Aqua Hut Dive & Travel

06/17/2025

Hello, my Aqua Hut friends and family!
It’s been a while since I’ve been in touch, although my fond memories of time with you are always with me. It’s now close to three years since we lost Rich and just about 2 years since we took him on his final dive in Curacao with help from our friends at Ocean Encounters and Reef Renewal Curaçao. You all were so generous in contributing to the Rich McGarvey Memorial Nursery, helping to restore the reef that he and we all loved so much. Thank you again to all who donated!
I have been so fortunate to spend the last several winters in Curacao and have seen the growth and results of Reef Renewal Curaçao’s efforts. I am pleased to share this update on their accomplishments of the last 10 years. I have also seen their challenges and have experienced my own while attempting to visit our U/W memorial. It is a long swim to the nurseries, especially for staff who are carrying cameras, tools, and more to an ever-increasing area.
So, I am asking for your help once again! While watching the staff gear up for their daily work, we thought they could really benefit from an U/W scooter or 2. And selfishly, a scooter would make it easier for some of us “senior” divers to visit our memorial as well as to volunteer in the various nurseries.
So we are asking you once again to make a donation to Reef Renewal Curacao. Visit www.reefrenewalcuracao.org and note “Scooter” in your donation. I thank you for your consideration and hope to see you sometime in Curacao!
Christine

06/17/2025

Please help us remember Richard McGarvey, Greg Rodden, Sol Lehrhaupt and Carole Romanowski and support the work of Rerf Renewal Curacao! Thank you!

10/09/2024

Asking all my dive buddies to vote for Reef Renewal Curaçao! Help them keep the reefs alive and healthy! Thanks, Christine

Wind Creek is committed to the community, and we have so many charities on the island to celebrate! This year, dozens of local charities have submitted videos to participate in the contest. View the videos below and vote for a chance to help one organization win.

09/24/2024

My dive buddies know how special Reef Renewal Curaçao is to me and to the Aqua Hut Forever Dive Crew. You donated so generously to honor Richard McGarvey last year. I’m asking you please to show your support again by voting for Reef Renewal Curacao. Thanks for taking a minute to support their important work!

Watch the videos below to learn about some of the organizations and their mission, then vote for your favorite.

05/31/2024

Rich and I had the honor and privilege of knowing the Bookman family when Paul Bookman asked us to teach the family to scuba dive while working with Mark’s and Rachel’s medical challenges. They are an exceptional family and I hope you will join me in celebrating Mark’s life and legacy at the film premiere.

U.S. Premiere! This documentary chronicles the life and work of scholar/activist Dr. Mark Bookman, whose efforts to improve the lives of disabled people took him from his native Bryn Mawr to Tokyo, and whose legacy has continued to inspire others to work for a world where no one is left behind.

09/16/2023

Hello Aqua Hut friends and dive buddies,
As you may remember back in June we placed Richard McGarvey‘s remains on the reef here in Curacao and raised significant funds in his name for Reef Renewal Curaçao. Thank you to all who donated! I hope you will consider becoming a monthly donor to support their important work. Thanks for your consideration and come visit me in Curacao!

Reef Renewal Curaçao is a non-profit organization dedicated to preserve and restore our reefs.

09/08/2023

Ch-ch-ch-changes! So many of you followed and supported me this past year in this journey of grief and healing since losing Richard McGarvey. Was blessed to travel to Curacao this past June with dear friends and dive buddies to put Rich to rest on the reef. (Enjoy the beautiful video of his memorial dive) The trip brought a closure I wasn’t expecting and opened the door to my next steps.
Early in our romance, Rich and I talked about and pursued working in the dive industry in the islands. Family obligations prevented that for a while and we also decided we preferred building a foundation here and traveling to a variety of new places. So that is what we did and built a community of friends that has endured for over 30 years, the Aqua Hut Forever Dive Crew, ❤️.
But that chapter is over and it is time for a new chapter for me. So I will be taking the kitties and heading back to Curacao soon to see what happens. Looking forward to diving with my buddies at Ocean Encounters and visiting Rich in the Rich McGarvey Coral Nursery at Reef Renewal Curaçao.
Let me know if you’d like to come visit! Find me here or on WhatsApp. And thank you as always, Richie, your spirit is at work in this move! ❤️❤️❤️
Christine

Big thank you to Future Vision Imaging at Ocean Encounters Curacao for capturing Richard McGarvey’s memorial dive and coral nursery dedication so beautifully...

06/29/2023

We were honored to support the important work of Reef Renewal Curacao in honor of Richard McGarvey. We hope that you will consider supporting their efforts to create and maintain healthy reefs.

06/22/2023

Some pics above and below the water on Rich’s last dive, with my best dive buddies, the Aqua Hut Forever Dive Crew. Big thanks to Future Vision Imaging for the great photos!

06/20/2023

I experienced so much kindness this past week in Curacao for Richard McGarvey’s last dive trip. From the captain cutting down and giving us the flag to sign, to the beautiful necklace lovingly made by a young lady I’d never met (thank you, Kika!), to all who came on the trip, (Aqua Hut Forever Dive Crew!) and to the folks at Ocean Encounters and Reef Renewal Curacao for making us feel so at home.

06/14/2023

A preview of more to come. Placing Richard McGarvey’s memorial on the reef and his name tags on the coral trees. What a special morning.

06/13/2023

Preparing Richard McGarvey’s memorial to be placed on the reef. Big Thanks to longtime dear friends Luis Gonçalves Folhadela and Bill Lamoreaux and Ocean Encounters Curacao.