• 0Shopping Cart
FreediveSafe! Hawaii
  • About
    • Mission and Vision
    • Freediver Blackout
    • Team
    • Programs
    • Contact
  • Get Involved
    • Donate
    • Participate
    • Volunteer
  • Events
  • News
  • Shop
  • Donate
  • Register
  • Menu Menu
Freediver rescuing diver

Waimea, Big Island Safety Training Event – May 28, 2022

May 24, 2022/in News /by Nicola Stepanek

USA National Spearfishing Champion Justin Lee returns from his outdoor adventure travels to lead another youth event at Hawaii Preparatory Academy (HPA) on May 28, 2022. This safety training is free and open to the public for 12- to 25-year-old Hawaii island residents. It will run from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. on the HPA campus.

We encourage our Big Island community members to spread the word about this upcoming safety event to help ensure our young divers are trained in important freediving safety protocols as we enter the key summer season for diving. This free training has been proven to save lives—watch here.

Register on our Events page!

Big Island Youth Spearfishing Safety Training Hilo

April 1, 2022/in News /by Nicola Stepanek

A huge thank you to our students for joining us in Hilo! We were impressed with your dedication to learning, and even though it was a long day, you worked hard, and everyone passed the course! Twenty-one safer spearfishers on the Big Island of Hawai’i!

Now you need to promise us and your ‘ohana that you’ll use these safety protocols on every dive.

Mahalo to our FII certified instructor team Justin Lee, Mike Jutt, Chris Funada, Heidi Hoover, and event organizer Niki Stepanek.

Lastly, thank you to our supporters, County of Hawai’i, and training facilities for ensuring this lifesaving training is available to the community.

Freedivesafe.org is a Hawai’i-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to sharing spearfishing and freediving safety training with Hawaii’s communities.

Does Your Spearfishing Buddy Have Your Back?

September 13, 2021/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek

Once or twice a year, we hear of an elite level diver who died while spearfishing alone. Sadly, most of those experienced divers have been in the sport long enough to have had some exposure to or formal training in safety protocols. In other words, they fully understand the risks that come with ignoring freediving safety protocols. Just as if they were driving without wearing a seat belt or driving under the influence, those divers made the fatal decision to spearfish without a buddy. Whether they believed their experience, amassed from hundreds of dives to much greater depths, would allow them to safely dive “within their limits” and handle any dangerous situations that might arise, or whether they believed shallow water blackout fatalities only happen to other people, we’ll never know. They are no longer with us.

So what happens when you’re spearfishing with an experienced diver you (prior to the session) admire, but the diver is not diving safely? How do you handle those awkward situations? Given that such divers are more experienced and older than we are, shouldn’t we follow their lead? In a word, no.

Every spearfishing session should start with a few safety drills, such as LMC rescue on the surface or blackout underwater. This is a great time to warm up and refresh some of the important safety techniques learned in your formal training. Also, this first five to ten minutes of diving sets the tone for the rest of the session. You know you’re both on the same page, and your dive buddy is putting safety (i.e., your life) first.

Above photo: FII-certified freedivers Dylan Currier and Cory Fults practice shallow water blackout rescue drills on the surface. Image by Perrin James Franta.

 

By asking new dive buddies beforehand if they are formally trained in freediving safety procedures and asking to practice a few safety drills at the start of the session, you’re addressing any safety concerns before entering the water with them. Never assume an older, more experienced spearo will always follow the safety rules or is formally trained in safety procedures.During the session, if you notice your partner is distracted by the environment, a friendly reminder before you start your dive like, “Hey, safety, are you watching me?” should bring your partner’s focus back to the number one job. If your partner remains distracted, then it’s time to pull the plug. If you value your life and your buddy won’t follow the safety procedures, then you must finish the dive session. There is a real and present risk that one of you may not come home that night. It’s not only the unsafe diver who’s at risk; you are too because your partner doesn’t have your back. A few minutes of uncomfortable conversation with your dive buddy to end the session is a million times easier than explaining to a hysterical, grieving mother, father, spouse, or child how a loved one died under your watch.

While unsafe and unethical spearos commonly are blacklisted from spearfishing trips, safe spearos become highly sought-after dive buddies, not because they pass the vibe check or are killer spearos but because they have proven an unwavering commitment to following safety protocols. You know that person has your back. Those are the people you should admire.

FreediveSafe! offers formal freediving and spearfishing training to the local community at no cost. To register your interest in an upcoming event, please preregister at www.freedivesafe.org.

shallow water blackout safety protocals

Key freediving and spearfishing safety rules everyone must follow to FreediveSafe!

 

 

 

FREEDIVESAFE! HOSTS SUCCESSFUL YOUTH EVENT IN KONA

August 6, 2021/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek
On July 31-Aug 1, FreediveSafe hosted a hugely successful spearfishing safety event for 21 local youth in Kona, Hawai’i.  The students assembled from all over the Big Island from Mountain View to Hamakua, and completed the FII Basic Freediving Safety course with FII freediving instructors, Heidi Hoover, Sandra Hammel and Martin Stepanek. Big Island native and USA spearfishing team member, Justin Lee opened the event with a short talk on the importance of following proper safety protocols for spearfishing and how the training has positively impacted his freediving. The event was generously supported by local dive shops, Kona Freedivers and Ali’i Adventures and the event was covered by West Hawaii Today.
Read the article here – https://www.westhawaiitoday.com/2021/08/02/hawaii-news/dive-safe-nonprofit-freedivesafe-hawaii-holds-safety-program-in-kona/
FreediveSafe! Hawaii - Freediving and Spearfishing Safety Training Kona

SPEARFISHING SAFETY TRAINING EVENT TO TARGET LOCAL HAWAI’I ISLAND YOUTH

July 21, 2021/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT:

FreediveSafe! Hawai’i

73-5737 Kuakini Hwy, Suite 202

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740

Phone 808-900-3331

www.freedivesafe.org

info@freedivesafe.org

 

FREEDIVESAFE! ANNOUNCES CRITICAL SAFETY TRAINING FOR DIVERS

SPEARFISHING SAFETY TRAINING EVENT TO  TARGET LOCAL YOUTH

 

Kailua-Kona, Hawaii, July 21, 2021: FreediveSafe, a nonprofit that works to provide lifesaving freediving and spearfishing safety training to all of Hawaii’s local communities, announced today it has launched an essential free community program to ensure everyone has access to critical freediving/spearfishing safety training.

With more than 50 percent of all Hawaii resident ocean fatalities related to spearfishing and freediving, FreediveSafe’s comprehensive initiative is the first to prevent freediving and spearfishing related deaths in Hawaii.

“Our sole goal is to ensure important modern safety training – proven to mitigate the dangers of this sport – is available to everyone who needs it,” said Niki Stepanek, Founder. “ We provide freediving/spearfishing safety training and presentations throughout the Hawaiian Island chain to ensure everyone’s safety and security. This safety training is critically important to all those — especially youth — who freedive or spearfish as it could be lifesaving in a difficult situation.”

In fact, FreediveSafe’s training is the minimum level of training required to safely participate in the sport of spearfishing. That is why FreediveSafe will be hosting its next event for local spearfisherman between the age of 12 and 22. The event will be hosted in Kailua-Kona on July 31 and August 1, 2021, with a maximum of 20 students led by local Freediving Instructors International (F.I.I.) certified freediving instructors Heidi Hoover and Sandra Hammel with gear support provided by Kona Freedivers.

Most freedivers and spearfisherman often underestimate the safety risks of the respective sports.   Depth is only one of the many variables that defines how taxing  a freedive can be on a diver’s oxygen. While most people strive to dive within their limits, one of the first symptoms of mild hypoxia (low oxygen) is confusion and faulty judgment. In other words, divers never really know for sure if they are within their limits while freediving/spearfishing — proving that a formally trained buddy is key to staying safe. The FreediveSafe! safety program ensures everyone can enjoy freediving and spearfishing responsibly and help ensure every diver comes home safe.

For more information, please contact Niki Stepanek info@freedivesafe.org or call 808-900-331.

Interested students can register for the event at www.freedivesafe.org.

About FreediveSafe!

FreediveSafe! Hawaii, 501(c)3 registered nonprofit was born from the desperate need to stop the rise of freediving and spearfishing related deaths in Hawai’i. We are a team of freediving professionals, from national record holders to subsistence spearfishermen, who care about our community. FreediveSafe! is the only freediving and spearfishing safety nonprofit organization in Hawai’i.

 

 

FreediveSafe! Awarded 501(c)3 Status

March 7, 2021/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek

We are proud to announce FreediveSafe! is now a public charity with tax-exempt status under  Section 501(c)3 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. The granting of nonprofit status is a major milestone for our organization, and we are excited to provide freediving and spearfishing safety training to our communities.

Thank you all for your participation and support of our freediving and spearfishing safety initiative.

 

December Newsletter

December 2, 2020/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek

As we enter the Christmas holidays, we’d like to take moment to thank you all for your participation and support of our freediving and spearfishing safety initiative.

Since launching FreediveSafe! Hawai’i in August 2020, we have trained over 43 people in lifesaving freediving and spearfishing safety protocols. This is nearly double our initial four month goal!  Of those 43 students, 70% were between 12-21 years old,  99% were spearfishing or freediving without proper training, and over 50% knew someone who had died spearfishing. In addition to the young diver enrolment, we’ve also had many parents join the class interested in learning about the dangers of the sport to better educate their young children, and other parents. This is an essential step towards ensuring this training reaches those just starting out in the sport hopefully leading to “safety training before three-prong” approach.

As our students are learning, freediving and spearfishing safely isn’t difficult, but it does require a commitment from both divers to follow key safety protocols. For breathhold diving, this means both divers attending the formal safety training and both divers swearing to adhere to these safety protocols for the rest of their life. For Every. Single. Dive.

As anticipated, the pandemic has greatly impacted our ability to travel between islands, take larger class sizes and County pools remain closed to group reservations, but we are forging ahead determind to get this lifesaving spearfishing training out there. To adapt, we’ve been hosting classroom sessions in heavily ventilated classrooms, outdoors under gazebos, over Zoom and running the practical training in protected coastal bays on the Big Island and Oahu. Our precautions and your kokua have made these sessions a great success and we’ve had such a great time meeting everyone.

Many community members have been asking how they can help us. Firstly, by registering your kids or attending the training with your dive buddy, you’ve made a significant impact. Beyond this, we ask that you can continue to help us by spreading the word in the community. If you know a spearfisher or freediver that hasn’t taken any formal safety training, tell them to join our FREE program. Our next course is January 10th, 2021 in Kona, and we look forward to releasing more dates soon.

A huge mahalo to our volunteer instructor team, Heidi Hoover, Chris Funada, Dan Koval, Kristin Kuba, Mike Jutt, Martin Stepanek, Dylan Currier, and Cory Fults. Our support facility, Kona Freedivers/Kona Honu Divers and business owner Byron Kay, Freediving Instructors International (F.I.I.), our generous donors, Board of Directors, and to all of you helping our mission towards a safer ocean community!

Mele Kalikimaka, Happy New Year and as always, FreediveSafe! Hawaii.

This is an Emergency

August 2, 2020/0 Comments/in News, Public Service Announcements /by Nicola Stepanek

From May to July 2020, we lost five members of the freediving and spearfishing community in Hawai’i. The divers, who were between 15 and 52 years of age, were freediving at Ka’ena Point, O’ahu; Ka’a’awa, O’ahu; Mahukona, Big Island; Old A’s, Big Island and Paia, Maui. As these tragedies unfolded, the media shared heart-wrenching images of the families and friends of these divers. The blow to our community was insufferable and something had to be done to ensure formal freediving/spearfishing safety training was widely available to the public at no cost.

From these tragedies, FreediveSafe! Hawaii was born with a mission to create sustainable, long-term change by launching a FREE community program to train divers in safe freediving protocols proven to mitigate the risks of this sport. By dramatically increasing the availability of this lifesaving training, together we can combat the increase of freediving and spearfishing deaths in Hawai’i.

As FreediveSafe! Hawaii, our mission is to ensure this critical training is provided to everyone who needs it. But achieving that will require a community effort. If you care about the safety of your community and are moved to take action from these recent tragedies, we’re asking you to help FreediveSafe! Hawaii on its mission. Whether it’s encouraging a friend to register for the program, talking story, donating, or putting a FreediveSafe! Hawaii sticker on your truck, every effort matters! Help us get word out and together, let’s prevent freediving related deaths in the islands.

Niki Stepanek
Founder, FreediveSafe! Hawaii
Ph: 808-900-3331
E: info@FreediveSafe.org

Latest Posts

  • Freediver rescuing diverWaimea, Big Island Safety Training Event – May 28, 2022May 24, 2022 - 11:07 pm
  • Big Island Youth Spearfishing Safety Training HiloApril 1, 2022 - 4:29 am
  • Does Your Spearfishing Buddy Have Your Back?September 13, 2021 - 8:09 pm

Shop Our Store

  • FreediveSafe! Unisex Tri-Blend Tee - Vintage Red $26.00
  • FreediveSafe! Unisex Cotton Tee - Vintage Black $26.00
  • FreediveSafe! OTTO Trucker Hat - Black $25.00

(808) 900-3331 | 75-5737 Kuakini Hwy, Suite 202 | Kailua-Kona, HI 96740
info@freedivesafe.org | 501(c)(3) Registered Nonprofit

  • Our Mission
  • Our Programs
  • Register
  • Latest News
  • Our Store
  • Donate

freedivesafehawaii

We're super stoked to see this article on our work We're super stoked to see this article on our work by Free Range American www.freerangeamerican.us and @bigisleboy24. It's a great read, go check it out! Photos by @_akrphotography

“These kids get to listen to somebody that they watch their videos online and that they see on Instagram with fish,” Lee said. “It’s so cool to go to these classes and these kids are just sitting on the edge of the seat listening to what you’re saying."

"I tell them, I’ve gotten to see parts of this world that this little Honaka’a boy probably shouldn’t have ever gotten to see,” he said. “But because spearfishing was such a big part of who I am and what I like to do, and advancing the way that I did by doing it safely — that it was my ticket around the world.” @bigisleboy24

Read the full article at www.freerangeamerican.us

#hawaiifishing #hawaiihunting #spearfishinghawaii
#spearfishingsafety
#freedivesafehawaii
#freediverblackout
Our next Big Island youth freediving/spearfishing Our next Big Island youth freediving/spearfishing safety event will be hosted in Kailua-Kona on Sunday, 24th July with @moistmaninis and @merlifehawaii. This full day safety training event is FREE and open to 12-25-year-old Big Island residents. 
Participants must pre-register at www.freedivesafe.org 

We've been having a great year and we're stoked to have already trained forty eight Big Island youth in spearfishing safety! Let's keep it up! 🤙🏽

#hawaiioceansafety
#spearfishingsafety #hawaiifishing #freedivesafehawaii #kona @_popsspearfishingshop_ @konafreedivers @evolvediving #konatown
Our first FREE community safety event on Maui! Mah Our first FREE community safety event on Maui! Mahalo to the County of Maui for granting us permission to host the first spearfishing safety training event on the island! This training is so important for our community and pool access is key to sharing this safety training with our community. Mahalo to our volunteer instructors @garrettandrewmoss and @lionsdenfreediving for teaching the event. Congratulations to our wonderful group of students who showed up on a Sunday to learn lifesaving skills to stay safe while spearfishing. 

We love this sport and want everyone to enjoy it safely!!!!

www.freedivesafe.org 

#spearfishinghawaii #hawaiispearfishing #freediverblackout  #hawaiifishing
We're super excited to return to Kaunakakai on Jul We're super excited to return to Kaunakakai on July 9th, 2022  to share this important safety training with the residents of Molokai! FreediveSafe! Board of Directors member @tpupuhi is a Molokai waterwomen and she's played a key role in the development of FreediveSafe! Hawaii. 

The event will be hosted during the Molokai Holokai Hol'olaule'a, a 2-day paddle festival hosted by Youth in Motion and the Stand Up Paddle Association of Molokai, sponsored by County of Maui and the Hawaii Tourism Authority. The FreediveSafe team will be participating in this paddling event to raise awareness for spearfishing fatalities in the islands. This is going to be a fun event and we're excited to be a part of it! 

See you soon Molokai 🤙🏽🤙🏽🤙🏽

#molokai #hawaiispearfishing #imua #letsgo!
Thanks for joining us, Kirah! We really enjoy shar Thanks for joining us, Kirah! We really enjoy sharing this important safety training with our young divers. Most of us didn't have access to this training when we started out spearfishing or freediving and we weren't aware of the risks involved in the sport. By making these courses accessible we are ensuring the next generation is starting out on the right foot and can enjoy this incredible sport, safely!

 www.freedivesafe.org
FreediveSafe! Hawai'i, 501(C)(3) is providing spea FreediveSafe! Hawai'i, 501(C)(3) is providing spearfishing and freediving safety training to Hawai'i residents at no cost. This video was shot during our recent 2022 Big Island Youth Spearfishing Safety course at Hawaii Preparatory Academy in Waimea on May 28, 2022. 

The event was lead by USA National Spearfishing Champion, Justin Lee whom many of these young divers look up as their role model! Mahalo to Justin Lee @bigisleboy24 for inspiring and leading our Hawai'i spearfishing community to safer waters. Mahalo to FII Instructors Dylan Currier @thesaltyskipper, Sandy Hammel @sandyseabottom and event organizer Niki Stepanek @nikistepanek.

And thank you to our volunteer team of Moheni , Phin and Jason Wooldridge, Jen Brant, Julia Donath, and Alyssa Rodrigues. 

This program was supported by Kukio Community Fund, Kona Sports Center, and Freediving Instructors International with gear support provided by Kohala Divers. 

www.freedivesafe.org, a 501(C)(3) Hawaii-based nonprofit organization serving the local spearfishing community.

#spearfishinghawaii
Mahalo to our FreediveSafe! Waimea team for anothe Mahalo to our FreediveSafe! Waimea team for another successful event! 

FII Instructors Dylan Currier @makaifreediving @thesaltyskipper,  Sandy Hammel @sandyseabottom

Event Leader & Instructor @bigisleboy24

FreediveSafe! Volunteers Julia Donath @juliadonath, @_allysssa, Moheni, Jason and Phin @saltedberries @hamakua.haole

FreediveSafe! Board of Directors/Secretary @jenbrant 

FreediveSafe! Founder/Event Organizer @nikistepanek 
 
Gear support provided by @kohaladivers

Classroom and pool provided by @hawaiiprep

@hawaiicommunityfoundation
@konasportscenter
@fii_freedive

And everyone who helped spread the word and ensure the success of this event!  #ittakesavillage #behindthescenes #freedivesafehawaii #nonprofitsrunoncommunitylove
Thanks for joining us, Dominic @d.christensen_21 ! Thanks for joining us, Dominic @d.christensen_21 ! We're glad you had a great time, and you're encouraging your friends to take the course! Dive safe 🤙🏽

10/10 🙌

FreediveSafe! Hawai'i
Hawaii Preparatory Academy
Waimea, Big Island 
05-28-2022

#spearfishingsafety #freedivesafehawaii 
#spearfishingfatalityprevention 
#hawaiioceansafety
USA National Spearfishing Champion & FreediveSafe USA National Spearfishing Champion & FreediveSafe Instructor @bigisleboy24 returns from his outdoor adventure travels to lead another youth safety event at Hawaii Preparatory Academy on Saturday, May 28th, 2022. 

We're excited to host another maximum capacity event to help ensure our young divers are trained in important freediving/spearfishing safety training protocols as we enter the key summer months. This free training is proven to save lives!

Mahalo to Justin Lee for volunteering your time to help keep our divers safe!

Photo: Justin with a #winsomelosesomebutitsalwaysfun kine catch. 

www.freedivesafe.org 

#spearfishinghawaij #spearfishing #hawaiifishing #hawaiioceansafety #spearfishingblackoutawareness 
#bigislandspearfishing #freedivesafehawaii #jleestories
We're coming for you, Maui!!! It's been a difficul We're coming for you, Maui!!! It's been a difficult battle to get this event on the books, and we'd like to thank Maui County Parks and Recreation for prioritizing the safety of our divers. 

The event will be hosted at the beautiful Kihei Aquatic Center with FII Instructors @garrettandrewmoss
and @lionsdenfreediving.

Registrations are now open at www.freedivesafe.org.

See you soon!

#mauicounty #spearfishingfatalityprevention #hawaiioceansafety #keihi #mauispearfishing
May is National Water Safety Awareness Month. Here May is National Water Safety Awareness Month. Here is some old data that shows the importance of our work. Since 2011, the sport of freediving has multiplied in popularity - especially amongst our youth!

Freediving and spearfishing accounted for 50% of all fatal ocean incidents involving Hawaii residents between Jan-July 2020 (State of Hawaii Department of Health).

We are entering the most notorious months for spearfishing-related fatalities, and we must raise awareness around the importance of making modern basic freediving safety training free and accessible to all communities. Young lives depend on it!

FreediveSafe! Hawaii is the only 501(C)(3) nonprofit addressing this need in the community. 

Mahalo nui loa to everyone who is supporting our mission. 

www.freedivesafe.org

#freedivesafehawaii
#freedivinghawaii
#spearfishinghawaii
Dylan Currier @thesaltyskipper doing a nice drop t Dylan Currier @thesaltyskipper doing a nice drop to 50 meters/165 feet during an @fii_freedive training session. 

We're excited to have Dylan teaching this weekend at our Waimea event! He is an electrical engineer, spearfisherman, multi-level  FII-certified freediving instructor and owner/operator @makaifreediving. 

www.freedivesafe.org

#hawaiifreediving #hawaiifishing #bigisland #freedivinginstructor #kona #holualoa  #freedivesafehawaii
Load More Follow on Instagram
© Copyright 2020 FreediveSafe! Hawaii | All Rights Reserved | Privacy Policy | Website by PerleMedia
  • Facebook
  • Youtube
  • Instagram
Scroll to top