Dr. John C. Calhoun was one of the early pioneers and contributors to UCAR/NCAR development. Calhoun became acquainted with UCAR and a plan for developing a national program (the “Blue Book”) while at Texas A&M University in an administrative role. Although Calhoun did not have a background in the atmospheric sciences, he brought valuable institutional perspective, experience in program development and organizational management to the table.

Oral history interview with Robert Fleagle, 1990. 

Oral history interview with Judy Green, 2015. Interviewed by Kathleen Legg. Forms part of the UCAR/NCAR Oral History Collection. Judy Green, long time telecommunications assistant at NCAR, shares her unique perspective of NCAR, its people and culture. Green discusses her early career as a telephone operator at Mountain Bell in Cheyenne, Wyoming and how her and her family came to NCAR. Green talks about her experience with the various telephone systems at NCAR over the years, including the old “cord board”, the short lived Harris system, the Rolm system and Voice Over IP (VoIP).

Discussion with Mary Haley, David (Dave) Brown, and Dennis Shea about the development and use of NCAR Command Language (NCL). NCL, produced by the Computational and Information Systems Laboratory (CISL) and is a free interpreted language designed specifically for scientific data processing and visualization. Topics included in this discussion also include: NCAR Graphics, netCDF, GRIB, Fortran, C, Climate and Global Dynamics Laboratory, Community Climate Model, NCL workshops, PyNIO, PyNGL, MATLAB, NumPy, xarray, R, and Python.

Dr. Roy Jenne provides an overview of his career at NCAR in the computing division. Jenne discusses the Mesa Laboratory and its facilities; his recollections of the various computing systems at NCAR, starting with a Control Data 3600; the significant work NCAR did and continues to do with weather forecasting and observational data; and how creating easily accessible datasets was an important goal and achievement of his unit.

Sisters Carrie Jamison (b. 1921) and Edith Selby (b. 1927) grew up in "uptown" Port Norris, New Jersey. As children, they were not allowed to go to Shell Pile or the river (Bivalve). Their parents were from Saint Mary's County, Maryland. Their father came here to work on the boats and on farms. They attended Shiloh Baptist Church. In the early 1940s, they both worked in oyster houses as shuckers including Robbins Brothers, Carl Reed, Stowman's Brothers, Peterson Packing and George Gaskell.

Barry Ballard (b. 1945) is the retired Superintendent of Commercial Township (Port Norris, Haleyville, Mauricetown) Schools. He was educated in the Port Norris School and graduated from Millville High School and later earned degrees from Cheyney University and Rowan University. His father was from Virginia and his mother from Crisfield, Maryland. They came to Port Norris in 1928 following the oyster industry. Mr. Ballard discusses his childhood, education, desire to become a teacher and inspiration from Mrs.

Laurel Bryant was born in Mount Vernon, Washington, and raised in Seattle.  She attended Shoreline Community College for two years and then graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Political Science and Economics with a concentration in Environmental Sciences.  She came to Washington, DC, in 1989 and worked for the United States House of Representatives Merchant Marine and Fisheries Committee, the predecessor to the House Natural Resources Committee.

Dr. Crabtree has served as the regional administrator of NOAA Fisheries Service's Southeast Regional Office since January 2003. Previously, Dr. Crabtree was a senior research scientist at the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission's Florida Marine Research Institute, and the director of the Commission's Division of Marine Fisheries. He has served these state and federal fishery management agencies for over 15 years, after beginning his career as a self-employed fishing guide in the Florida Keys and Everglades National Park.

In his role as Director of the Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Dr. Seki provides the science direction and oversight of research activities that support stewardship of living marine resources in the vast expanse of the Pacific Islands Region. Since joining NOAA Fisheries in 1980, Dr. Seki has conducted extensive fisheries, oceanographic, and ecosystem research on many marine species in the Pacific. He has authored or co-authored more than 40 scientific papers and participated in over 20 domestic and international research surveys.

Mr.

Interview with Peter Lewit, Chief Hydrographic Survey Tech at NOAA

Oral history interview with Richard Permenter, NOAA Commissioned Corps

Interview with Floyd McLaughlin

Interview with Kevin Brewington

Edward and Brad Robin are two oyster fishermen from Yscloskey.  They explain the process of how to catch oysters and the technology and terms used in the trade.  They mentioned the problems since the BP Oil Spill and hardships and struggles to keep all of their employees.  They also discussed the pirate wars between Mississippi and Louisiana.  Edward described life after World War II when he started Robin’s Seafood and the modern changes to the way oysters are caught from when he started as a child.

The Skrmetta Family discusses canneries, seafood processing, shrimp peeling, oysters, Mavar Shrimp and Oil Company, shipyard, canning companies, shrimp drying, prohibition and dry States, and the Great Depression.

Interview with Clifford Smith in Houma, Louisiana.

Interview with Kerry St. Pe, Director, Barataria Terrebonne National Estuary Program, in Houma, Louisiana.

Interview with Reuben St. Pierre in Grand Isle, Louisiana.

Interview with Mark Staton in Lafayette, Louisiana.

Interview with Eugene Theriot.  He discusses the shrimp factory, shrimp drying platforms, ice boats, hurricanes, canneries, manila village, fur trapping, oysters, seabreeze, kerosene, prohibition, storm of 1926, and shrimp strikes.

Interview with Eugene Theriot.  He discusses the shrimp factory, shrimp drying platforms, ice boats, hurricanes, canneries, manila village, fur trapping, oysters, seabreeze, kerosene, prohibition, storm of 1926, and shrimp strikes.

Jodie Avail and Jay Thornhill discusses the origin and history of Dupuy’s Oyster Shop. They talk about the diversification of the menu and the oyster dealers.

Jodie Avail and Jay Thornhill discusses the origin and history of Dupuy’s Oyster Shop. They talk about the diversification of the menu and the oyster dealers.

Interview with Cokie Rathborne and Greg Lier in Harvey Canal, Louisiana.

Interview with Cokie Rathborne and Greg Lier in Harvey Canal, Louisiana.

Interview with Norris Price in Chauvin, Louisiana.

William Baldwin is a poet and retired shrimper who grew up in McClellanville, South Carolina, a town known for its shrimping docks and rich fishing traditions.  His grandfather Rut Leland was a boat captain.  As a teenager William worked the fuel docks, and by the age of twenty-one, he was running the shrimp dock.  He attended college and finished a master’s thesis on the Dada artists before returning to McClellanville to work on various shrimp boats.  Though he stopped shrimping years ago, William continues to draw from the experiences of the docks and open water and th

In 1973 Captain Horace Crosby left his job in law enforcement and bought Crosby’s Fish & Shrimp on James Island in Charleston.  The business started as a live bait operation.  His twin daughters, Ellie and Joanie, grew up in the store.  While their father rarely let people go out on the boat with him, he often extended the opportunity to Joanie.  A fire destroyed Crosby’s in 1987, and a year later the sisters – not a pair for sitting behind a desk – rebuilt the business with the help of their father and brother, Timothy.  The next year Hurricane Hugo took it all

In 1973 Captain Horace Crosby left his job in law enforcement and bought Crosby’s Fish & Shrimp on James Island in Charleston.  The business started as a live bait operation.  His twin daughters, Ellie and Joanie, grew up in the store.  While their father rarely let people go out on the boat with him, he often extended the opportunity to Joanie.  A fire destroyed Crosby’s in 1987, and a year later the sisters – not a pair for sitting behind a desk – rebuilt the business with the help of their father and brother, Timothy.  The next year Hurricane Hugo took it all

With her father in the Air Force, Kimberly Carroll grew up living in all parts of the country: Mississippi, Florida, Alaska, and finally Charleston. In 1992 she was working as a radiologist at Roper Hospital when she met Raul Morales, a crabber and native of Cuba, while hanging out on a shrimp boat in Mount Pleasant. They fell in love, and Kimberly started selling fresh catch for Raul’s seafood business, Raul’s Seafood, which was located at Shem Creek on the Geechee Dock. Kimberly sold to 150 restaurants across the Lowcountry.

Neal Cooksey grew up on James Island in Charleston, South Carolina. As a teenager, he started scalloping in Charleston Harbor and Savannah, Georgia. When he saw his first paycheck, he decided to stick with it. In the mid-1970s, he took off for shrimping the Texas Gulf Coast and Key West, Florida. Along with his crew of Bubba Jameson and Calvin Chavis, Neal shrimps on the Haley Marie & Sons, named after his three children. The boat always returns to the docks of Crosby’s Fish & Shrimp co-owned by his wife, Joanie.

Fred Dockery was born in Montpelier, France, where his mother worked in a hospital run by nuns. His father traveled as a professor, moving the family from the Midwest to France to Maine to North Carolina. After graduating from Bates College with a degree in philosophy, Fred moved into an airplane hangar and worked as a landscaper before taking a job on a commercial fishing boat called "The Restless." Eventually, Fred and his family moved to Charleston, South Carolina where he took a job on a clam farm.

Rocky Magwood, a Fourth generation fisherman, says he was raised on a shrimp boat. He’d head out with his father, Clarence “Skipper” Magwood, before he could even walk. His grandfather Junior Magwood built a rich shrimping empire on the docks of Shem Creek in Mount Pleasant. Rocky followed in his father and grandfather’s footsteps, working as a captain of several shrimping boats, each one painted green, orange, and white – the signature look of the Magwood fleet. For years shrimp caught on the Magwood fleet was delivered and sold at Shem Creek at C. A. Magwood & Sons.

Andrew Magwood grew up on Little Bulls Island, a spit of land between Big Bulls Island and Capers Island. His family survived on what they grew on their farm and what they caught from the water. His father, Captain Clarence Magwood, taught his sons to fish for everything from bass to shark. They also picked oysters and clams. And while the Magwood name is synonymous with shrimping in the Lowcountry, the business started with oysters. They also sold turtle eggs.

Nathaniel "Danny" Manigault was born and raised in Charleston. In high school he moved to the Union Heights neighborhood of North Charleston. He worked as a mechanic at R & M Industrial Products, and fished whiting, croaker, spots, and sharks as a hobby. When his neighbor told him how he could make a little money on the side crabbing, Danny decided to start crabbing to supplement his full-time job. Now retired from R & M, Danny usually hits the Wando River by four each morning to make it back in time to delivery blue crabs to customers in North Charleston.

Mark Marhefka is a commercial fisherman originally from Jacksonville, Florida. He owns Abundant Seafood with his wife, Kerry, in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina. He delivers his fresh catch to more than twenty restaurants in Charleston, and runs a CSF (community-supported fishery) from Shem Creek where he docks his boat, the Amy Marie.

Growing up on Silver Hill plantation in McClellanville, South Carolina, Julie McClellan spent her days out on a small wooden batteau accompanying her stepfather, Ellis Dawsey, as he scratched clams on his leases at White Banks and Oyster House and sold the catch to Carolina Seafood. After high school she married and went straight to work in restaurants, building houses, and later operated a deer processing plant with her husband before they divorced. For the past twenty-five years, Julie’s made her full-time living off the water.

Anuruck “Lucky” Suttiprasert was born and raised in Thailand. In 1975 he moved to Memphis, Tennessee to attend school, always intending to return to home once he finished his studies. Three years later, he quit school to work, both in restaurants and as a mechanic. He moved to Atlanta. In 1982 a friend in Savannah, Georgia convinced him to start shrimping because the money was good. Lucky worked his way up to captain, and today he runs his own shrimp boat, Luck Chalm. Lucky explains the name comes from a combination of his name with the name of his wife, Chalam.

David Thomas has been fishing commercially for the past twenty-five years. He was born and raised in Conway, South Carolina, where his father ran a grocery store. He spent his summers in Ponce Inlet, Florida, where his uncle fished commercially and ran Timmons Fish Camp. David decided the only practical job for him was to fish, but today he say government regulations make his work difficult. He fishes with a standup rod known as a bandit reel, which drops a bungee cord directly into a current using circle hooks, which catch the outside of the fish’s lip.

Edward Barrett, 56, is a fisherman out of Plymouth, Massachusetts. He began fishing in high school, purchased his first boat in 1979, and has worked as an inshore mobile gear fisherman for the past 15 years. He has been a member of sector 10 since sector management began and serves as the President of Sector 10, as well as staying actively involved in the fisheries community. Mr. Barrett views sectors negatively, and especially views catch shares as significantly cost prohibitive for small boats. Since sectors began, Mr.

Tim Barrett, 46, is a commercial fisherman out of Plymouth, MA. Mr. Barrett grew up on the water, fishing with his brother when he was a boy and through college. He then got into the fishing industry in the early 80?s after attending the University of Rhode Island for some undergraduate work in Marine Fisheries and Technology. In the past 10 years, he has fished groundfish inshore. He is currently an inactive member of sector 10, though he was in the common pool until last year. Mr. Barrett does not think that sector management is a good option for fisheries management.

David (Dave) Beutel of North Kingstown, Rhode Island began his career as a commercial fisherman in the mid-1970s and has since worked with the University of Rhode Island and now with fisheries management for the state of Rhode Island. Mr. Beutel believes that the divisive atmosphere in the port of Point Judith is a notable negative consequence of sectors management in Rhode Island, because differences in the philosophies of fishermen have created obvious divisions in the fishing community.

Charles Borden, 33, is a commercial fisherman out of Westport, Massachusetts. Mr. Borden?s father works in fisheries management, though he does not have family history in commercial fishing, he began fishing at age 14 on a skiff and worked his way up to become a captain on his own vessel in Westport, Massachusetts. For the past 3 years, he has fished predominantly for monkfish in the inshore and offshore, depending on the season.

Ron Borjeson, 62, is a commercial fisherman out of Sandwich, Massachusetts. He began fishing with his uncle while in college and purchased his own boat, on which he still fishes, in 1973. In recent years, he has fished strictly inshore, catching fluke during the summer and a variety of fish during the rest of the year. Mr. Borjeson joined his sectors when sector management began, largely because he felt as though the alternative was not well explained and thus left too many unknowns. He does not feel like sector management is a good idea.

Carl Bouchard, age 72, is a retired fisherman whose home port was Hampton, New Hampshire. Mr. Buchard began fishing around age 45 because he loved being outdoors, after transitioning from gas station and carwash owner to owner of his own boat doing inshore fisheries such as groundfishing, shrimping, tunafishing and lobstering. He had chosen to retire from fisheries the year sector management began, but had four permits in Sector 2. The year sectors started, he put his boat in the commonpool and leased quota from additional permits that he had purchased. Mr.

Chris Brown, 53, is a commercial fisherman out of Point Judith, Rhode Island. He began fishing after high school and built a boat for himself two years later. Currently, he fishes inshore for groundfish and squid predominantly. Mr. Brown is the president of Sector 5 and is very active in sector management and fisheries in general. He is very hopeful about sector management and believes that, given the opportunity, it will be the best strategy to manage the fisheries and provide livelihood for fishermen.

Mary Brown, 52, is married to commercial fisherman Chris Brown who fishes out of Point Judith, Rhode Island. Mr. Brown has been involved in fisheries since he was a little boy and currently fishes inshore, predominantly for groundfish. Mrs. Brown?s husband is a member of sector 5. She believes that sector management allows him to catch fish more economically and predictably.

Tim Caldwell, 51, a fisherman currently operating out of Point Judith, RI began fishing at age 18. Mr. Caldwell is a member of sector 10. He had 2 vessels when sectors began, but has since switched to gillneting for monkfish and sells his low groundfish allocation. He saw a drastic decrease in income as a result of a low allocation and had to sell his second vessel. Mr. Caldwell has a negative view of sectors, stating that sectors make the future uncertain for small fishermen, like him and his son.

John Curzake, 48, is a commercial fisherman out of Point Judith, Rhode Island. He has been fishing since high school on a swordfishing boat with his in-laws; though his immediate family didn?t fish commercially, his father and brother occasionally go commercial lobstering. He fishes for skates and some groundfish, mostly inshore. He became a member of sector 13 to avoid gear restrictions placed on individuals in the common pool. Mr. Curzake does not like sector management and would prefer to return to Days-at-Sea, with at least 50 days per vessel per year.

Karl Cygler, 36, owns a company which provides fisheries observers to commercial fishing vessels, including sector and commonpool boats. Mr. Cygler used to be an observer as well and his father was a commercial fisherman in the 1980?s. Mr.Cygler has seen changes in observer coverage since sectors started and his staff mentioned there is more tension and frustration on the part of the fishing industry in having to carry observers at a higher rate than before sectors. Mr.

Hilary Dombrowski, 64, is a commercial fisherman out of Gloucester, Massachusetts. He began fishing around age 10, progressively buying and operating larger boats. He now jigs for cod and tub trawls for haddock, in the inshore. He is a member of the common pool because quota allocations were assigned based on years during which there were a great deal of regulations, thus limiting catch for many in the region. As a small fisherman, there is no real avenue for him to get into a sector, as it is quite expensive.

Jeff Good, a 54-year-old fisherman from Plymouth, Massachusetts, has been fishing since he was 16 years old, beginning on a boat originally purchased by his older brother. In the years since, he has done all types of fishing including inshore and offshore fishing in most all fisheries except lobster and he hasn't done hook fishing. He currently fishes without any crew and feels this is the only way he can make it financially. Mr.

Chris Hickman, 63, is a commercial fisherman out of Hatteras, North Carolina. Mr. Hickman began fishing in the 1970's after retiring from farming; his grandfather was a fisherman in the early 1900's. He currently fishes for monkfish and a variety of other species using a gillnet inshore along the east coast in New England. Mr. Hickman has been in the commonpool in New England since sectors began; sector management is not in place in North Carolina. He feels that sector management is not the right management strategy and would abolish it given the opportunity.

Jim Keding is a 42-year-old fisherman; he currently captains a commercial fishing vessel out of Plymouth, Massachusetts. This vessel, the Mystic, fishes inshore for groundfish and is in sector 10. Jim serves as the sector's Vice President. He began fishing at age 14, in 1987; he chose fishing simply because he lived near the Plymouth fishing docks, and his cousin was the only one who fished in his family. Prior to captaining the Mystic, he owned and operated his own vessels.

Arlene and Keith "Pete" Hartford both worked for the Stinson Seafood cannery in Prospect Harbor, Maine.

Elaine Lowell was born in Stueben, Maine, in 1915. She and her husband George raised three children in Prospect Harbor. Elaine worked for the Stinson Canning Company in Prospect Harbor, Maine. She had several jobs at the former cannery: cutting and packing sardines, cleaning the offices at night, transporting injured employees to the hospital, and getting up at four o’clock in the morning to call the cannery employees if there was herring to come in to cut and pack.

Susan grew up in an Irish Catholic family. She started working in canneries when she was 16 years old.

Cary Lewis captained a sardine carrier, delivering sardines to the canneries on the Maine coast.

Robert Peacock's family operated canneries in Eastport, Lubec and Portland, Maine.

Charles Stinson was the owner of the Stinson Cannery in Prospect Harbor, which was established by his grandfather.

Clarence "Buck" Suddy helped operate Raye's Mustard Mill in Eastport for many years.  The mill provided the mustard many of the canneries used to can sardines. 

Al West was a supervisor at the Stinson Cannery in Prospect Harbor, Maine.

Wayne Wilcox worked in the shipping room of the B.H. Wilson Sardine Factory in Eastport, Maine.

Diana Young worked as the bookkeeper at the Stinson Cannery in Prospect Harbor, Maine.

Interview with Michelle Cottrell

Interview with Michele Longo Eder.

Interview with Nancy Fitzpatrick

Interview with Teresa Freeman.

Interview with Ginny Goblirsch.

Interview with Kaety Jacobson.

Interview with Connie Kennedy.

Interview with Kelley Retherford

Interview with Kelsea Retherford

Sharon Cummings has been an integral part of the fishing industry for over three decades. Born in New Bedford and now 62 years old, she has dedicated her life to the settlement house and bookkeeping aspects of the fish industry. At Freonor, she was one of the original female employees. Her career path led her through various positions, from trucking for the fishing industry to working for the poverty program and even a real estate office.

Donna Cunio is a 51-year-old woman from Norwell, Massachusetts. She is the wife of a retired merchant marine captain who now serves as the manager of the New Bedford State Pier. Born in Boston, Massachusetts, Donna has a deep appreciation for the maritime industry, particularly the hard work of longshoremen and fishermen. Despite not being raised near the water, Donna has a strong connection to the sea through her husband's career. She occasionally joined him on his trips, experiencing first-hand the hard work and dedication of the crew.

When Chad first saw the fishing boats of New Bedford, he knew he wanted to be on them. As luck would have it, he had an in and has been fishing ever since. Chad muses on regulations, his family, and his love for fishing.

Kevin Curole is a seasoned fisherman with a career spanning 37 years in the shrimp industry. Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, Curole grew up in Baie L'Fuje, Guiana, and is of Cajun ethnicity. His family has a long history in the fishing industry, with both his father and grandfathers being shrimp fishermen. Curole started his journey in the industry at the tender age of three, living on a 22-foot shrimp boat with his grandparents. In addition to his fishing career, Curole has also worked as a support boat driver for the offshore oil industry in Louisiana.

Margaret Curole is a retired shrimp fisherman and a commercial fishing advocate from Galliano, Louisiana. She is of Cajun ethnic background. Curole did not come from a fishing heritage, but entered the industry after marrying a fisherman. Her husband's family has a long history in the Galliano area. Curole and her husband lived in a Louisiana marsh trapping camp where they engaged in shrimp fishing. Her husband quit his job the day before their daughter was born to build his first boat. Curole has been actively involved in commercial fishing advocacy.

Hans Davidson is a retired commercial fisherman from New Bedford, Massachusetts. Born and raised in a fishing family, Davidson began his career in the industry in 1974 and retired in 2004. He started as a shacker, a newcomer to the industry, and worked his way up to the position of captain. Throughout his career, Davidson worked on several vessels including the Florence B, the Dolphin, the Ambassador, and the Edgartown. He also spent time as a mate on the Eagle.

Shareen Davis is a fifty-year-old woman from Chatham, Massachusetts. She is a 13th generation Cape Codder with a rich history in the fishing industry. Davis owns a weir fishing business and provides shore support. She has also been a fisherman in the past and is a community activist. Her home port and hail port are both in Chatham, MA, specifically Stage Harbor. Davis comes from a fishing family, with her grandfather and uncles being fishermen and her mother working in the industry. She met her husband, Ernie, in a coffee shop where a group of fishermen would come in for breakfast.

Kevin Dawson is a settlement house owner and has a background in the fishing industry. He grew up in Brooklyn, New York, and his parents emigrated from Newfoundland. His father used to run trawlers out of the Fulton Fish Market in New York but moved to Fairhaven, Massachusetts, when Dawson was ten due to the convenience of the freezer trucks coming from New Bedford. Dawson started working on boats at a young age, painting and performing various tasks.

Kristin Decas served as the Executive Director of the New Bedford Harbor Development Commission (NBHDC). However, please note that there may have been changes in personnel or positions since then. Kristin Decas is an experienced executive in the maritime industry with a background in port management and economic development. She has held leadership positions in several ports across the United States and has been recognized for her contributions to the maritime sector.

Rosemarie Denn is a female co-owner of a fishing supply business, Cape Fisherman's Supply, located in Chatham, Massachusetts. She was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts and has a European American ethnic background. Her connection to the fishing industry began with her grandfather, who hailed from a fishing village in Newfoundland. As a child, she spent her summers in Rhode Island, engaging in beach activities and quahoging. She moved to Chatham to be with her husband, who worked at the Chatham Fish Pier.

Dave Densmore and Pat Densmore are a married couple who have both worked as fishermen. Dave Densmore is a male fisherman who hails from Kodiak, Alaska, and has fished from the same port. Pat Densmore is a female fisherman who has also worked as a farmer. They both have a deep connection to the fishing industry and have firsthand experience in the challenges and rewards of this occupation.

Louis A. Doucette was born on March 22, 1911, in Edgartown, Martha's Vineyard. He grew up in a family of eight children, with his father having a background in sailing ships in the 1800s and later working for a bridge company in East Boston. Louis and his father fished on the south side of Vineyard, transitioning from larger boats with a crew of 20 men in Gloucester to smaller boats with only 3 or 4 men. His mother, originally from Nova Scotia, often spoke about Boston's Old North Church and their family history.

Dave and Judy Dutra are a couple who have been involved in the fishing industry for many years. Dave, a lifelong fisherman, has spent his life on the water, working on various fishing boats. Judy, on the other hand, is a registered nurse who worked as a school nurse for over fifteen years. In the early years of their marriage, Judy fished with Dave on their boat, the Wildflower, and later on the Richard & Arnold. They had two sons who also became involved in fishing at a young age.

Reidar and Kirsten Bendiksen are a Norwegian couple residing in New Bedford, involved in the gear business, specifically net making and mending. Reidar was born in Norway in 1946 and moved to the United States when he was sixteen. His father was a fisherman who migrated to the US in 1951. Reidar himself held various positions in the fishing industry, including skipper, before transitioning into the gear business. Kirsten, born in New Bedford and raised in Dartmouth, comes from a family with a fishing background. Her father was a fisherman who met her mother on an ocean liner.

Reidar Bendiksen is a Norwegian immigrant who moved to the United States at the age of sixteen. Born into a fishing family, he began his fishing career in Norway at the age of fourteen. His father, who was also a fisherman, immigrated to the U.S. in 1951 and owned several fishing vessels in New Bedford. Reidar followed in his father's footsteps, spending his first five to six years in the U.S. fishing on a sub chaser that saw action in Normandy during the invasion.

Reidar Bendiksen is a Norwegian fisherman who has been in the fishing industry since 1963. After 25 years of fishing, he transitioned into the fishing gear business, where he continues to work up to the present. James M. Dwyer Jr., also known as Jim Dwyer, has been involved in the fishing industry for the last forty-seven years. For the past twenty-two years, he has served as the Secretary, Treasurer, and Business Agent for the Local 1749, ILA, also known as the Lumpers Union.

Anita Best, born in 1948, is a female singer hailing from St. John’s, Newfoundland. Raised on Merasheen Island and later moving to St. John’s, she grew up in a family deeply connected to the fishing trade. Her father and brothers were fishermen, and she was immersed in the seasonal aspects of fishing and fish processing.

Ms. Blount, president of the Blount shipbuilding business, speaks about her involvement in the fishing industry and pressures on the business from waterfront development.

Willis Blount, a distinguished fisherman and shipbuilder, was born in Putnam, Connecticut, in 1945. He inherited his maritime passion from a family deeply entrenched in shipbuilding and fishing traditions. Blount's early exposure to the maritime world led him to develop a connection to both shipbuilding and fishing. His journey encompassed innovative contributions to the industry and a lifelong dedication to the sea.

Laurie Botelho, a native of Puerto Rico, is a dedicated and passionate entrepreneur in the fishing industry. With a background in food-borne illness and a deep understanding of the fishing community, Laurie embarked on a journey to provide a vital product for fishermen. Her company specializes in manufacturing high-quality scallop bags, which play a crucial role in preserving the catch and ensuring fishermen adhere to regulations. Starting her business in New Bedford, Massachusetts, Laurie recognized the importance of creating a consistent and reliable product.