VONE RESEARCH INC

Results: For over a decade, Vone Research has served the community as a 501(c)3, non profit organization dedicated to preserving our oceanic resources through education and preservation. We are comprised totally of volunteers who devote their time to increase public awareness of Florida’s maritime history and oceanic resources, and to work in conjunction with governmental and other like-minded agencies to provide research, conservation, preservation and education with respect to our oceanic, historical and archaeological resources. A unique partnership which was formed between Vone Research and The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of Florida has allowed us to streamline the permitting process for the Reef Restoration and Monitoring Program and now allows damaged reefs to be repaired. Previously, when resources to repair a damaged reef were unavailable, the reef tracts were simply left to die. Before Vone Research’s involvement, there was no simple way, devoid of mountains of red-tape, for any group to repair a damaged reef. Vŏnē Research has produced a number of educational videos. We are an independent monitor of oceanic construction. Our work has been seen on CNN, Inside Edition, and most local news stations. Our video, Dishonorable Discharge, was shown on a two-story screen within the Interior Building in Washington DC. With our focus on the future, Vŏnē Research has partnered with a host of local colleges and high schools, as well as middle and elementary schools to bring practical hands-on marine conservation and education to our youth, who will become the leaders of tomorrow. Vŏnē Research is dedicated to preserving our oceanic resources, the treasures beneath the waves by helping young stewards understand the importance and impact of their contribution. Our unique ‘Touching-History’ program has been instrumental in bringing real-world experience to subjects such as History, Science, Math, and English. Students work with real artifacts; researching, preserving, and documenting portions of the past and bring subjects such as history and writing-skills alive. Practically all of our donated power and sailboats serve as a classroom for our students. We teach our students how to restore and maintain the boats donated to Vŏnē Research, giving them a great sense of accomplishment, as well as real world skills applicable in the maritime industry. Below is a list of some of our projects we were involved in: • Beach Renourishment project along Broward County beaches • Gil Blas shipwreck off of Hillsboro Beach • Raising of a WW-II era training torpedo off the ocean floor near Pompano Beach • Recovery of an anchor from the 19th century British steamship Copenhagen • Garbage cleanup on a Pompano Beach reef Vone Research has received Letters of Recognition for their efforts from the following groups: • The Florida Bureau of Archaeological Research – Division of Historical Resources for our video on the shipwrecks Copenhagen and Half Moon • Florida Secretary of State, Katherine Harris, for the establishment of Half Moon (Florida’s Seventh Underwater Archaeological Preserve located off-shore of Key Biscayne, Miami-Dade County Florida) • The South Florida Reef Research Team, Inc. for keeping our governmental officials aware of the environmental damage done to our reefs from dredge contractors and because of this large areas of hard and soft coral reef have been restored • National Week of the Ocean Community Marine Award for Corporation of the Year for Reef Preservation • Carmen McGarry, Historian and Author of “The Magnificent Mile”, for our Touching History Program Vone Research has appeared on the following news stations for their environmental efforts: • Channel 6 News, Eco Watch Dredge Damage • Channel 7 News, Reef Damage • Inside Edition, Spinner Sharks • Channel 6 News, Sea Turtle Awareness • Channel 6 News, Garbage Cleanup on the Pompano Beach Reef • Channel 7 News, Torpedo found near Pompano Beach • Channel 6 News, Raising of the WW-II era training Torpedo

Target demographics: We specialize in coral reef repair and restoration and underwater archaeology off the southeast coast of Florida.  Vone Research and our team of dedicated volunteers, has the unique ability and talent to be anywhere underwater they are needed. Our highly trained divers also work with many other nonprofit organizations to help fulfill their specific environmental needs.

Direct beneficiaries per year: We are defending and repairing our coral reef ecosystem which is being damaged at an alarming rate due to dredging projects, hurricanes, careless boat anchoring, overfishing and destructive fishing methods, pollution, coastal development, erosion, and siltation.

Geographic areas served: Mainly southeast Florida, but Vone Research will travel to other areas to assist other nonprofit environmental groups when additional manpower is needed.

Programs: • CORAL RESTORATION AND MONITORING PROGRAM: A unique partnership between Vone Research and The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service of Florida allowed us to streamline the permitting process for the Reef Restoration and Monitoring Program, which now allows damaged reefs to be repaired. Previously, when resources to repair a damaged reef were unavailable, the reef tracts were simply left to die. Before Vone Research’s involvement, there was no simple way, devoid of mountains of red-tape, for any group to repair a damaged reef. Vone Research is currently the only volunteer organization, in Florida, to be granted a coral reattachment permit. We are now training other volunteer groups in reef restoration techniques which will qualify them to obtain these reef-saving permits. By involving high school students in our reef restoration projects we are in shoring that future generations feel empowered that their actions can truly make a difference. And they see this firsthand when As a result of their work. The reefer covers from catastrophic damage. • REEF SAVING MOORING BUOY SYSTEM: For over a decade, Vone Research has been involved with the mooring buoy system off South Florida. This allows boaters to easily moor their boat without causing any reef damage, normally associated with conventional anchoring. The mooring buoy system consists of a permanent anchor which is cemented securely in the reef. A shackle is attached to the anchor point with a line that goes to a buoy on the surface. The buoy then has a tagline attached. The tagline is a line with an eye (loop) sliced at the end. The boater simply passes a line that is attached to his bow (the front of the boat at the pointy end) through the eye and back to the bow for simple secure attachment. Vone Research created an instructional video to teach volunteers the technique used to inspect the mooring buoy system. In 2008 & 2009, working with David K. Stout of Broward County Environmental Protection, we taught volunteers and Sea Scouts how to construct mooring buoys. Measuring, cutting the line, and then splicing it, making it into something that can be used by the public to protect our environment. This was a fantastic opportunity to teach where the end result of making a difference could be seen. We constructed and installed twenty-one new buoys. Seeing the buoys in use empowered the students to know that their work made a difference. • SHIPWRECK SNORKEL TRAIL: Working in conjunction with the Marine Archaeology Council and the City of Lauderdale by the Sea, Vŏnē Research was instrumental in the creation of the Ship wreck Snorkel Trail, located in Lauderdale by the Sea. Once the site was selected and surveyed, Vŏnē Research placed a ballast pile containing nearly four tons of rock. The ballast pile was then cemented together and anchored to the ocean floor to prevent disturbance by wave action. Each cannon was constructed of 360 pounds of concrete which was donated by Rinker and poured into a mold on loan from the state of Florida Bureau Underwater archaeology. The cannons needed to be cemented to the ocean floor and pinned together on angles to give them the greatest stability. Vŏnē Research obtained an old wood stock anchor dating back to the 1800s, which was placed on the snorkel trail site. During Oceanfest, keynote speaker Jean-Michel Cousteau, graciously honored Vŏnē Research for our contribution to the park during the dedication ceremony. The Shipwreck Snorkel Trail is in shallow water and is easily accessible for snorkelers to enjoy. • WE ARE OFFERING AN EXCITING PROGRAM THAT IS SURE TO COMPLETELY ENGAGE YOUR STUDENTS WHILE LEARNING IMPORTANT SCIENCE, LANGUAGE ARTS AND SOCIAL STUDIES SUNSHINE STATE STANDARDS: Our in-school field trip is called the Marine Archaeology Exploration Program (MAEP). During this program, your students become Marine Archaeologists and discover the excitement of Florida History and the Science of Archaeology while researching real artifacts found in Broward County! Climb aboard and make way for the 1.5 hour experiential simulated field expedition on which your Marine Archaeologists take a journey through the Scientific Method utilizing hands-on activities including metal detecting, coin probing, dendrochronology and scientific experimentation to develop hypotheses and put together the pieces of the past through critical thinking and problem-solving. • BROWARD COUNTY STUDENTS LEARN MARINE ARCHAEOLOGY: (Dania Beach article about Broward South High School Marine Archaeology program - By Dr. Kira Kaufmann) What is the value of Florida’s Maritime past? How do we get younger generations involved with history? As part of a Marine Archaeology program, students from South Broward high school’s Marine Science summer camp program participated in a Marine Archaeology training program sponsored by Vŏnē Research, Inc, and the Florida Public Archaeology Network (FPAN) at Florida Atlantic University. The main goal of the program was to promote conservation of Florida’s submerged cultural resources in Broward County and provide hands-on experience in Underwater Archaeological techniques. Dr. Kira Kaufmann from FPAN and Kristen Hoss from Vŏnē Research, lead the two day training program at Lauderdale-by-the-Sea where students worked on land and in the water learning the tools of Marine Archaeology. On land, the students learned traditional mapping and drawing techniques as well as how to use newer technology, such as GPS, to record archaeological site information. The most important aspect of Marine Archaeology is context, or the exact location of features and artifacts on a shipwreck. Students practiced recording the exact location of replica artifacts from two mystery wrecks to learn how crucial context is to recording and recreating Archaeological information. Students also learned how to apply some of these skills with an in-water training component. Six students at a time, went snorkeling on the ocean where they practiced the method of GPS recording and photomosaic documentation of the replica Spanish Galleon Snorkeling Trail just offshore from Datura Street. A photomosaic is an Underwater Archaeological technique in which a series of photographs are taken along a line called a transect and then put together like a puzzle to get a clearer picture of an Archaeological site. Throughout the program students were encouraged to learn and practice skills that Marine Archaeological scientists use. Students also learned the importance of shipwreck conservation in order to protect wildlife habitat as well as Florida’s history. So, what is the value of Florida’s Maritime past? The value of our state’s rich Maritime heritage is not only the knowledge we can gain from these sites but the economic draw they have for visitors and tourism. It is the mystery and the adventure, “Indiana Jones-Florida,” that visitors can experience when they SCUBA dive and explore Florida’s coasts and Florida’s shipwrecks. Shipwrecks are also an important foundation for the underwater ecosystem which is so vital to the environment of our planet. Protecting these cultural resources also protects habitats for underwater creatures such as sea turtles, fish, and corals. Recently, I was reminded by a graduating senior that life has many more possibilities if we open our thinking to them, that we should “Go Big” as we move through the days of our lives. Why should we get students involved? Because to “Go Big” and to make that last, we have share the importance of conserving the resources of our planet which include cultural resources such as our shipwreck ecosystems. Go Big, become aware, and see all the potential benefits to conserving the resources of Florida’s coasts in a responsible, sustainable manner • ETHICAL ANGLING W/THE I.G.F.A.: The groups learned about knots, reels, hooks, bait, lures and what it means to be an ethical angler from staff at the IGFA. Once they were knowledgeable in the theory of fishing, they had the opportunity to practice from the Dania Beach Fishing Pier to try their hand at casting and catching some fish. All the groups were very successful at the task!!! South Broward High School’s Maritime Magnet program was selected to be a participant in the Vone Research summer BEACH program. BEACH stands for Building Environmental Awareness and Career enhancement through Hands-on experiences. The Summer BEACH Program gave them volunteer opportunities to work with the marine community. Each day the students ventured out to our local coral reefs to study manatees, sea turtles and water quality in Port Everglades. Marine science college students accompanied the participants daily to mentor their scientific methods. The summer students also conducted Marine Fisheries research with John U. Lloyd Beach State Recreation Area. Fish studies were conducted daily. Together they worked with scientists to assess reef and game fish populations in our mangroves. Marine fisheries research is crucial to the fishing industry and impacts the economy of South Florida. Juvenile species such as red fish, snook, grouper and snapper were identified, measured and released unharmed. They also studied sea turtle nesting along the coast and will continue to collect data for science and the community. The students earned volunteer hours for service learning and their efforts were well appreciated. • WATER TESTING ON THE NEW RIVER: Students learned how to test different qualities such as salinity and how much oxygen is dissolved in the water. They also learned how to use high tech instruments like an YSI to measure water quality and a GPS. Each group traveled to a study site either Whiskey Creek in John U. Lloyd Beach State Recreation Area or in Markham Park. • WATER SAFETY INSTRUCTION: Students were able to develop water skills which will help them throughout the summer program and in other ecosystems in South Florida. They were able to learn to snorkeling and proper paddling techniques for kayaking. • MARINE FISHERIES IN BROWARD: Students learned the research skills needed to study local fisheries in Whiskey Creek in John U. Lloyd. They also used seine nets and dip nets to collect fish found in the creek to determine if this habitat is a nursery for local reef species. They have to work together as a team to pull the seine net along the bottom, close the net and bring it up to the shore. • SHARK RESEARCH WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI: Students worked together in a cooperative group to analyze and study the internal and external biology of a shark as well as understanding their functions and appreciating their adaptations to life. They also watched the film, Sharkwater, which discussed these adaptations in depth and the issues which are pressing global shark populations, shark fining and the consequences it has on the world economy. • KAYAKING IN WEST LAKE: Students were able to define a coast and identify the different mangrove trees by kayaking through the mangrove habitat at Anne Kolb Nature Center. They learned the importance of the mangroves to our local economy and environment. They were also able to identity local animal species found in the habitat while they were kayaking through the trails. • BLUE WATER ANGLING WITH VONE RESEARCH: Students venture out with Vone Research to try their hand at fishing in the Gulfstream on Vone Research’s vessel. It was a long day but each group was able to catch some BIG fish!! • MARINE DEBRIS WITH VONE RESEARCH: Students learned about pollution and how it becomes harmful to marine organisms. They went to John Lloyd to do a beach clean up. Once back in the classroom, students analyzed the characteristics of the debris and drew their interpretation on where it originates. • ROV RESEARCH WITH VONE: Remotely Operated Vehicle is what ROV stands for. The students got a chance to learn about what they really are and how they work. The students actually got to fly an ROV made by students last year. In the pool they raced against time to see who could get the most rings in order to accumulate the most points. • SNORKELING IN THE SUMMER BEACH: Students went out on the boat to observe the local marine life. They had a great time but had to practice in the pool first. • OCEAN BOWL: All groups participating in the Summer Beach program had an Ocean Bowl Tournament on the last day.