Bottom Times: October 2026
For those of you in the club who don’t know me, my name is Rob Marion, pictured here with my family. My daughter Sammy on the left and my wife Lina, holding our dog, Mia.
I had no idea when I woke up on Wednesday, September 16th, I would leave the club meeting later that evening as your new President. I had settled in as the club’s Speaker Seeker and was having fun organizing speakers for our general meetings. All of the Board Members had known for months that we were having trouble finding someone to take the President’s position, since Del was stepping down. It didn’t look like it was going to happen.
It was hard to think about. The club is roaring now. The Board has been hitting on all cylinders with a multitude of events for every kind of diver. Really, what more could you ask for? Well, we were uncertain how it would work if we couldn’t get some leadership. We all knew it.
Then the unexpected happened…I was talking to Mike Cunningham, former President of our club and long-time club member. His plans to leave California have been delayed, and he was considering taking a position on the Board again. I asked him, “Really?” I told him, “If you are, boy have I got a deal for you!” The deal? If he was willing to take on the job of being Speaker Seeker, I would step up and take on the President’s job. I explained that I had quite a few speakers lined up and it should be pretty easy.
At first, he said he better not. I believe he then consulted with his wife, Teresa. He then came up to me and said he’d take the deal. Wow! If that wasn’t enough, Lauren MacDonald took the open Treasurer position and Fahmy, the vet that takes care of our dog Mia, took the Membership position! We have a full Board!
The future of the club is bright. Without any reservations, I will tell you that the current success of the dive club is a direct result of the hard work of our past president, Del Stewart. He had a vision which at first seemed impossible. Low and behold, it has become a reality. We have it all: beach dives, boat dives, and dive vacations outside of the country. We are already working on next years’ schedule and I look forward to presenting it to you. (If you have any ideas, please talk to or email any board member!)
For those of you going to Cozumel, I wish you a great trip! We still have Catalina and Santa Cruz trips to finish up the year. The Refugio BBQ was a lot of fun. If my count is correct, we had about 12 divers. Half went to the left and the other half went to the right. Laurie Hennessey barbecued to perfection with 45 members in attendance. Our Holiday Party December 5th will finish a fantastic year.
So far, 2026 has been a great year for the club. As we begin to see 2027 on the horizon, I’ll do my best as your new President to follow the footsteps of Del in making it an event-filled year!
Your Incoming President,
Rob Marion
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