ABOUT US Meet our scuba team!

Merial Currer - President / Currer Enterprises

Merial has been a military dependent all of her life and is very familiar with the lifestyle changes. She prides herself on military family support and has been instrumental in teaching and educating military spouses. Although new to the diving life, she is vastly experienced in managing efficient operations from retail clothing to multiple womens fitness centers. No challenge is too big!

• 30 years of retail experience
• 20+ years of leading, supporting and encouraging military families of all ranks
• Experienced working with military services including family support, MWR, etc.

Jeff Currer - "Skipper"

PADI/HSA Course Director and Director of Training - Patriot Scuba

Executive Director, Patriots for Disabled Divers

Jeff learned to dive in 1982 on Marine Base Kanehoe in Hawaii as a Naval Academy Midshipman. He spent the next 20 years underwater in a nuclear submarine courtesy of the U.S. Navy!

In 2004, both of his sons became interested in diving and Jeff rediscovered his love for the sport. After a series of dives and certifications, Jeff decided that diving and teaching others to dive was his passion. In 2008 he decided to become a PADI Professional and continued on to become an instructor.

Believing that everyone should see and enjoy the other two-thirds of the planet that lies underwater, he tries to show everyone how easy and relaxing diving can be. His dream dive is in the Galapagos Islands and he would love for you to join him!

• Handicapped Scuba Association (HSA) Course Director
• PADI Master Instructor
• EFR Instructor Trainer
• Enriched Air Instructor
• Digital Underwater Photography Instructor
• DPV Instructor
• Dry Suit Instructor
• Deep Diver Instructor
• Shark Conservation Specialty Instructor
• Drift Diver Instructor
• Boat Diver Instructor
• Side Mount Diver Instructor
• Night Diver 
• PADI O2
• PADI Wreck Diver
• Adaptive Diver 
• Full Face Mask Instructor
• Reef Fish ID
• Shark Conservation Instructor

Store Associate and Assistant Repair Department Manager

Military and Veteran Programs Lead

Roger has a passion for exploration and search and recovery.  A military medic, Roger is always ready to help!

Patriot Scuba Life Consultant/Project Aware Lead/Divemaster Candidate

Dessie Larson grew up in a traveling household, traveling all over the world. Through this she developed her love for culture, family, and this big ball we call Earth. She joined the Air Force and gained a new family and culture. Though she traveled all over the land parts of this world there was one part she was missing....the OCEAN!

Patriot Scuba Travel Specialist

Dive Life Consultant

Dive Life Consultant

Assistant Project Aware Coordinator

PADI/HSA Course Director and Director of Training - Patriot Scuba

Executive Director, Patriots for Disabled Divers

Jeff learned to dive in 1982 on Marine Base Kanehoe in Hawaii as a Naval Academy Midshipman. He spent the next 20 years underwater in a nuclear submarine courtesy of the U.S. Navy!

In 2004, both of his sons became interested in diving and Jeff rediscovered his love for the sport. After a series of dives and certifications, Jeff decided that diving and teaching others to dive was his passion. In 2008 he decided to become a PADI Professional and continued on to become an instructor.

Believing that everyone should see and enjoy the other two-thirds of the planet that lies underwater, he tries to show everyone how easy and relaxing diving can be. His dream dive is in the Galapagos Islands and he would love for you to join him!

• Handicapped Scuba Association (HSA) Course Director
• PADI Master Instructor
• EFR Instructor Trainer
• Enriched Air Instructor
• Digital Underwater Photography Instructor
• DPV Instructor
• Dry Suit Instructor
• Deep Diver Instructor
• Shark Conservation Specialty Instructor
• Drift Diver Instructor
• Boat Diver Instructor
• Side Mount Diver Instructor
• Night Diver 
• PADI O2
• PADI Wreck Diver
• Adaptive Diver 
• Full Face Mask Instructor
• Reef Fish ID
• PADI Self Reliant Diver

PADI IDC Staff Instructor

IDC Staff Instructor

Jeremy's focus is training confident, comfortable divers that maximize their enjoyment and safety in the underwater world while being environmentally aware.  

PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor - 

PADI Open Water Instructor and Specialty Instructor 

Matt is an Army Combat Veteran serving 8½ years active duty service until he was medically retired. In 2011 Matt had his last surgery in which he was able to reestablish his recreational love for outdoor activities. Matt began diving in 2014 through the assistance of Patriots for Disabled Divers (PFDD) and Wounded Warrior Project (WWP).  Matt has since earned his PADI Assistant Instructor rating, Dive Master rating, Master Scuba Diver rating, and is a certified Handicapped Scuba Association (HSA) dive buddy along many other dive certifications. The feeling of peace and wholeness just below the water, after being very seriously injured in combat while in Iraq, is very liberating to him. Matt is currently working towards becoming a PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor. Matt is excited to be involved with Patriot Scuba and is eager to continue to share his passion, the liberating freedom of the water from physical and mental injuries, and the love for the underwater world with others!

PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor/EFR Instructor

Brent learned to dive as a dependent through a Morale, Welfare, and Recreation (MWR) program at Lake Chiemsee in Germany in 1984.  He followed that up with an advanced open water course in Puget Sound and Seattle while at the University of Washington in 1985.  A decade later in 1994, and now a Naval Aviator, he began diving again during Navy port calls in Hawaii and followed that with dives in the Florida Keys and Australia.  His Navy career and growing family created another hiatus and then in 2013 when getting his 3 teenage boys open water certified in Florida, the diving bug hit again.  Brent went through Adventure Diver and Advanced Open Water with his boys and then starting working toward more advanced certifications.  In 2015 he finished his Rescue Diver certification and then decided to go PRO.  In 2016, Brent earned his Divemaster, Assistant Instructor, and Open Water Scuba Instructor certifications.  Sometime in there, he also worked in his final recreational certification of Master Scuba Diver.  Now he is working on his instructor specialities.

Brent is passionate about diving, preserving our marine and natural resources for future generations, and opening the world of Scuba up to his fellow Veterans and their families.  Brent is happy and proud to be a part of the Patriot Scuba family!

PRO:

Open Water Scuba Instructor

Assistant Instructor

Divemaster

Emergency First Response Instructor

Peak Performance Buoyancy Instructor

Project Aware Instructor

AWARE Coral Reef Conservation Specialty Instructor

PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor:

Jeff started diving in the summer of 2010 after returning from a snorkeling trip in Key West, Florida with his wife. Not being satisfied with just seeing the marine life from the surface, he received his Open Water Certification in August 2010,so he could be closer to the wonderful things that can be discovered under the water. After continuing on to Advanced Open Water, and Rescue Diver, and completing several specialties, he received his Master Scuba Diver Certification in February of 2012. The desire to show others the joy he finds in Scuba Diving, he started his journey on the professional teaching track and has not looked back. Jeff
received his Dive Master Certification in January of 2014, and became an Assistant Instructor in November of 2014. He loves being in the water with anyone that wants to learn the amazing activity of SCUBA diving and just being in the water, exploring what lies below the surface. LETS GO DIVING!!

PADI OWSI

PADI Open Water Instructor/HSA DM/EFR Instructor -

I have felt at home in and around water since childhood.  In 1994, while stationed in Panama with the Army, I did my first dive and was immediately captivated by the experience- the beauty, the tranquility, being one with the undersea world.   I felt at peace and once again at home, and I knew it was where I belonged.  I also knew that I wanted to share that passion with others in helping them discover the joy and freedom of diving.  I enjoyed extensive dive time during that period and started on the path toward Divemaster certification.  However, due to my career, I wound up on a long hiatus from the water.  In 2012, I re-embarked on my certification journey via Patriot Scuba.  Initially I became an HSA-Certified Dive Buddy so that I could work with wounded warriors and others with disabilities.  It has been a privilege working with such individuals, and I have been truly inspired by their bravery and determination in overcoming their challenges to obtain certification.  I became a Divemaster in August of 2015 and am proud to be a part of the Patriot Scuba family. 

PADi Open Water Scuba Instructor

PADI Open Water Instructor and Specialty Instructor

PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor -

Zach Curran was born and raised in the East Bay of California and joined the Marines in 2004. Through his time in the Corps, he was certified as a Marine Corps Instructor of Water Survival, ARC Lifeguard and Lifeguard Instructor, and received his PADI Open Water Certification in Okinawa, Japan. Zach has a passion for diving and a love for sharing the underwater world through pictures and instructing.  Traffic, School Zones, and humidity is way better underwater!

IDC Staff Instructor

My name is Chris Maser and I grew up in Ft Lauderdale, Florida. I earned my Open Water Certificate in the summer of '87 and my Advanced Open Water the following year. Growing up in Florida was a blast! As you can imagine, I was able to dive all the time. As a teenager, my friends and I would find remote camp sites throughout the Florida Keys and spend every weekend diving, especially during Lobster Season. 

As I got older and moved away from Florida, opportunities to dive became less but, the locations got much better. Having a career in the Marine Corps allowed me the opportunity to dive all over the world. In 2008 I settled here in the Northern Virginia area and I decided to advance myself in the sport that has brought me so much joy for so long. Though I had never really quit diving I decided to take a Refresher course and went directly into the next available Rescue Course, then Dive Master, and Assistant Instructor. I attended the Instructor Development Course and became an Open Water Instructor here through Patriot Scuba in 2013.

As an instructor I have been able to share my passion for this sport. I also get to relive the amazement I felt, through every new diver, as they take that first breath "Underwater"... 

If you're ready, then "Let's Dive"!

"They have seen the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep." Ps 107:24

Bob Taradash - PADI Open Water Scuba Instructor

PADI Divemaster and Travel Expert

Dive, Travel...Travel, Dive...Awesome!

PADI Divemaster

Andrew has always had a passion for adventure. He began diving at 13 and instantly fell in love with the sport. It was this passion for diving and the ocean that drove him to the University of Tampa to get a degree in Marine science. Andrew is currently working on his master’s degree in marine science and hopes to educate others on the importance of conservation and sustainability.

PADi Divemaster/DSD Leader:

As a native Floridian, I developed an early love of the water, but it wasn't until I joined the Navy and settled in Washington, DC that I decided to explore the underwater world. Since becoming an Open Water Diver in 2007, I've seized every chance I've had to dive the warm waters of the Caribbean. There is nothing better than drifting over a spectacular spectrum of color and marine life, with surface intervals on some of the world's most beautiful sun-drenched beaches. But no matter the dive site, I believe one of diving's greatest benefits is its culture of inclusiveness and camaraderie.

Over the years, I've embraced the opportunity to undertake advanced PADI certifications and specialty courses - they've made me a better diver and a better dive buddy while keeping me engaged in a diverse community of like-minded enthusiasts. I finally made the leap in 2013 to become a PADI Divemaster, a thrilling endeavor that challenged me to find my own voice as an ambassador of the sport. I feel privileged to help introduce others to the wondrous adventures that lie beneath the surface. Sharing my dive adventures with friends and family makes diving an incredibly enriching activity.

• Divemaster

PADI Divemaster/DSD Leader

Caroline is a passionate, skilled and experienced PADI Pro.  She wants to explore the world and take you with her!  An avid traveler, ask her about her last and her next planned adventure!

PADI Dive Master

PADI Divemaster:

Veronica has been diving for 18 years. She is interested in underwater photography, dive medicine, and the use of scuba diving to treat post traumatic stress disorder. She is currently working on a research project with whale neuroscientists to try to understand marine mammal emotional states. Her favorite dive locations include the Silfra fissure in Iceland, Lanai island, and Bimini.