Karen has been an avid diver since 1999 when she walked into "The" Dive Shop and took the first step to fulfilling a life long dream of being a diver. During her first class she was so inspired by her instructor she decided then and there she wanted to not only learn to dive, but also teach diving one day. Since Karen did not have family or friends that also were divers, she relied on TDS for most of her diving excursions. She and fellow classmate Rich Stanage buddied up after getting certified and honed their skills at Lake Millbrook. Eventually Karen signed up for a trip to Grand Bahama sponsored by TDS. Until diving in clear warm water Karen sometimes wondered to herself why she was doing this. After all, Millbrook is cold, dark, and sometimes scary, especially to a novice diver. But once she got up the nerve to do her first giant stride into the Caribbean Sea, she her doubts were completely gone. Since then Karen has gone on several TDS trips and does not plan on stopping anytime soon. In 2001 Karen became an Assistant Instructor with TDS. Subsequently, in 2002, Karen became an instructor with TDS. Karen is an Advanced Open Water Instructor with Instruction Certifications in the following:

Open Water Diver
Night/Limited Visibility Diving
Underwater Navigation
Computer Diving
Deep Diving
Solo Diving
Rescue Diving
Nitrox