Nearly 200 divers came together this past weekend at the second annual reunion held by the Oilfield Divers Board. Divers from across the country, who have ties to Morgan City, joined local divers at the gathering.
A poster currently stands in place of what will be a granite wall honoring all divers and telling the story of how Morgan City was the epicenter of the start of an international industry of oilfield diving.
It will have the same wording as the current poster and feature pictures of diving hats.
Bryce Merrill is a resident of Morgan City from Canada. He was a diver for 20 years. He said through this project of connecting divers, they are able to help fund diving education.
“South Louisiana Community College is kind of a hidden gem of dive schools cause there are not many left in the U.S.,” Merrill said.
“They’re the least expensive one. And it’s a really good training. They get a seven month course. So when you donate $20,000 chunks to an endowment fund, the state will match it dollar for dollar. So we gave three $1,000 scholarships this year, plus $20,000 and we had some money left over. And this weekend we raised over $11,000 and that will go towards another $20,000 towards the endowment fund.”
Merrill said they are hoping to end up with $80,000 dollars for the dive school. He hopes when visitors read the wall they remember the sacrifice oilfield divers went through, and hopes it inspires current generations.
Merrill is a curator at Diving & R.O.V. Historical Preservation Museum in Morgan City.
