Award winning dive shop finds God underwater
BURLINGTON, ON—If you're searching for some quiet time alone with God this summer, Brad and Tammy Snyder suggest you try looking underwater.
"I spend so much time underwater just praising God for his creation," says Brad of Float N' Flag Dive Centre. "You really get to see some of God's spectacular works up close; which very few people ever get to see. From tiny pygmy seahorses an eighth of an inch tall to great white sharks."
"Most dives are about an hour," Tammy adds, "and you can't talk because you have your regulator in your mouth. So a lot of the time when I'm underwater I just find myself in prayer, relaxed and at peace with God's creation."
The Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI) recently recognized Float N'Flag as the number one dive shop for business excellence in Canada. They were also ranked one of the top in North America.
"Which is a huge honour for our tiny little shop," Tammy says.
The family-run shop provides scuba diving training, coaching and equipment. They also run diving tours around the world. Among their most popular are the "mystery tours" where divers don't find out where they are going until they arrive at the airport.
"All they know is that they're going somewhere warm," Brad says, "and they need to bring their scuba gear."
While the Snyders have gone diving in exotic locations worldwide, they say people shouldn't underestimate Canada's local dives. The Great Lakes alone have over 10,000 shipwrecks.
"Learning to dive is much easier than people think," Brad says.
Float N' Dive run courses all year round, with small instructor student ratios. They strongly urge Canadians not to wait until they are already on vacation to try taking a diving course, pointing out that while PADI is a globally recognized standard in safe diving training, the instruction offered at holiday resorts can be hit and miss.
"We're all about safety," Tammy says, "and people have really noticed that when they go on vacation. We hear a lot of horror stories."
"And why let it take up your vacation time?" Brad adds, "Why not do it here while it's cold and miserable outside?"
The Snyders are also part of the Heroes' Foundation—which provides an annual summer camp at Wesley Acres for the children of military parents—and teach the camp's water sports program.
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