Captain Sandy Melvin is a seasoned fishing guide with over 30 years of experience in the industry. He specializes in guiding fishing trips for snook, redfish, speckled trout, and tarpon in the backcountry and shallow waters of the Boca Grande area. Sandy also co-owns Gaspar Outfitters, a retail store with a focus on resort wear and outdoor clothing, alongside his wife.

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Sarah Fangman is superintendent of Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary, overseeing management and operations of a protected area covering 2,900 square nautical miles. She was appointed to the position in July 2017 after serving as superintendent of Gray’s Reef National Marine Sanctuary, Georgia. She has been with the Office of National Marine Sanctuaries since 1998, after serving as a US Presidential Management Fellow with NOAA Fisheries in the Northwest and the Marine Mammal Health and Stranding Response Program in Washington, D.C.

Scott Childress was born and raised in Tampa and started fishing at age fifteen, and as an adult got into recreational, then commercial spearfishing out of New Port Richey and, on occasion, Steinhatchee. His inshore fishery is Cedar Key to Tarpon Springs.

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Sean McQuade is a seasoned charter boat captain and commercial fisherman with over 26 years of experience, who moved from Long Island to Florida in 1993. Sean divides his time between charter fishing, commercial fishing, and working as a firefighter. He has been actively engaged in fishing and diving and has witnessed changes in fish populations, water quality, and the occurrence of red tide events in the Fort Myers area.

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Biographical Note:
Sherrie Miller is a resident of Panacea, Florida born on December 19, 1961. She works in her family’s restaurant, Posey’s Restaurant, and serves as the Vice- Chairman of the Panacea Waterfronts Florida Partnership.

On September 30, 2020, Joanne Flanders interviewed Dr. Shirley Pomponi for the Ocean Exploration and Research Collection. Dr. Pomponi discusses her extensive career in ocean exploration, natural product discovery, and her work with human-occupied vehicles. Born in Wilmington, Delaware, in 1949, and raised in Penns Grove, New Jersey, Dr. Pomponi shares insights into her Italian-American heritage and early influences, including her parents' experiences during World War II and her mother's work as a nurse for migrant worker children.

"Dr. Sim Aberson is a meteorologist at NOAA’s Hurricane Research Division, located at AOML in Miami, FL. His research has focused on observing systems to give Hurricane Specialists at the National Hurricane Center information to improve their hurricane forecasts. He participates in NOAA’s annual Hurricane Field Program and has worked with different observing platforms, especially dropwindsondes, to optimize sampling from Hurricane Hunter Aircraft and the way the data are assimilated into forecast models.

Sylvester Dixon became a charter fishing guide after the 1990s net ban, previously he was a commercial fisherman. From a young age, he honed his skills and knowledge of fishing, eventually becoming a guide fisherman with over 20 years of experience. 

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Stephen Francois is a seasoned aerospace engineer who began his career with NASA as a propulsion and mechanical engineer during the Titan/Centaur Program. His journey with NASA started when he applied for a job and was hired after a last-minute call. He received training in various departments at Kennedy Space Center, which equipped him with a broad range of skills and knowledge. Francois played a significant role in the integration of the Titan and Centaur stages for the Viking and Voyager missions.

Dr. Steve Turner was born on May 23, 1949 in Providence, Rhode Island. He began working in 1974 at what was then the Mid Atlantic Fisheries Science Center at the Sandy Hook lab which was merged into the Northeast Fisheries Science Center. He received his PhD from Rutgers University in 1986. He moved to the Southeast Fisheries Science Center from 1984, and is currently the Fisheries Statistics Division Chief at the Southeast Fisheries Science Center in Miami.