MIASF elects new board members
The Marine Industries Association of South Florida (MIASF) held its annual meeting virtually on June 24 using the Zoom platform. With both live and videotaped portions of the event emceed by former Denver Bronco’s running back, broadcaster, and author, Reggie Rivers, the association’s first virtual annual meeting was followed by an online after party with live music and open chat room.
Doug West, president of Lauderdale Marine Center and chairman of the MIASF Board of Directors, announced the newly and re-elected members.
New members to the board include:
- Julie Berry of Marina Investments Group Stiles Realty
- Tyler Chappell of the Chappell Group
- Michael Kelly of Bradford Marine
- Glenn Allen of Fleet Miami
Dean DuToit of National Marine Suppliers and Andrew Doole of Informa Markets U.S. Boat Shows were also re-elected to the MIASF board.
Phil Purcell, MIASF CEO/president, said, “In an unprecedented time in modern history, MIASF is incredibly fortunate to have exemplary thought leaders and business minds at its helm. We are equally fortunate to have talented staff who did not miss a beat when planning the annual meeting and impressively pivoted to producing and executing an entertaining and informative online event that could easily become a model for others to replicate.”
Award winners were also announced through video and live recognition, and included Award of Excellence Winners Bob Crawford, director of Atlantic Technical College, and Bill Walker, president of Water Taxi. Advocacy awards were presented to Senator Marco Rubio, Congressman Ted Deutch, Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Ben Sorensen, and U.S. Coast Guard Captain of the Port Jo-Ann Burdian.
The prestigious Golden Anchor Award, which recognizes a lifetime achievement for work in the marine industry, was presented to MIASF industry liaison, Patience Cohn, for her many years of selfless service and passion for the industry.
Additionally, the Frank Herhold Memorial Scholarship was presented to Marissa Mehlrose, who is in the second year of her marine science master’s program at Nova Southeastern University, where she is studying the shortfin Mako shark population.
A keynote speech was delivered by Patrick Lahey, president of Triton Submarines from Sebastian, Fla., who builds ultra-sophisticated submersibles for high profile ocean explorers like Ray Dalio, founder of the well-known investment firm Bridgewater Associates, who also founded the exploration initiative OceanX, James Cameron the film producer, and Victor Vescovo, a billionaire adventurer who, with the help of Lahey and his team, dove to the deepest points in the five oceans on Earth and is the subject of the Discovery Challenge documentary, Deep Planet.
