Giving young divers the tools and skills necessary to navigate the under-water world safely.

Young Diver Safety Sponsorship Program

Board members frequently discuss their desire for North County Depth Finders to become a legacy club. A club that their children and children’s children will be able to proudly represent.

Our core values are safety, sustainability, and selectivity. Depth Finders are encouraged to seek additional dive training.

We also understand that spearfishing and free diving are not cheap sports. New divers are often faced with large financial barriers. Our goal is to provide NCDF club members with the tools and information necessary to meet these core values.

Thus, it’s with excitement that we’re introducing the NCDF Young Diver Safety Sponsorship Program! The purpose of this program is to give young divers the technique and skills they need to navigate the under-water world safely.

Each year we will select one applicant to receive a fully paid-for free-diving course from our partners at Just Get Wet in San Diego. In this course the applicant will learn, among other skills, the physics and physiology of freediving; buddy and rescue procedures; and avoiding potential trauma. In addition, our partners and sponsors donate equipment to outfit the winning applicant.

The applicant must meet the below requirements

· Fully complete and submit the online application prior to the day applicant is selected (week of NCDF Pelagics tournament)

· Must be a paying club member (or legal guardian is a paying club member) at time of application AND at time applicant is selected

· Under the age of 18 and at least 12 years of age on the day the applicant is selected

· Physically capable of completing the class

· Meet the requirements outlined by Just Get Wet

· Have transportation to and from the classroom and to the two open water sessions

Apply here!

Date

MM

DD

YYYY

Name of applicant

First Name

Last Name

Age of applicant

Application prompt

Please write an original paragraph (100 to 300 words) describing why time spent in the ocean is important to you. Applicant will be selected based on their answer.

Name of legal guardian

First Name

Last Name

Email of legal guardian

Are you a club member?

Is your legal guardian a club member?

No part of the above application will be used for anything other than to determine eligibility of applicant for the NCDF Young Diver Safety Sponsorship Program. No information will be repurposed, published, or disclosed without permission of the applicants legal guardian.

2023 Winner

Happy

The ocean is important to me because I can do what I love and be my best self in it. Spearfishing allows me to hunt and shoot fish in their beautiful, blue environment. Afterward, I can take my catch home to eat for dinner, or sometimes, I just make ceviche on the boat. WaterGroms has allowed me to improve my breathe holds so I can hold my breath longer than ever before. Because of that, I shot not only my first, but also my second sheepshead! The ocean provided its best and I was able to take it with pleasure! The ocean also lets me surf its sparkling waves competitively. I am excited to currently be ranked 3rd in my division in the WSA. The ocean continuously challenges me as it gives me numerous opportunities to have super fun on top of the waves and down below under them.