Martha
Watkins-Gilkes, originally from Mississippi, is the owner and operator and established Fanta Sea Island Divers in 1979 on the island
of Barbados. She now makes her home base on the island of Antigua. Link
Martha
is a graduate of Mississippi State University and holds an MA degree.
She is
a certified PADI (Professional Association of Diving Instructors) Master Diving Instructor
(#13683). She has been diving for over 30 years and instructing for over 20 years. In
addition to the certification of an open water instructor she holds instructor ratings in
Medic First Aid, Underwater Photography, Wreck Diving, Night Diving, Deep Diving,
Underwater Collecting, and Equipment Repair.
High-level
diver ratings also held are through the International Diving Educator Association (IDEA),
Confederation Mondiale des Activities Subaquatiques (CMAS), the British Sub Aqua Diving
Association (BSAC) and the Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA).
In
January 1994 Martha was presented the Platinum Pro 5000 Hour Diver Award for logging scuba
dives over 20 years in a variety of fresh and salt water locals, including cave, cold
water and tropical diving.
Martha
has dived all over the world, including the Red Sea, South Pacific (Hawaii, Yap, Fiji,
Palau, Papua New Guinea, Truk, Micronesia), the English Channel, throughout the Caribbean
(Belize, Saba, Dutch West Indies, Lesser and Greater Antilles islands, Venezuela and
surrounding Islands, the USVI and the BVIs, and the Galapagos).
Since
1994 she has served as the Diving Liaison Officer of the Antigua and Barbuda Historical
and Archeological Society, and in 1998 was admitted as a fellow member of the Explorers
Club of New York City. For 20 years she has worked as an underwater model and assistant to
international underwater filmmaker Stan
Waterman.
She is
a photojournalist specializing in underwater photography and dive travel writing, and has
published "A DIVING GUIDE TO THE EASTERN CARIBBEAN". A sequel to
this guide will be published in the very near future. Link
Martha Watkins-Gilkes
Martha
also owns and operates FantaSea Island Expeditions, a dive travel company
specialising in exclusive travel to exotic dive destinations. Additional information is
available upon request. Link
Martha
inducted into the Women Diver's Hall of Fame! Link
Martha now elected President of Women Divers' Hall of Fame! Link
New! Martha receives Wyland
Icom Award Link
New! Martha receives Diver
Of the Year in Environment at Beneath The Sea Link.
For over 30 years Martha Watkins Gilkes has been a dynamic leader in dive retail
operation, training, education, photojournalism, historic shipwreck documentation and
marine conservation. Martha is based in Antigua, West Indies, where she owns and operates
two diving businesses Fanta-Sea Island Divers, a retail scuba diving shop providing
training and certification and Fanta-Sea Island Excursions, a travel company specializing
in exclusive travel to remote dive locations throughout the Eastern Caribbean and world
wide. She is a leading diver/explorer of the Eastern Caribbean, having explored and
documented shipwrecks on 14 Caribbean Islands and worldwide and is the author of Diving
Guide to the Eastern Caribbean and Shipwrecks of the Caribbean. She has published
numerous articles and photographs and is featured in Diving With Legends, a
unique book sponsored by the Swiss Company, Doxa Watches, featuring some of the
world’s top professional divers and legends of the diving world.
Martha has logged over 12,000 dives in a wide variety of
marine environments and has numerous instructor and specialty ratings in scuba diving. She
is considered one of the premier underwater guides in the Caribbean and has led underwater
expeditions for such notables as Stan Waterman, Teddy Tucker, and the late great Peter
Benchley. Since 1981, Martha has worked as an underwater model and photo and dive
assistant to Stan Waterman on locations around the world as well as with several noted
British photographers.
For 10 years she served as President of the Barbados based Eastern Caribbean Safe
Diving Association and played a key role in obtaining the first recompression chamber in
the Southern Caribbean. She serves as the Diving Liaison Officer for the Historical and
Archeological Society of Antigua and Barbuda and holds membership in The Historical Diving
Society, American Society of Media Photographers, the Explorers Club, and is a Platinum
Pro 5000 Diver. She served as President of the Women
Divers Hall of Fame (WDHOF) for 4 years and is presently Fund Raising Chair for
WDHOF.
One of Martha’s most important contributions to diving is marine conservation, for
which she has been an outspoken force throughout the Eastern Caribbean. Martha serves as
Public Relations Officer (since 2001) of Antigua Barbuda Independent Tourism Promotion
Corporation (ABITPC), an environmental organization, and led 3 national clean ups of
Antigua and legal action which resulted in the Government of Antigua rescinding a license
to capture 12 wild dolphins annually and the eventual closure of an inferior captive
dolphin facility on the island of Antigua. She is a major player in local, regional, international
conferences against dolphin and whale exploitation. Her advocacy speeches to
protect ocean inhabitants can be heard on radio and television newscasts.
In 2006, Martha was listed in the United Nations Environmental Programme’s Who's Who of
Women and the Environment, and she co-produced, with HAMA Productions, the
Caribbean documentary, "Whaling
in Our Waters.” The anti-whaling cause has been one Martha has been very
actively involved in which has included the production of 3 Public service announcements
aired throughout the Caribbean
In May 2009 Martha was presented the Wyland Ambassador Award for her environmental
work. It was awarded by Wyland after she implemented and organized the
painting of a life size marine mural in Antigua by Wyland. The event included 150 school
children on the island of Antigua painting with Wyland. With the event’s main focus
on marine conservation.
In November 2010 she was presented the Wyland
Icon Award, which recognizes the achievements of those who have made a positive
difference for the underwater world. The award was founded by internationally acclaimed
marine artist Wyland in 2002 to acknowledge individuals who exemplify the adventurous
spirit of the ocean and inspire others to do the same and has been presently to only 25
people. She was the 6th woman to receive the award and joins such notables as
Jacques’ Cousteau, Lloyd Bridges, and Robert Ballard of Titanic fame. In 2011, Martha
was honored as Diver of the Year in Environment at Beneath
the Sea's Annual Convention
