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Mission Statement: |
Founding Director: Richard A. Lefler
It was the Summer of '75. Jaws was in the theaters and our
youthful
director was in the aisle. Jaws was inspiring he says, "...so many people tell
me the movie drove them from the water while I was drawn to it like a magnet."
In the Summer of '02, our director's son's gawking at his dad's video from South Africa
asked if he was going to be eaten by the sharks. www.seaprogram.com was born
shortly there after to educate children and adults about the value and
diversity of sharks. Richard is 39, a
resident of New Jersey, a loving father, and a devoted fan of the 350 plus
shark species roaming the world's oceans in peace.
August 8, 2008
Bam! 2008 is half underway and there is just soooo much to do!
Shark Week on the discovery channel just ended and I have to say I was a little
disappointed at the lack of new shows since it's such a huge money maker for
Discovery but seeing Mike in the cold made it all worthwhile! So 2008
brings us a few changes here at seaprogram.org. We have moved our site to
godaddy.com (so be patient, ugh!). We have also partnered with a brand new
site that is set to kick off in 2008,
www.globalsharkdives.com, that site will list the coolest shark dives
worldwide. Keep an eye on that site! Oh yeah, before I forget, we
are upgrading constantly! Check out our new look and consistently updated
content! Talk soon! Phew!
December
19, 2007
Happy holidays to one and all, with hope (and a lot of effort) 2008 will
bring improved conservation awareness to more people around the globe.
Seaprogram.org is once again operational
as our flagship site and we've added
seaprogram.net. Additionally, the holiday powers that be delivered a new
logo to our program. Let us know what you think,
drop us a line. Need a gift
idea? Adopt a shark via the Shark
Research Institute, for a very small fee (we did!).
Lastly, we continue on our mission of improving education and awareness
about sharks and shark conservation. We've just added a myspace.com page to our
efforts and that page can found
here.
June 24, 2007
The summer is in full swing in North America and millions of people are
headed to the shores to bask in the sun and surf. While enjoying this
summer, keep in mind that millions of sharks are still being finned and returned
to the ocean alive, just to drown. Finning must end before the oceanic food
chains collapse completely. Join me in supporting the people and
organizations that are trying to end a very cruel and meaningless waste of one
of earth's most majestic natural resources.
January 30, 2007
Ah, winter in the Eastern part of the states, the best time to hit the
Caribbean for sharks. And just a few months away from shark season in
South Africa. We've been busy soliciting new pictures for our gallery and new
content for the site, if you have ideas, send them! We can't get enough.
ALSO! Don't forget our Kids Only! page, we need artwork,
get crayons and keep sending!
April 2, 2006
I' m very proud to report that we had nearly 13,000 visitors from 19
different countries in 2005. Thanks to those who came for a visit and
thanks to the many of you that wrote in with questions and comments. We
hope that 2006 brings many more visitors from across the globe.
July 4, 2005
The first US shark attack fatality of the year took place within the last
several days in Florida followed by two non fatal attacks (also in Florida).
Two of the three attacks were attributable to
bull sharks. It's also been suggested that the attacks in New Jersey in
1916 (the alleged inspiration for Jaws) were also Bull shark related. None
of this makes any difference to a family member of a victim and we feel great
sorrow when anyone is attacked but the true victims remain sharks. Finning
will never be a front page story in a major story but if the saying "If it
bleeds, it leads!" were true, sharks would reign as cover stories daily. Hundreds of millions of sharks are finned (the act of removing a
shark's fins, sold for shark fin soup) and released to drown. This finning continues to reduce global
shark stocks which in turn impacts globally food chains. Ultimately we, humans,
will fall victim. Let's hope we can save the world's fisheries by saving
the world's fish.
December 5, 2004
I'm very pleased to announce that we have had well over 5,000 visitors
from 18 different countries to our humble site and with that a great deal of positive feedback. Yes,
yes, of course, there are critics but they usually highlight the fact we don't
have an editor on staff. Ahh, to be able to afford an editor. One
thing we are certainly missing is artwork. If you have shark related
artwork, we welcome it. With the close of 2004, we wish you the best for
the holidays and a more peaceful new year.
January 03, 2004
We got it! A beautiful new logo splashes across the pages of
www.seaprogram.com. We hope you
like it, if not drop us a line or better yet, make us a new one! We have
also dropped our continuous review of shark related articles on the net.
When you are beat you are beat and we now link you to a great site that has a
ton of shark news and great pictures. Click the attacks button to check it
out! OH... Happy New Year!!!! Thanks for your continuous support of
our efforts! Best wishes to you and yours in the new year!
December 15, 2003
Happy Holidays!
Believe it or not we are still working to bring you the latest information
on sharks and shark attacks. We have opted not to link the extended coverage of
Bethany Hamilton's recovery because we believe it casts a dark cloud on sharks.
Nevertheless Bethany seems to be recovering with a passion and continue to wish
her and her family the best. We invite you to read about Bethany on your
own. We also hope that you have a magical and wonderful holiday season.
As of today, www.seaprogram.com has had 4000 hits!!! Thank you!
November 4, 2003
A few days ago Bethany Hamilton, a pro surfer in Hawaii was attacked by a
14 foot Tiger shark and lost an arm. It's an incredible loss to the family and I
feel for them as well as Bethany. Any shark at 10 feet in length or more could
do a great deal more damage to a human including devouring them entirely. As horrible and unfortunate as this attack was,
it must be stated that this shark clearly had no intention of killing Bethany.
It's widely accepted that sharks attack humans by mistake. Mistaking
people for natural prey such as seals and sea lions. I hope that Hawaiians as well as everyone else remember that this was only the 4th
attack in paradise this year and the year is quickly coming to a close.
Sharks are fish, they are not evil and they should not be hunted for the sake of
a few tragic occurrences. Our
thoughts are with the victim and her family. To read more about Bethany's
attack
please visit our attacks page.
October 20, 2003
We are pleased to announce that our fossil page has a new photo with some
new fossils on it and later this month we will add several pictures to this page
in hopes of encouraging others to join the hunt. If you are interested in
information or a "guided" tour please send the
director a note. In addition
to the new fossils, we've added to our new "Attacks"
page with up to date listings from the web. Lastly, we are researching possible
options for a logo for our site and there is a remote possibility we may have a
tie into merchandise. If you are a graphic designer willing to make your
mark let our director know.
September 16, 2003
We have two new impressive updates to bring to your attention. The first is
www.seaprogram.org. This site
is now live despite some technical difficulties but will either be a mirror site
of www.seaprogram.com or a
re-directed page. The second and more impressive update is a new page
titled "Attacks". This new page will highlight internet sites with
shark attack related articles. It is updated almost daily so check back
often to hear the latest, shark attacks.
September 7, 2003
The summer is over, but the sharks still swim! I was fossil hunting in
New Jersey today, a new and exciting little adventure for me!!! Check
out our latest finds on the fossils page, many of which were discovered
today! If you are the adventurous I'd suggest you try a hunt yourself.
This month we will expand the Fossil page to include broader links for
international locations for shark fossils so check back often for new links.
Fossils page
August 16, 2003
We are pleased to announce that
www.seaprogram.org
will be joining the organization. This new
site will be a mirror site and will reflect the same content with exception of
the guestbook feature. We would also like to announce that we have upgraded
our software to Windows XP and Frontpage 2002.
April 14, 2003
Apparently, Spring will be skipped this year in NJ as we are expecting 80 degree
temperatures one week after a blizzard. At least Mother Nature continues to bless us
with our sharks. Much of the media coverage heading into Spring and Summer has been
good to our sharks. We at www.seaprogram.com are thankful and hope the "summer of
the shark" has come and gone. Thank you to those that have sent us feedback via
our guest book. We continue to read it daily and look forward to providing more
content as our site grows. Have ideas for improvement? Elementary education
tips? Send them to us at
education@seaprogram.com.
March 03, 2003
First someone tell me what happened to Spring. It seems awfully late to me. Oh by
the way for those that don't know, this site is managed in New Jersey. For those
that rag on NJ, I have one thing to add to your list, Jaws was inspired by events that
took place in this very state. It wasn't in Newark by the way. So welcome to
the first entry of the Director's Jaw. Since this is the first entry let me say
welcome and thanks for reading. Please send us your feedback using our guest
book. We want it all, the good stuff and the bad stuff! We understand that
sharks are not on the forefront of anyone's mind during the winter or during this time of
global instability but we do want to hear from you.
