Steve Bielenda NE Diving Pioneer award at 2013 BTS

[Popeye]

I was honored to attend the presenting of the NorthEast Diving Pioneer ward to an old dive buddy at the 2013 Beneath the Sea Show this year.
Capt. Steve Bielenda’s introduction to scuba diving began in 1960 with Central Skin Divers in Brooklyn. With instruction by June (WDHOF 20011) and (the late) Roy Kieser (BTS Northeast Diving Pioneers 2012), young Steve started spear fishing, eventually becoming a YMCA and PADI Master Scuba Instructor Trainer, a move that he credits with being a turning point in his life.

In 1961, Capt. Steve starting taking divers to an assortment of popular local shipwrecks on different dive boats he owned, and in 1980 he built the 55' Wahoo, the first liveaboard dive boat in the northeast. He continued wreck diving charter operations until 2004.

Capt. Steve was the first to run regular trips taking qualified divers to the ill-fated Andrea Doria that sunk in 1957 and became dubbed as the Mt. Everest of diving because of its 250-foot depth, swift currents and dark, cold water. His salvage expertise was instrumental in assisting John Moyer in the recovery of two 600 pound Guido Gambone pieces of artwork from the winter garden inside the shipwreck.
The list of Capt. Steve credentials reads like a “who’s who and what’s what” in 50 years of scuba diving history with a plethora of certifications including PADI Master Scuba Instructor/Instructor Trainer, Hyperbaric Chamber Operator and recognition as an expert witness for diving testimony. He served many years as President of the Eastern Dive Boat Association, has co-authored two books, written the foreword in others and has been frequently quoted by authors such as Dan Berg’s Wreck Valley Series, Hank Keatts’ Dive Into History, Bernie Chowdury’s The Last Dive, and Kevin McMurray’s Deep Descent, to mention a few.