Bravo 2, Charlie 2, Delta 2, Foxtrot 2 & Sierra 2: Meet the Staff
With our next program coming right up, here are the staff that will be on deck (and on land!)
Sarah Pulitzer, Master Dive Instructor
Sarah grew up on the seacoast of New Hampshire and attended university at Sarah Lawrence College just outside New York City. After graduating she worked in an artist studio in Brooklyn for four years before trading paintbrushes for a mask and fins. Sarah has been a dive professional since 2011, and since 2014 she has lived on the Caribbean coast of Mexico. She has since concentrated on cave diving and freediving in freshwater sink holes and in the ocean with migratory whale sharks, bull sharks and sailfish. Sarah loves to teach and guide divers of all levels in all types of environments, and her favorite ocean creatures to see are octopus, nudibranchs, seahorses, and of course all the big stuff! Above water Sarah loves nothing more than a hammock and a good book or a nice sweaty yoga session!
James Cordery, Mate-in-Training/Divemaster
Having grown up in the New Forest National Park on the South coast of England, James has developed a strong affection for all natural life. This has led James to study Biology at the University of Bristol. James first started visiting the BVI on family vacations, igniting his love for the Islands, especially the diving. Ever since James first started scuba diving in the BVI he has travelled to places such as the Maldives and Mauritius earning himself a multitude of diving qualifications. Most recently, James received his PADI Dive Master in 2018 with Sail Caribbean Divers. James has had the incredible opportunity of tagging sharks and sea turtles in the Bahamas, which has spurred his passion for conservation. He believes that educating young people about the natural world and the ways we can conserve it are key. This opinion has stemmed from his previous experiences with Sail Caribbean as a student, where he was able to experience and learn all the awesome things about the ocean.
Julian Reda, Mate-in-Training
Julian is 19 and he just finished his freshman year at the Honors College at George Mason University. He is pursuing a BS in Economics and hopes to work as an economic advisor in the future. He was born in London, UK but moved to the US when he was less than a year old. He grew up in Glen Ridge, a small town near Newark, NJ and went to high-school at the local public school. He spent most of his time playing soccer and tennis. He is an Eagle Scout and led his local Boy Scout Troop for two years. He has been sailing for 8 years and was a student at Sail Caribbean for three summers. His interests outside of school include cars, soccer, and Formula 1 Racing. In his free time, he also enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking, camping and canoeing.
Daniella Debrah, Mate
Being raised in the land-locked state of Iowa has given Daniella a special love for the sea. Even before Moana! Many times, she had to settle for exploring her backyard lake until her next rendezvous with the great big blue. This will be Daniella’s first year with the Sail Caribbean team. Prior to Sail Caribbean, Daniella worked as a camp counselor for Camp Adventure, a student run camp on American military bases and embassies worldwide serving children of the United States service men and women, in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii. As a senior at the University of Iowa, Daniella is majoring in Communication Studies, minoring in International Relations, as well as earning a certificate in Event Planning. When she’s able to catch her breath in between studying, Daniella enjoys practicing her hobbies as a self-proclaimed amateur photographer, horseback rider, kayaker, and an ice cream enthusiast.
Katie Tuck, Mate
Katie is joining us for her first year with SC. Born and raised in Dublin, she is currently in her second year of ‘Outdoor Adventure Management’ course in Coláiste Dhúlaigh. She is a qualified Kayak Level 2 instructor, Dinghy Instructor, Windsurfing – Get Up and Go! Instructor, Leave No Trace Instructor and has her Day Skipper licence. Her other hobbies include Mountaineering, Rock Climbing/Bouldering, Cycling, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (Blue Belt) and she also loves to cook. She does enjoy a lovely sea swim any time of the year, be it May or December. Prior to her Outdoor Adventure course she was a Zumba Instructor for 4 years so she does enjoy a good aul dance! She is a great believer in experiential learning and how it helps a person to grow and she enjoys teaching the skills she knows in different ways. Katie is enthusiastic and a great lover of outdoor activities. She’s looking forward to being a part of the Sail Caribbean team for 2019.
Henry Joslin-Davis, Mate-in-Training
Read Henry’s bio soon!
Melissa Pollard, Mate
Melissa is joining us for her second season with Sail Caribbean after doing the Mate-In-Training program last summer. She is originally from England but has spent the majority of her life in the mountains of Montana where she found her love and passion for outdoor adventure. She is an avid skier in the winter and loves hiking and camping in Glacier National Park in the summer. Melissa just finished her second year at Montana State University where she studies Exercise Science with the goal of going on to Perfusion School. This coming fall she is headed to University of Exeter, England to study abroad for a year and couldn’t be more excited to get back to her roots. Melissa is so excited for more salty adventures and to create unforgettable memories this summer!
Stefanus Francois Marais Visser, Mate
Hailing from Cape Town, South Africa, Stefan is an avid traveler and trip leader that often finds himself off the beaten track, learning about different cultures around the world. Laos has mostly been his base for the past three years, working with ethnic groups and taking on development initiatives. He likes to start his day with exercise and some yoga to set the day straight and welcomes students to join. Even though he often finds himself climbing a crack in the mountains, he also loves the feeling when the wind catches the sails. He knows what possibilities it brings to see the world when one is self-sufficient on a vessel. He recently qualified as a rescue diver when exploring Tanzania in the pursuit to gain his Dive Masters in the near future. When he works with his students, he takes each participant’s experience to heart and quests to go the extra mile, ensuring that they walk away with an expanded skill set.
Emily Graf, Mate and Marine Science
Emily started diving in 2013 and quickly developed a passion for marine life. She is currently living on Tortola working as a PADI Scuba Instructor year round for Sail Caribbean Divers. Growing up in New Mexico (a state with no oceans), she is grateful to have been introduced to the ocean in such an exhilarating way! Emily obtained her B.A. in Environmental Studies at the University of Redlands in California, and worked as an environmental scientist for many years before she discovered her affection for scuba diving and marine life. She loves to travel, experience new cultures, observe wildlife, and laugh a lot! Scuba diving has become one of her biggest passions along with yoga, mountain biking, and bird watching. Emily hopes to inspire people to love and conserve our oceans by sharing what she has learned about the magical underwater world.
Tess Avery, Mate
Originally from Boston, Massachusetts, Tess has always loved the outdoors and the ocean. Her hobbies include skiing, painting, playing with dogs, and hammock-ing. She has been sailing since she was six, and has sailed competitively for her college team as well as taught sailing the past four summers. She is currently finishing her sophomore year as a marine science and astronomy major. She spent this past January on the Great Barrier Reef doing field work, and can’t wait to see what the Caribbean has in store. This is her first summer at Sail Caribbean and she is super excited to be a part of the adventure!
Mia Altenau, Mate
Mia sailed for the first time on the Sail Caribbean Charlie program when she was fifteen. She enjoyed the experience so much she returned the next year for the Delta program. Originally from Santa Clarita, California, Mia has always loved the ocean and the outdoors. Mia is a certified Rescue Diver and has had the privilege of scuba diving off the coast of California, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, and Mexico in addition to the BVIs. She is now a Junior at Colorado College where she skis, hikes, and whitewater kayaks. She plans to major in Feminist and Gender Studies and minor in Education. Mia loves working with teenagers and recently concluded a semester program where she coached students at a local high school in community outreach around a social justice issue of their choice. She is ecstatic about expanding her diving and sailing experience this summer and especially looks forward to welcoming kids like herself into the water world she loves so much.
Andrew Forsyth, Mate
Andrew is from Annapolis Maryland where he learned to sail and developed a love for the water. He has been sailing his whole life and has instructed sailing for four years in the Chesapeake Bay area. Andrew enjoys wakeboarding, waterskiing, and other water sports in addition to sailing. He also races dinghies and keelboats in the summers in and around Annapolis. Andrew will be entering his Senior year at Colorado State University in the fall studying Civil Engineering. He competes in varsity Track & Field at Colorado State University as well as being an Army ROTC Cadet. He enjoys snowboarding, hiking, and mountain biking in the beautiful mountains of Colorado. Andrew is very excited to teach at Sail Caribbean and spread his love for sailing and the marine environment.
Sinéad Power, Mate
Hailing from the Emerald Isle, Sinéad spent her undergraduate degree studying medicine before getting to work in Ireland and Australia. From there, she spent time travelling South America and honing her love for the outdoors. From rock climbing to hiking or kayaking, she is happiest outside. Sinéad went on to study Outdoor Adventure Management, finding an interest in experiential learning and her first taste of sailing. Her love of sailing only grew over the next two years and her qualifications now include a day skipper licence, sailing and windsurfing instructorships and a powerboat certificate. Sinéad is really excited to start her first season with Sail Caribbean, to experience the BVIs, explore a new culture and share her passion with the next generation of environmentalists and sailors.
Sarah Leigh Enticott, Captain
Born and raised in the coastal town of Cape Town, South Africa, Sarah enjoyed sailing from a young age. This passion took her across the seas to the United Kingdom where she sails regularly and enjoys a life of adventure in the outdoors. With degrees in education and psychology, Sarah is a seasoned ‘people person’ and spends much of her time teaching and engaging with children. Sarah is happiest on a boat, exploring new places or simply spending time with friends around a ‘braai’.
Adrian Debrah, Captain
Adrian is from small town Iowa, and attends Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to study Aeronautical Science. He started sailing at the age of 14 with a Hobie Cat Wave in a small lake behind his house and has been in love ever since the first time the wind caught his sails. He has always had a fascination for the oceans and its awesome inhabitants (especially Spotted Eagle Rays), but he was not satisfied having to be so far away from an ocean. So Adrian enrolled with Sail Caribbean for his first program in 2016 and enjoyed it so much that he came back for a second year in 2017. He is now in his second year as Sail Caribbean Staff.
Garrett McQuiston, Captain
Garrett has spent the last three years studying engineering at the University of Michigan and is a member of the Michigan sailing team. Garrett taught himself how to sail when he was eleven years old, and quickly convinced his entire family to join him. He grew up sailing catamarans and small keelboats all over the Great Lakes. Garrett loves all things outdoors including fly fishing, paddle boarding, backpacking, and scuba diving. In high school, he taught woodworking skills to younger students as an assistant woodshop teacher; and he spent a summer working as the first mate aboard a charter sailboat on Mackinac Island in northern Michigan. In his free time, Garrett loves to test his free-diving skills, and build custom longboard skateboards. His next big goal is to become a scuba diving instructor so he can teach skills both above and below the water. He loves teaching others fun knots and sailing tactics, and is excited to return to Sail Caribbean to share his passion for the water for a second season!
Anna Steinmetz, Captain
Anna has been SCUBA diving since she was ten years old and capsizing sailboats since she was nine. She first came to Sail Caribbean in the summer of 2013 as a student in the Charlie program. Now, having been a part of the mate-in-training program and being a mate last summer, she’s returning for this summer as a captain! When not at Sail Caribbean, Anna studies English and Economics at the College of William & Mary, planning to graduate in the spring of 2021.
Meredith Davies, Captain
Meredith lives in Memphis, Tennessee and is a rising senior at Rhodes College where she studies Environmental Studies and Political Science! In the fall, she is looking forward to becoming the Rhodes College Recycling Coordinator. She is a member of the varsity swim team as well as a member of Tri Delta. She loves volunteering with Tri Delta’s philanthropy, St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Meredith found her passion for the ocean, sailing, and scuba diving during her summers as a Sail Caribbean student in 2014 and 2015. In 2016, she interned at Cape Eleuthera Institute at the Island School studying southern stingrays in the Bahamas, as well as conservation methods. She returned to Sail Caribbean as a student on the Ocean program and as a Mate in Training in the 2017 season and has not wanted to leave the BVI since! She is thrilled to back at Sail Caribbean for another summer of fun! She loves encouraging students to find their love for the ocean and teaching students how to care for the environment. She is always ready for a dance party on board and will always have a Band-Aid!
Emily Mussio, Captain
Born and raised on the shore of Lake Huron in a small beach town of Grand Bend, Canada has put the love of the outdoors and travelling in her blood. Emily is currently attending Laurentian University for their Outdoor Adventure Leadership program as well as completing their Concurrent Education Program where she became a certified Wilderness First Responder. She first joined Sail Caribbean as a student in 2012 and returned every year afterwards, in a wide variety of programs to ensure she got the full Sail Caribbean experience. She has many boiling passions that range from athletics to exploring the world. She is looking forward to this upcoming summer and sharing her passion for the outdoors with others and educating them in more ways than one.
Keiley James, Captain
Keiley James is a third year captain/marine biologist at Sail Caribbean. She is originally from Atlanta, Georgia, but has lived on Tybee Island for a lot of her life, where she developed a passion for marine biology, conservation, and of course, sailing! Currently, Keiley is a student at the University of Georgia, where she majors in Marine Biology, and is the captain of the school’s offshore sailing team. She recently went on a program where she sailed a tall ship in the Caribbean, and conducted marine biological research. Keiley is a very friendly and understanding shipmate, and is very excited to spend the summer sailing with some really awesome people!
Joss Myers, Captain
Joss is an experienced sailing instructor and has a degree in Marine Science from the University of Ireland Galway (NUIG). Joss grew up sailing and surfing in Ireland, where his interest in the world of marine science began. He has been teaching sailing for over eight years across dinghies and keelboats. He has recently managed to combine his passion for both sailing and science by leading the development of science programs for sailing organisations within the Irish Sailing Association. He has a strong interest in fisheries biology and how fish interact with their environment. He enjoys spending his time sharing this passion with others and educating young people on the joys of our marine world.
Hannah Tyrell, Office Manager
Hannah is a student at Trinity College Dublin where she studies Business and Politics. Hannah spent her teenage years in Washington D.C, since this move Hannah has loved travelling and meeting new people. She has visited Thailand, Rwanda and South Africa in her past two summers. Hannah can’t wait for her next adventure in Tortola.
Lakia “Kia” Frett
Born in the USVI, Kia grew up on Tortola. She attended community college there to study biology, and then went away to University of Central Florida to study Health Service Administration. Returning to Tortola quite recently, Kia now spends her time going outside of her comfort zone as much as possible!
Adam Grant, Land Operations
Adam has been in the outdoor education industry for the past eight years and has been with Sail Caribbean for the last three as a fleet captain, captain and in the 2019 season as a member of the on-land support crew.
Mark Kennedy, Land Operations Director
Mark is a professionally trained instructor and tutor in many adventure activities, achieving a Higher National Diploma in Outdoor Adventure Management during his three years in college. This is where he trained as a powerboat, sailing, kayaking, windsurfing, climbing and mountaineering instructor. He has worked in the Desolation Wilderness in Eldorado County, California, where he lived in a tent for three months and delivered leadership programs to students of all ages through the medium of true wilderness. This was a life changing experience for him, where he developed his love for sharing his skills and knowledge with his students and learned how to develop their true potential. After having an amazing experience as a captain at Sail Caribbean in 2016 and fleet captain in 2017, he experienced the summer of 2018 as program director. Mark is extremely excited to get back at it this season as Land Ops Director. In the times Mark was not out teaching and adventuring over the remainder of the 2018-2019 year, he worked with an Irish based company called Irish Commercial Charter Boats where he crewed and skippered various boats of all shapes and sizes throughout the Irish Sea.
Luka Walshe, Fleet Captain
Luka is an outdoor instructor from Ireland. After studying Outdoor Adventure Management he has been traveling around the world working various jobs, from windsurf instructor, to wilderness canoe trip guide. Luka has been sailing and windsurfing for five years, in that time he has been chasing storms to windsurf all over Ireland and Cape Town, South Africa. The coming summer will be Luka’s third year with Sail Caribbean.
Oliver Bierman-Lytle, Marine Science Director
Seventh Year!! After earning a biology degree from Kenyon College, Oliver traveled the world; sailing from Singapore to Indonesia, studying coral reef health in Bali, and teaching coastal ecology while running a sailing program in Abu Dhabi. Oliver returned to the USA to pursue his passion for education. After being trained in Sun Valley, Idaho in classroom teaching and outdoor education, Oliver found his way to the Brunswick School in CT. Oliver teaches high school level biology, marine biology, and environmental science and sustainability. Outside of the classroom, he leads students into the back country in VT, and has helped develop a research program where students join a science team in the field. They are trying to crack the complex life history of White Sharks in an effort to develop global conservation policies, to protect these keystone species.
Eliot Faust, Program Director
Eliot joins us from Bethesda, MD. He is currently getting an MA in International Studies from Johns Hopkins SAIS, concentrating in Strategic Studies and International Economics. Starting in 2007, Eliot spent five years enrolled as a student at Sail Caribbean. Sail Caribbean really attracted Eliot due to his interest in marine biology from a young age. Following his time as an SC student, Eliot then completed the Sail Caribbean Dive Master Internship and transitioned to staff. Always ready with a funny one-liner, Eliot loves diving at the Fearless and the Indians or sailing to his favorite location of Little Harbor on Peter Island.
Curtis Crooke, Program Director
Curtis graduated from Georgetown University in 2017 and began work as a Legislative Correspondent for the Congresswoman to the US Virgin Islands. But nothing can keep him away from Sail Caribbean. He is returning for his fifth year as a staff member after sailing for four years as a student and intern, attaining his Divemaster along the way. In addition to diving and sailing, Curtis enjoys traveling (he has been to all fifty state capitals!), watching sports, and hanging out outdoors in warm weather with flip flops and a pair of Chubbies.
Jen Borderud, Sailing Staff Director
Jen is a proud Southern Californian that refers to freeways and interstates by saying “the” and then a number. She has worked at Sail Caribbean since 2013, after doing the Echo Program as a college student in 2011. She has a B.A. in Psychology from Williams College in Williamstown, MA and since graduation has made a pretty strong commitment to never having to experience winter ever again. She has worked in international, outdoor, and adventure education for almost seven years and shows no signs of going to med school like she always told her parents she would. She has led and managed surf programs in Costa Rica, study abroad semesters in Panama, and trail crews in various regions of America. She also boasts average competency on an acoustic guitar, and cannot play Freebird or Wonderwall. Going into her 7th season with Sail Caribbean, she still feels incredibly lucky to get to return to the BVI and the many friendly faces and places it holds. The saying holds true that there may indeed be nothing better in life than messing about on boats.
Allie Faulkner, Provisions Manager
Allie Faulkner grew up in Austin, Texas and just graduated from The University of Texas at Austin with a marketing degree from the McCombs School of Business. Allie grew up going to the beach for family vacation, and after vacationing in Tortola the past couple years, she fell in love with the beauty of the BVIs. Allie has lots of experience working with kids as she has been a counselor at two different summer camps, worked at the nursery at her church and was a nanny for three fun girls. Allie is excited to start a career in marketing this coming fall but she couldn’t be more excited her third summer with Sail Caribbean! When she isn’t working, Allie loves exploring all Austin has to offer with her friends.
Meredith Evridge, Social Media Coordinator
Originally from Alaska. The name “Meredith” means Protector of the Sea, so she has never strayed too far from the ocean. She is looking forward to learning how to sail while she maintains Sail Caribbean’s social media and keeps all the parents in the loop. Meredith specializes in one way tickets to places she has never been, to live and work. So far, she has tried out Germany, Costa Rica, Laos, and the BVI (!) and she can’t wait to see where she ends up next. For the last year and a half, she has been a trip leader to high school students, working programs in Laos, Thailand and the US. She is currently working on her degree in Communications. She likes to be outside and feel the wind in her curls. She is curious about everyone she meets, which is why traveling has never gotten boring!
