Day 1: Meet the Staff
Location: West End, Tortola
Hi everyone!
After a very long and rocky year of restrictions and border closures, everybody here at ActionQuest has been working relentlessly so we can host another awesome summer of learning, sailing, and SCUBA diving through the beautiful British Virgin Islands.
We want to start by thanking all of the students and parents for their patience, and for going out of their way to meet the rigorous COVID safety pre-requisites in order to participate in the Action Quest program this year. We really could not have pulled this off without you!
During the last few weeks, we’ve been working hard, completing hours of safety scenarios, knotting up loose ends, stocking the fleet, and scrubbing the decks, to the point where we are wildly excited to show off the dock and FINALLY welcome you aboard our 51-foot monohull, High on a Breeze, where the students will be all hands on deck for the next three weeks!
Introducing your guides,
starting with the skipper, Kackie Gould,
who joined the AQ team in 2021 as a skipper after being an ActionQuest student back in 2016. Inspired by her initial summer with AQ as a student, Kackie took a gap year after high school to earn her RYA Yachtmaster Offshore 200t certification in Sydney, Australia. After spending 4 months in Sydney, Kackie spent the rest of her gap year in South Africa, surfing and backpacking through coastal villages and staying at local hostels. Kackie likes anything that has to do with being in the ocean, whether it’s surfing, sailing, wakeboarding, or just going for a swim. Other than that, Kackie is currently a student at Georgia Tech, and in her free time, she enjoys trying out new recipes, going on long walks, and spending time with her friends.
The mate, Davis Richmond,
is from Greensboro, North Carolina. She joined the AQ team in Summer 2019 and will be returning as a mate for Summer 2021. Prior to working for AQ, she was a Seamester student in the Spring of 2018, sailing on S/Y Argo from South Africa to Antigua. Davis is currently studying Marine Science and Biochemistry at the University of Miami, where she will be a senior this coming fall. She loves to spend as much time on, near, or learning about the ocean as possible, and is always excited to share that passion with those around her.
And finally, dive instructor Jake first joined AQ as a student in 2016, and in 2020 he became a PADI dive instructor. He is currently attending Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, where he studies business management. Prior to Covid-19 he also helped instruct at Rollins’ scuba diving program. Growing up in New Hampshire he spent a lot of time both snow skiing and water skiing and is excited to teach students how to waterski as well. This past fall Jake studied abroad with Seamester, where he crossed the Atlantic Ocean twice. His favorite diving is in the British Virgin Islands and he can’t wait to share the beauty of the underwater world with new divers. He is also very excited to have the opportunity to give new AQ students the same amazing experience he had as a student for so many summers. Currently, he is working on completing his IYT Master of Yachts 200 Ton Limited and completed the theory portion while attending Seamester.
We can’t wait to set sail and explore the ocean with you!