What we do
Give the Earth a Helping Hand
At Reef2Oxygen our main focus is restoring the reefs and oceans. We know we can help by rolling up our sleeves and putting in the hard work that is necessary to preserve these valuable ecosystems. Our team has many years of experience solving problems placed in front of us. We plan to be innovative with our solutions to achieve maximum productivity while we tackle the 8 million plus tons of trash that exists today. Equally as important as physically cleaning the trash from the ocean is education and advocacy. This is where you, yes you, can really make a difference! With your help we can restore the oceans and beautiful reefs and change the world.
Clean – Organizing beach cleanups is amazing and helps, but that's not all we want to do. Did you know there is an Island of garbage twice the size of Texas floating in the Pacific Ocean? Or the fact that even on the coastlines of Florida, marinas are filled with toxic levels of oil and pollution? Our goal is for Reef2Oxygen to grow large enough to deploy resources to every hot spot that requires attention.
Educate – If I were to ask you where the majority of the world's oxygen comes from what would be your answer? Most, including myself, answered trees. Growing up, I was taught the importance of saving our trees and rain forests. No one ever taught me about the wonders of the Reefs and Oceans until I was much older. 50-80% of the Oxygen we breathe comes from our Oceans Ecosystems. The Reefs are dying at an alarming rate. We have already destroyed 50% of the World's Reefs and are on track to destroy what is left if we don't Do Better now!
Recycle and Reuse – Every mound of waste we pull from the ocean is properly recycled and reused. We are working towards teaming up with manufacturing companies who utilize the plastics for environmental friendly products to assure that it does not end up in the ocean once again.
Innovate – While we understand cleaning the ocean is hard work, we are actively developing new ways to assist and increase productivity of our efforts. We are in the process of working with other companies to create a water skimmer to help combat debris and pollutants in our oceans and deploy in marina's nationwide.
Business Model
Reef2Oxygen is a registered Non-Profit Organization. Our organization is funded primarily through donations, our founders, business partners, and sales. Each donation and product sold directly funds our operation to continue our Mission - To End the Destruction of our Most Important Ecosystem!
My Story
That's me on the left with my daughter walking the beach at Saint Pete's over 10 years ago.
I grew up in Chicago, but my Grandma lived in Plant City Florida so we spent our summers making that 18 hour drive and once I was there my parents knew where I wanted to spend the majority of my time... With my toes in the Gulf.
My interest in the Ocean and Coral Reefs only grew stronger as I grew up and took Environmental Science at Northeastern. My first few jobs as a teenager consisted of multiple aquarium shops where I helped customers build little pieces of wonder in their front rooms. This is where I learned how delicate and special these creatures were.
The Ocean has always had a special place in my life. My childhood was spent waiting to go back every year. I proposed and married my beautiful wife at Clearwater, and while traveling with my family, my eyes were now opened to the problems I was unaware of living in Chicago.
I Opened My Eyes
The Reefs don't look anything like the beautiful aquariums I built with colorful Acroporas(Hard Corals) and peaceful flowing Gonioporas(Flower Pot Stony Corals).
The Reefs today are mostly brown if they're lucky enough to survive, while the rest are bleached white and covered in dead film. With bottles and plastic bags attached to the corals and sea life, I'm surprised anything in the tourist areas survive at all.
We Must Do Better
We visit these tourist locations in hopes of finding something beautiful and relaxing. But we leave and forget how it stays or became beautiful in the first place. Being in Chicago, I know first hand the sheltered life of not knowing or understanding what happens in the Oceans and waterways that are far from the city.
"What I Can't See, Won't Hurt Me Right?"
It's easy to forget or take for granted things that aren't smacking you in the face. I'm not swimming or living in the filth, so why should I care? The world right now is filled with "why should I care" attitudes. There are plenty of sites and information out there that warn about pollution and the dangers our Oceans and waterways face. There's one thing that no one seems to focus on....
We Need to Breathe
Take a Breath, it's nice. Deep breaths are even nicer. Guess who you have to thank for that breath of fresh air? The Ocean. The Reefs and Oceans make up for more than Three Quarters of the Oxygen we breathe. Interesting right? Worth Saving Maybe!