Houston's Premier Scuba and Dive Shop Oceanic Ventures Inc.

(713) 523-3483 (dive)
5808 Newcastle Drive
Houston, TX 77401

Social Activities

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Next Club Aquarius Social Club – New Technology in Packing and Travel

Scuba Diver and Adventure Traveler Sean Marmion
Diver and Adventure Traveler Sean Marmion (On the Left)
“OMG, you want how much for an extra bag?” The increased fees and draconian rules from the world’s airline carriers is requiring travelers to travel smarter.  Come learn how to reduce your travel stress by applying some new technologies to your travels. Our guest speaker, Sean Marmion, is a professional traveler and consultant and he has some ideas to make your travels easier, safer and more fun by applying some simple things to your packing.
As an avid traveler, Sean had to find ways to tour the world without an entourage of luggage handlers and Sherpas.   As a father of two, he also had to tailor his travels to include children and their needs.  Please join Oceanic Ventures as he discuses his travels and his secrets of experiencing locations and cultures traveling alone or with a family.
  • What:        Club Aquarius Social Club
  • When:       Thursday, February 25, 7:00 PM
  • Where:      Black Labrador, upstairs, 4100 Montrose, near Richmond
  • How:         However you get there

Sean is a resident of the world.  He was born in the United states, lived and attended school in England, and graduated with a degree in international business from San Francisco State.  His love of travel led him to work in the outdoor industry where he now owns his own company, working as a representative for companies like Eagle Creek and Teva.  His passion is traveling and over the past two years alone, he has visited Turkey, Tanzania, India, Argentina, Uruguay, Columbia, Chile, Ecuador and Easter Island.

Remember – Club Members get their name in twice for the prize-drawing.  You can join or renew on-line now by going here.

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Oceanic Ventures Celebrates 25 Years and Scuba Divers Give to Charity

Program Cover
Program Cover

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 25th 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.

Table SettingChef 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

The Spirit of Diving Award Recepient
The Spirit of Diving Award Recepient

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 300th 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

OVI25thanniversary-200The 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

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Twenty-Five Years of Photographs

Twenty-Five Years of People and Adventures – Scuba Diving with Oceanic Ventures

 
On November 12, 2015 we debuted a video collection of a sampling of twenty-five years of scuba diving with Oceanic Ventures.  It was fun putting together the video and it brought back a lot of memories and reminded us of a lot of people who have been diving with us for a lot of years.  I hope you will enjoy it.  Here is the video:

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Ghosts, Goblins, Brides , Oh My — Halloween in the Scuba Dive Facility

The Runaway Bride with Al
The Runaway Bride with Al

Water fell from the heavens all night and all morning, tornadoes whirled around the county, the flood waters rose but some hearty souls came to the dive store  to trick-or-treat and to pose for photos with Al.  And while the participation was a little light, we still had a good time.  The winner of the Oceanic Ventures Gift Certificate was a runaway bride, Cheryl White with Avalon Realty,  who is trying to leave with Al for a warm tropical location – look out Al!

Thank you to everyone who came by today.  It was fun.

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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
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.
Sponsors for the 25th Anniversary Party
 

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Halloween – Trick-Or-Treat At The Scuba and Adventure Facility

You might not know it but Dive Mom really loves Halloween.  Her Halloween parties were well-known all over Houston and the apartment floor seemed to sag with all of the guests.  It has been a long time since she threw one of her parties but she still loves to see kids in costumes and to hand out treats.  So, what does all of this mean for the Oceanic Ventures family?  Well…

Halloween Flashback

… on Saturday October 31, 2015 from 11:00 – 2:00, we will be hosting a trick-or-treat giveaway at the dive store.  There will be the usual candy treats along with adult beverages and some surprise items in the bucket.  Come in costume and have your photo made with “Al.”   This is open to kids of all ages…even Joel.  The person with the best costume will win a $50.00 gift card and the runner-up will win a $25.00 gift card.

While you are in the store, you can fill out your Holiday Wish List for a chance for a bottle of Don Q Rum or one of Eric’s Award Winning Key Lime Pies!  And, you can even purchase your ticket to the Oceanic Ventures 25th Anniversary Party

Recap:

  • Trick-Or-Treat 11:00 to 2:00 on Saturday, October 31 2015
  • Costume Contest for kids and adults of all ages
  • Photographs with “Al”
  • Special Prizes
  • Fun!!!!

We look forward to seeing everyone in costume.