Dear Carlton,

It is hard to be an aspiring Marine Biologist when you live in the Mid-West. Such is the case with my daughter, Claire Levine. For several years we had discussed her going away to get some hands on, real world experience in the field that she feels very passionate about. About 2 winters ago she began exploring programs on the Internet and sending away for brochures. Broadreach percolated right to the top as her organization of choice. I remained skeptical at first, as Mothers do, but upon examining all the information on-line and in print, I agreed to look into it. I called your office and had most of my questions immediately answered and got a list of parents of previous participants to talk to. All of these were very positive and re-assuring experiences; as were the timely updates on logistics that I frequently received via e-mail. I was pretty confident that the trip would go smoothly when I put Claire on the plane early on one June morning.

The trip that she took (GV12) was better than Claire could have imagined while watching old Jacques Cousteau videos or too many Sponge Bob Square Pants episodes. She had taken her Open Water certification course here at home and the open water dives were in an old quarry just outside of Birmingham, Alabama where the underwater objects of interest were an old school bus and a fire engine!!!!! She was more than pleased with the amount and quality of diving on her Broadreach trip. She was able to get certified in all of the specialties that she thought were important and earn her Rescue Diver certificate. She loved the way Kristin and Daniel and Matt taught the diving classes and their enthusiasm about using the new skills. She returned to Memphis very confident about further explorations in the new field. Diving is now one of her “things”, something that she will always do. The marine life of the deep and the visit to Brother King’s Turtle Sanctuary expanded Claire’s intellectual interests. She is now actively searching for colleges with academic programs in marine science as well as near-by diving opportunities. I have to say that the whole experience has made her more focused and disciplined in all aspects of her life. Plus, she has wonderful memories to share with her family and her compatriots on the trip. Each time we see a tropical scene in a photo or on TV we are treated to another great Broadreach story. It really was a “mind broadening” experience.

I thank all of the Broadreach office staff for making logistics and planning of this trip so straightforward and non-worrisome. And I commend Claire’s counselors, Daniel Alchin, Kristen Bell and Matt Denny for teaching her some great new skills and providing her with a piece of her dream this summer. They also did a great job taking care of her when she was sick for a few days; she got better very quickly. In the Present Economic Climate I had wondered if such an adventure would be a frivolous waste of time and hard-earned money. It was not. My child returned jubilant, enlightened, and inspired – priceless.

Thank you again for the wonderful adventure.
— Margaret I. Dube´
Aka Claire Levine’s Mom