Ocean hero
In December 2010 Katie Sheline ’13 and I were at sea in the Gulf of Mexico examining the impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Disaster oil spill on the seafloor (see earlier posts). When we stepped onboard ship, Katie became very excited and I wasn’t sure why. The smell of simple green? The autonomous underwater vehicle Sentry? The deep submergence vehicle Alvin? The endless delicious food from the Galley? The famous scientists? No, none of these. Even though all of these at some point would provide many exciting moments for us during the cruise, there was a huge grin on Katie’s face for a different reason. Onboard ship accompanying us on our expedition was as Katie put it, “The guy from shark week!” This guy, was Mike DeGruy, filmmaker, underwater adventurer, ocean crusader and as we learned throughout the cruise, amazingly friendly, knowledgeable and all round wonderful human. Sadly, Mike is no longer with us. This is a huge loss for all who knew him and I send my thoughts and condolences to his family. Being at sea with Mike for 10 days, was an incredible experience. I have loved the oceans for as long as I can remember, but his passion for the oceans was infectious and inspiring. I am fortunate to have met Mike. We are all fortunate that he has left us with such beautiful images from the murky depths. You can see more here and hear Mike talk here.
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- Mike & Alvin by Bruce Strickrott
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- Mike & Katie
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- Mike filming
