Food

January 23, 2017 by Eric Keibler

OVI Staff Party

It was a very busy holiday season this year. Several years ago, we decided to quit competing with all of the other holiday parties and scheduled our Staff Holiday Party in January. Well, the tradition has remained and like in those previous years, we had our Annual holiday staff party in January. Since it is a modified pot-luck too, we get to find out how our staff cook (or don’t) and we get to have fun as a family (yes, family members are invited). Part of the evening included a gift exchange that becomes a little competitive because you can steal gifts already opened.
It is also a time to reconnect with staff members who you may not get to see very often. Alex Witishey and Scuba Steve Soulen came over to join in the festivities. In fact we st around later with Zaide Scheib and Ann and talked, smoked cigars remembering the fun we had and the things that are coming up this year.
I want to thank all of our staff for their help and commitment this past year. We are hear because of them (as well as our clients). Here are some photographs from the staff party…

Did I mention that I don’t like to have my picture taken?

These are not the droids you are looking for, Jedi business, move along

November 14, 2015 by Eric Keibler

Oceanic Ventures Celebrates 25 Years and Scuba Divers Give to Charity

Oh, what a night… not December 1963 but November 10, 2015. A large group of divers descended on Paul’s Kitchen to help celebrate our 25^th Anniversary and to support the Oceanic Ventures Foundation which raised almost $15,000 for the charity.

The Dinner for Scuba Divers

Imagine beginning your evening with a Rum Cocktail or a Glass of wine. That is precisely what happened thanks to Don Q Rums and Ste Michelle Wine Estates who helped to sponsor the party and the first beverage of the evening. During the social hour, the guests greeted one another and exchanged diving stories, talking about the places they had been and where they were going next. At the same time, they were looking through the silent auction which had some really amazing items donated by a variety of clients and vendors including some great travel destinations from Fiji, Cozumel and Grand Cayman.

Chef Paul Lewis, prepared an exceptional meal featuring a salad of local greens, along with a grilled steak or pan seared chicken breast or a mushroom pappardelle and their famous buttermilk drop biscuits and a trio of miniature desserts. Accompanying the meal was a 2013 Cabernet Sauvignon or a 2014 Chardonnay both from Seven Falls Cellars or a Don Q Rum infused Mai Tai. This was not banquet food but rather individually prepared plates served by a very attentive staff in the same manner as they serve a similar four top table. During dinner diners were entertained by Amin Safari playing on the patio. (Rumor has it, a number of divers are going to gather on the patio in the near future to hear them again.)

The Spirit of Scuba Diving Award

As dinner came to an end Dive Mom introduced the new Spirit of Diving Award. The recipient of the award truly embodies the spirit of diving. Having just returned from a two-week tour of the “stans” (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan) she was heard to say “it was nice but it was just not a dive trip, I want to go scuba diving! I loooove diving” During her first year as a certified diver she fell in love with diving and completed one-hundred (100) dives including a lot of diving in the local lakes in the winter (a.k.a. dry suit scuba diving). She continued that trend achieving her 300^th dive, in her third year of diving, in Komodo Indonesia. If you ask her she will tell you “I just love diving!” She is always excited about learning new things, trying new equipment and challenging herself to learn more. She even has a diving sticker on her motorcycle helmet. This year’s recipient is Susan Long.

The Silent Charity Auction

The cocktail hour also saw the opening of the Silent Charity Auction benefiting the Oceanic Ventures Foundation a 501 (c)(3) organization. The items in the auction varied from Rum to a complete garden makeover and included such things as handicrafts from Ecuador and Fiji to Jewelry and luggage. The divers were very generous to the charity even contributing directly to helping promote eco-education in Cozumel, sending books to Utila, purchasing bikes for the Bonaventure Boys Home in Grand Cayman, and uniforms and books for schoolchildren in Fiji at the Holy Cross School in Wariki.

The Sponsors and Supporters for the Evening

OVI25thanniversary-212 — David Morris with Don Q Rums and Serrales Brands USA , with his Wife Jamie and Ann Keibler

The dinner was generously underwritten by Oceanic Ventures, Inc., Don Q Rums (a part of Serrallas USA) and Ste Michelle Wine Estates. Along with the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism and DUI, each recipient received a gift bag which included a $25.00 Gift Certificate from Oceanic Ventures, a bottle of Rum from Don Q Rums, a pen from the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism and a OMS Light Pouch from Diving Unlimited International all contained in a jet black bag from Don Q Rums.

The groups of supporters for the Silent Auction were varied and the items were really fun. The donors were; Amanda Kingston Beetle, Ann and Scuba Steve Brennan, Bess Bright, Judge Katherine Cabaniss, Christine and Jesse Cancelmo and Cancelmo Photography, Cayman Islands Department of Tourism, DiveTech Grand Cayman, Don Q Rums, Michael Duskin, Nancy and Jay Easterbrook, Kim Ellis, LLC, Lee Emerson, Dawnell and Greg Gebhardt, Joseph Henry, LLC, Java Pura, LLC, Barbara and Steve Jurbala, Ann and Eric Keibler, Kettle One Vodka, Jamie and David Morris, Nail Care by Kim, Oceanic Ventures, Inc., Paul’s Kitchen, El Presidenté Intercontinental Cozumel, Walter Rominica & Seven Fathoms Rums, Sau Bay Fiji Retreat, Sea & Sea Photographic Products, Zaide Scheib, ShredTex, Sweetwater Pool & Patio, Westside Tennis Club, Cheryl White and Avalon Realty, Yiling Massage Therapy

Photographs from the Event

You can see all of the photographs from the event by going to this page!

Twenty-Five Years of People and Adventures – The Video

October 26, 2015 by Eric Keibler

Scuba Diving Party – 25th Anniversary Party

25th Anniversary Scuba Party Ticket — Tickets for the Anniversary Party

It is hard for me to believe but Oceanic Ventures is about to celebrate its twenty-fifth year in business. It only seems like a few years ago when we moved into our small office and started introducing people to scuba in an all new way.

Oceanic Ventures Scuba Diving and Adventure Staff in 1998 and the Facility before the Expansion

Our concept, which is the same today, is that instead of a large impersonal store, Scuba divers would appreciate more of a “boutique” where classes are taught in a casual friendly manner in a classroom that resembles your living room more than a classroom. Of course we have grown a lot since that early day in December but our dedication to our clients has remained the same.
Over those years, we have taught a lot of students from four year-old to seventy-six year-old snorkelers and divers; and, we have begun training the third generation of scuba divers, snorkelers and free-divers. We have expanded our course offerings from recreational scuba diving to technical diving, rebreather diving along with wreck and cave diving. However, we have never forgotten how much fun it is introducing people to the world underneath the surface.
But enough about history. David Morris and Joe Henry both said “we need to have a party to celebrate 25 years in business.” While Dive Mom thought it might be more appropriate to do one in the new year after we have survived the 25th year, but the boys prevailed and on the 12th of November we are hosting a big birthday celebration in honour or our 25th year in business.
We have a fun party planned at Paul’s Kitchen with dinner, story telling and photos from some of those first twenty-five years. Because the proceeds of the dinner will be going to the Oceanic Ventures Foundation, we will be having a silent auction that evening. So far our Auction Chairman, Joe Henry and Ann have collected about thirty items and they are just getting started. You will find things like dive trips to Cozumel, golf outings, liquor and food baskets, jewelry, and items from around the world. And, they are not done yet collecting things yet.
The party will be a ticketed event and your ticket will include admission to the party, a welcome cocktail, a steak, chicken or vegetarian dinner and dessert as well as a special gift bag with treats including a $25.00 Gift Card from Oceanic Ventures, and other items Cayman Island Department of Tourism, Don Q Rums and more!
We hope that everyone, including some of our early supporters will be there with us to celebrate twenty-five years in the adventure business. You may purchase your tickets by calling the store or going to our new on-line shopping site here.

June 19, 2015 by Eric Keibler

Scuba Diving, Wine and Steaks at the Lake

Remember, diving in Texas is a barbecue interrupted by diving.

I like to say diving in Texas is a barbecue interrupted by diving. This works well for me because I love to cook and eat in addition to diving. Several years ago our rebreather and technical clients wanted to head out to the lake for a practice session. They are a fun group pf divers and love diving and wine as much as I do so we came up with our own diving event — “Wine and Steaks at the Lake.” Wine and steaks were part of the theme that first year but are not a requirement. In fact, we have several vegetarians who join us every year so even the consumption of steaks is not a required nor us the wine.
Over the years, the scuba divers participating have changed and we have both our technical divers and recreational scuba divers joining us for the outing. The real purpose is to go diving and practice skills including buoyancy control and navigation. There is no set plan other than you have to finish diving before any wine.
If you want some help in deciding how to focus your dive send me an email message and I will send you some skills to try in the lagoon. If you need a buddy, no problem; we will find you a buddy up at the lake (just remember to that diving will be winding down around 12:00).
Join us for a fun day of diving and dining as we have our Wine and Steaks at the Lake event. Everyone in welcome whether you are a technical diver or a recreational diver. We will be diving at 9:00 AM and then the grills will fire up at around 12:00 just in time to grill your favorite meat or vegetable Bring your own main course and something to share or have Eric bring you a steak with his own special rub (call Ann for details). The Blue Lagoon closes at 6:00 so you will be home in plenty of time to clean your equipment.

Please come and go diving!

Where: Beautiful Blue Lagoon
When: Sunday 28, June 2015
Time: 9:00 AM
What to bring: Your total diving system (diving equipment, cylinders, weight), meat, chicken or vegetable to grill, a side to share, your own beverages (water, wine, iced tea, etc)
Special: If you would like me to bring you a special steak, send me a note or let Dive Mom know. (The cost is $20.00)

November 14, 2013 by Eric Keibler

The Holidays are Coming for Scuba Divers

Wow, it has been a busy month here at Oceanic Ventures this month and it is not even half-way over.

Our charity event, A Night in Old Havana, was a great success. We grossed over $8,000 for the Oceanic Ventures Foundation which was set-up to donate money and products to the places we visit as scuba divers. The event itself was based around an old McNamara family photograph (yes, I really am Irish). Sheridan, the professional Mixologist from Don Q Rums, served up very special cocktails while Ashton kept the trays of food rolling from the kitchen. Zaide and Alex helped serve the treats as did Ann and Eric. There is no way we can ever thank all of the people who helped up pull this event off, but we will try. We would like to especially thank Bob and Joyce Hoover, Ashton Arsement, Zaide Scheib, Jeremy Eich, Rosemary Keibler, Steve Soulen, Steve Jurbala and Joel Hershey. We also want to thank our sponsors Don Q Rums, Cobalt Coast Resort, Dive Tech Grand Cayman and Tusa. We also received some extra special gifts from Jim Turley and Lee Emerson. You should check-out all of the photographs from the party. We have posted them on our Facebook page.

Santa also dropped by for some underwater photographs. We had both scuba divers, free divers (snorklers) and just swimmers jump in to have their photos made with Santa Claus. Our favorite elf, Zaide, had a great time posing with Santa. And, we almost made it onto Fox News — the talent, Ruben Dominguez, canceled on us at the last minute and the camera man did not want to film without him. The loss was even harder since Eric, Ann, Alex and Heather, the Activity Coordinator for West University, all had to be at the pool at 6:30 in the morning! But oh well, we still got a few fun photos of Heather with Santa Clause. We want to thank everyone who came out and helpped as well as those who helped us with the event including Travis Hershey, Zaide Scheib, Joel Hershey, Keegan Madden, Alex Witschey and Eric Keibler.

Of course, the specials do not end with these events. The Holidays continue with some other special events including:

There are special pricing and give-a-ways each of these days. You really must read more about them; they will be loads of fun!