Vacations can be all about rest and relaxation. Other times, they're about trying new activities.

One of the most popular activities is scuba diving.

While people may not think of Buffalo as a scuba diving hot spot, it does have a pretty special history at one local business. Two Western New Yorkers took over the shop after losing their mentor to a terminal illness.

What You Need To Know

  • Dave Johns opened Professional Scuba in 1988

  • He passed away in 2019

  • Two of his students took over running the shop in memory of him

“So with the world opening up, people are a lot more apt to travel, and when they travel, they like to do things while they’re there," said Matthew Carroll, Hamburg’s Professional Scuba's owner. "One of the things they really like to do is learn how to scuba dive. It opens up an entire adventure under water and a whole new world that very few people really get to see in their lifetime."

Carroll is sharing his passion with others.

“When you are scuba diving, it’s basically like being in space. You are completely weightless. You are perfectly buoyant,” adds Carroll.

Professional Scuba is a dive center which teaches people how to scuba dive from open water to professional level. Carroll and the shop’s other owner Mike Dates never planned on joining the scuba diving business.

“Dave Johns opened up this shop in 1988," said Dates. "He was our instructor and our mentor for several years. He passed away in 2019. We basically took over the shop from Dave. We didn’t want the shop to close. It’s been an icon here for several years...three decades or more … and it was important for us to keep the shop open and his legacy going."

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the way scuba diving is being taught began to change, but for those in the profession, like Carroll and Dates, the love for the activity has stayed exactly the same. Now a lot of the classroom work has transitioned into online learning. This is a change that the owners believe will have staying power not just in Western New York, but all over. After that phase, students move onto pool sessions and open-water dives.

To learn more about how to learn how to scuba dive, visit https://www.proscubabuffalo.com.