Women Divers Hall of Fame | |
 | |
| Abbreviation | WDHOF |
|---|---|
| Legal status | Nonprofit tax-exempt 501C(3)[1] |
| Purpose | To honor the accomplishments of women divers |
Region served | International |
| Fields | Women in underwater diving |
| Membership | 254 (2023) |
President | Robin Parish[2] |
Chair | Mary Connelly[2] |
Vice President | Heather Armstrong[2] |
Secretary | Dawn Kernagis[2] |
| Website | https://www.wdhof.org |
TheWomen Divers Hall of Fame (WDHOF) is an internationalhonor society. Its purpose is to honor the accomplishments of women divers,[3][4][5]
The WDHOF was founded in 1999 by a group of people and organizations, including theUnderwater Society of America.[6][7] 72 women were inducted in 2000, followed by 26 new members the next year.[8]
The WDHOF awards many scholarships and training grants[9] to support women of "all ages who are pursuing careers involving diving"[10] including the J. Berman Memorial Grant for Sea Turtle Conservation, the Sherry Reed Memorial Undergraduate Marine Conservation Scholarship, theLaurel Clark Sea to Space Physiology Research Grant and theAmelia Behrens-Furniss Memorial Hardhat Dive Training Grant.[11][12][13]
As of 2023, there are 254 members.[14] They include:
| Name | Dates | Induction | Details |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pamela Balash-Webber | 1953-2020 | 2022 | Co-founder of the Virgin Islands Diving Association,PADI course director, and promoter of ocean conservation |
| Carole Baldwin | 2022 | Scientist, author, and educator. An authority on marine biology, especially tropical-marine fishes, conservation and sustainable seafood | |
| Sally Bauer | 2011 | Diving museum founder and historian, aquaculturist, author, and public speaker[15] | |
| Amelia Behrens-Furniss | 1895-1970 | 2012 | Pioneering American deep sea diver |
| Wendy Benchley | 2015 | Marine conservation leader, governmental policy advocate, and spokesperson on shark conservation[16] | |
| Bette Bolivar | 1962- | 2005 | US Navy Diving and Salvage Officer; commanding Officer ofUSS Salvor, and of the Navy Mobile Diving and Salvage Unit[17] |
| Mary Bonnin | 2001 | First womanUS Navy Master Diver; US Navy diving instructor; naval diving safety advocate[18] | |
| Cathy Church | 1945- | 2000 | American marine biologist, SCUBA diver, underwater photographer and educator |
| Eugenie Clark | 1922-2015 | 2022 | An American ichthyologist known for both her research on shark behaviour and her study of fish in the orderTetraodontiformes; a pioneer in the field of scuba diving for research purposes |
| Laurel B. Clark | 1961-2003 | 2003 | Clark did active duty training with the Diving Medicine Department at theUnited States Navy Experimental Diving Unit; completed Navy undersea medical officer training at the Naval Undersea Medical Institute inGroton, Connecticut, and diving medical officer training at the Naval Diving and Salvage Training Center; she dove with Navy divers andNaval Special Warfare Unit Two SEALs and performed many medical evacuations from US submarines; designated as a Naval Submarine Medical Officer and Diving Medical Officer |
| Céline Cousteau | 1972- | 2011 | |
| Annie Crawley | 1968- | 2010 | American underwater photographer,[19]filmmaker,speaker, educator, and ocean advocate.[20] In 2007, she founded Dive Into Your Imagination, a multimedia ocean inspiration, entertainment, and education series for youth.[21] |
| Mandy-Rae Cruickshank | 1974- | 2009 | Canadian World championfree-diver and record-holder |
| Sylvia Earle | 1935- | 2000 | Oceanographer and marine biologist (former Chief Scientist at NOAA), author and consultant |
| Dottie Frazier | 1922-2022 | 2000 | American diver and dive shop owner; the first femalescuba instructor and the first femaledive shop owner.[22] |
| Honor Frost | 1917-2010 | 2019 | Pioneer in the field ofunderwater archaeology, who led Mediterranean archaeological investigations and was noted for her typology of stone anchors and skills inarchaeological illustration |
| Szilvia Gogh | 2016[23] | Hungarian diver and stunt performer, the youngest female PADI Course Director | |
| Lotte Hass | 1928-2015 | 2000 | Austrian underwater diver, model and actress |
| Hillary Hauser | 1944- | 2000 | Americanphotojournalist andenvironmental activist with a focus on theoceans —underwater diving adventure, politics, and conservation |
| Mehgan Heaney-Grier | 1977- | 2000 | American champion free-diver |
| Jill Heinerth | 1965- | 2000 | Canadian cave diver, underwater explorer, writer, photographer and film-maker |
| Denise Herzing | 2021 | Founder and Research Director of the Wild Dolphin Project[24] | |
| Lauren Hutton | 1943- | 2007 | Conservationist and scuba advocate |
| Darlene Iskra | 1952- | 2008 | US Navy diving and salvage officer, first woman to command a commissioned US Navy ship, public speaker, and author |
| Karen Kohanowich | 2001 | Retired U.S. Naval officer and ocean research and technology program manager for theNational Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA)'s Office of Ocean Exploration and Research (OER) | |
| Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo | 2007 | ||
| Dení Ramírez Macías | 1978- | 2021 | Mexicanmarine biologist ocean scientist, and conservationist, and director of Whale Shark México (Tiburon Ballena Mexico)[25] |
| Andrea Marshall | 2023 | marine biologist known forwildlife conservation and research on large marine animals likemanta rays &whale sharks; co-founder and a principal scientist of theMarine Megafauna Foundation | |
| Simone Melchior-Cousteau[26] | 1919-1990 | 2017 | First womanscuba diver andaquanaut; wife and business partner of undersea explorerJacques-Yves Cousteau |
| Audrey Mestre | 1974-2002 | 2002 | French world record-settingfreediver |
| Zale Parry | 1933- | 2000 | American pioneer scuba diver, underwater photographer and actress |
| Penelope Powell | 1904-1965 | 2023 | Pioneering cave diver in 1935[27][28] |
| Lesley Rochat[29] | 2010 | South African marine and shark conservationist,[30] campaigner,[31] wildlife filmmaker, underwater photographer,[32][33] environmental writer,[34] author, speaker[35] and activist.[36] She founded the non-profit organisation AfriOceans Conservation Alliance | |
| Dee Scarr | 2000 | American environmentalist, marine naturalist, and scuba diver | |
| Claudia Serpieri | 2002 | Italian world-recordtechnical diver and instructor | |
| Heidemarie Stefanyshyn-Piper | 1963- | 2007 | Americansalvage officer. Projects include de-stranding thetankerExxon Houston off the coast ofBarbers Point, on the island ofOahu,Hawaii, and developing the plan for thePeruvian Navy salvage of the Peruvian submarine |
| Tanya Streeter | 1973- | 2000 | British-Caymanian-American world champion freediver |
| Kathryn Sullivan | 1951- | 2008 | American, first woman to dive into the Challenger Deep in the Mariana Trench |
| Valerie Taylor | 1935- | 2000 | Australian diver, underwater photographer and film maker |
| Donna Tobias | 1952-2010 | 2001 | United States Navy's first femaledeep sea diver |
| Ruth Turner | 1914-2000 | 2001 | Pioneering U.S.marine biologist andmalacologist |
| Michele Westmorland | 2011 | American photographer, specializing in underwater photography | |
| Susan Williams | 1951-2018 | 2019 | American marine biologist |
| Jill Yager[37] | 2000 | American zoologist and cave diver | |
| Cristina Zenato[38] | 1971- | 2011 | Shark protection consultant; TDI and NSS-CDS technical and full cave instructor; explorer, surveyor and mapper of cave systems; and ocean advocate |
Directors 2025 was invoked but never defined (see thehelp page).
