Club Allows Scuba Divers to Bond Over Shared Passion

Dennis Petrusovich, a veteran Army Ranger of Wayne, chose to become a scuba diving instructor and start a diving club, Pristine Azul, after losing a good friend and fellow diver.

The two said they would open a club, Pristine Azul, to honor the perfect blue waters in which they dived on a trip in Mexico years ago.

His friend, Eric Mateer, who was an Army veteran and National Guard member, passed away in a free-diving accident. Petrusovich was determined to start the club in his friend’s memory.

“I made the club off a memory of someone who was a brother to me, and I kept it going from there,” Petrusovich said.

Pristine Azul, which started two years ago, has more than 85 members from all over New Jersey and a few from surrounding states. The club meets at least once a month to discuss topics like safety, how to maintain gear and bond over a shared love of diving. They travel to the New Jersey shore to dive, as well as to foreign countries.

This year, they’re travelling to Costa Rica, the Bahamas and doing an aquarium dive in Baltimore. In 2013, they will follow the lead of polar bears and plunge off the coast of Antarctica.

“I love having the ability to give people a sense of freedom,” Petrusovich said.

Growing up, Petrusovich was afraid of the water.

“The water is not an easy thing to face,” he said.

An former high school football player and track star, Petrusovich was never keen on swimming, until he realized he might need the skill while in the military.

“My goal was to conquer my fear in a controlled environment,” Petrusovich said.

And so he did. He realized his passion for diving after taking classes and learning how to swim. Soon after, he got certified to teach and now works at a dive shop in Paramus, 1-877-ScubaUSA.

That’s not all he does, though. Petrusovich works as a social worker in Newark Beth Israel Medical Center and is enrolled in a doctoral program at Fordham to become a Psychotherapist. He is also a volunteer firefighter. The 39-year-old, who thrives on adventure and the energy of other people, has no intention of slowing down anytime soon.

“Working at the scuba shop is great because they let me promote my club, which has helped me develop a member base,” said Petrusovich, who charges no membership fees and makes no money off the club. “We’re a social club, and everyone from lawyers and corporate executives to teachers and firefighters comes together to share their love of diving.”

 Beginner divers to people who have done it for decades attend trips and club meetings.

“I always used to snorkel, so I wanted to take it a step further and dive,” Niel Spear, a member, said. “Each area I’ve dived is different and beautiful in its own way.”

Rich Benevento, a retired Paterson cop, said a good friend introduced him to the hobby 35 years ago. He now operates a dive boat, the John Jack, in Point Pleasant.

“The ocean is an environment unknown to many people, and being in the water brings an excitement like no other,” Benevento said.

Benevento, a fully certified diver who teaches lessons in his spare time, hosts a number of dives for the club off his boat.

“Dennis’s enthusiasm about diving is infectious,” Benevento said. “I support the club, and they support me. It works out very well.”

Petrusovich said he wanted to work with a diving boat company that cares about its clients.

“I know that the John Jack is really safe, and they’re going to be looking out for us all the time,” he said.

Benevento said that the more a person trains, the safer scuba diving becomes.

 A large part of the club’s mission, Petrusovich said, is to educate members about how to dive safely. Past meetings have focused on treating decompression illness, oxygen administration and how to set up oxygen delivery equipment.

“We educate ourselves as much as possible, because a lack of knowledge can cause a person to run a large risk,” Petrusovich said.

Petrusovich said they’ve never run into any safety issues because of how heavily the club focuses on safety.

He hopes to be doing this for a long time.

“It’s about getting people out there to see a world most people never get the opportunity to see,” Petrusovich said.