I grew up in Upstate New York, surrounded by the pines, rivers and lakes. Somehow the Ocean always called to me and I felt like it was a part of who I was. My family history goes back to the waters of South Texas, where generations of fisherman and boat captains made their lives on the sea. My father, his father, and the ones who came before him were all captains who shared their stories for generations. Although I wasn’t near the Ocean like them, I knew the salt water was in my bones.
I made sure to spend as much time near the water growing up as I could. The rivers of Upstate New York became my friends, and held me through some of my toughest times. I couldn’t make my way to the Ocean until I got older, but I always held that dream close to me and spent my days by the rushing waters.
Finding a Way Into the Ocean
When I finally got the chance I moved to Florida and started a life where I could at least drive to the Ocean. I needed something to satisfy that pull. Then I discovered that going to the beach on the weekends and standing on the shore still wasn’t enough. I wanted to truly experience the Ocean, I wanted to see it in a way that most people never do.
As I searched for a way, I came across scuba diving. That same day I walked into my local dive shop and told them, “I want to become a scuba instructor.” When they asked how long I had been diving and I told them never, they were intrigued by my passion. They offered me a job on the weekends in the shop and made it easier for me to get through my courses quickly, determined to make this a career.
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Determined to make this my “in” for Ocean exploration, I started to travel all over Florida to dive. Beginning at the crystal clear springs in Central Florida down to the vibrant Ocean life in South Florida. Then in the middle of our training, my instructor unexpectedly got a job offer in Maui, Hawaii. And while I thought this was it for me for a while, I would have never imagined what he would say next. He told me to come as well, finish my training in Maui and become an instructor on the island. That same day I bought my ticket.
A Life Underwater
Buying that one way ticket changed everything for me. It felt as if all of my childhood dreams were finally coming true. The dives I was able to take on Maui taught me what the Ocean truly offered us and what lays beneath the surface. Forests of coral that stretch for miles, migrations of animals larger than buses. I will never forget the day an angelic Manta Ray swam straight over my head, it was one of those moments where I had to stop and ask myself if I was dreaming.
The ecosystems are so complex and witnessing them underwater changes you, it’s like once you are finally apart of it you can’t help but care deeply about it. My love for the Ocean then turned into a feeling of responsibility. Even for people who live hundreds of miles from the Ocean and never experience it are impacted by it. The Ocean produces more than 50% of the oxygen that we breathe. Most of it being produced by marine plants, algae and plankton. The Ocean also regulates our climate, with it covering over 70% of our planet it is responsible for absorbing massive amounts of solar radiation and CO2 emissions.
The Reality Facing the Ocean
The Ocean today faces so many challenges. Warming waters are bleaching and killing off coral reefs, which are often called the rainforests of the sea. They provide food, shelter, and breeding grounds for thousands of organisms. You can go to the bottom of the Ocean and still find proof of our existence. Plastic bags floating about, empty cans, and toxic waste pumped into it every second. Industrial fishing on incredibly large scales has changed entire ecosystems.
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Another large problem that the Ocean encounters is plastic pollution. Scientists estimate that around 8 million metric tons of plastic enter the Ocean every year. This plastic is broken down into what we call microplastics and are now even found in the food that we eat.
Why Salty Rayne was Created
After I had a child I decided to wander back to the Adirondacks for family support, but my love for the Ocean stayed with me. I created Salty Rayne because I wanted to find a way to protect the Ocean from wherever I stood, and I wanted a way to inspire others to do the same. I created articles and designs that tell stories that some people may have never heard before. It isn’t just a brand or a collection of products. Through photography, storytelling, and ocean inspired designs, the goal is to remind people that the Ocean isn’t separate from us, it keeps the entire planet alive.
The Bigger Vision
My main goal is to ultimately build awareness and community around Ocean protection by telling stories in a way that people can really connect to, and creating products and designs that spark conversation. Each of our designs comes with a conservation story. Pollution, the importance of tides, mangroves and the marine animals we are still so privileged to live amongst.
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The Ocean connects us all and every ecosystem on Earth. The water has shaped my life in ways I could have never expected and gave me a deep understanding of our connection to one another and the planet.
WHY OUR ARTICLES/REVIEWS DO NOT HAVE AFFILIATE LINKS
Affiliate links create a financial incentive for writers to promote certain products, which can lead to biased recommendations. This blurs the line between genuine advice and marketing, reducing trust in the content.
