.
The S2R effort is vital to the future of diving in Washington State. We are losing dive sites in Puget Sound due to many reasons; sedimentation, progress, deterioration, pollution control, access, etc.
We need to sink a ship in Washington State for diver recreation. No other reason, not for tourism dollars, fish habitat, equipment sales, dive charters, etc., just for scuba recreation. All the other benefits are simply icing on the cake once we place a vessel. It's time to make a positive move for the diving community and sink a properly prepared ship or better yet, a series of ships.