January 2023
Written by Michelle Scott-Diehl

My husband, Steve, has always wanted to scuba dive in Hawaii.

After spending 31 years as a firefighter and rescue diver, he has never really got to enjoy scuba diving. Hawaii has always been on his bucket list.

We spent our 21st anniversary finding out he had ALS. After retiring, we had planned on traveling. 

Thanks to Team Gleason we got to spend some time together and make some lasting memories. My husband wanted to go to Hawaii to scuba dive and go see the USS Arizona memorial. We got to do that and more. 

I found every wheelchair accessible place on the island. While we were in Hawaii, the north shore had some big waves which we got to see at sunset. My son got to enjoy some one on one time with his dad. Something they needed. 

The resort we stayed at was the nicest place we could have gone; you didn’t need to leave the resort at all for anything and everything was wheelchair accessible. They had everything you could possibly think of: multiple pools, restaurants, convenience stores, and so much more. It was nice if we didn’t feel like leaving the resort, we had everything very close to us and convenient.

Even though we didn’t need to leave, we still did because there were gorgeous parks and great restaurants within walking distance. The amazing greenery was probably one of our favorite things to see every day. This trip will be remembered for a lifetime and there isn’t enough “thank yous” I can say. 

While diving we got to see some Hawaiian sea turtles and lots of fish.

It’s totally amazing that my husband got to scuba dive even with ALS and not having use of his legs.

Trident Adventures in Hawaii is amazing. The crew we had were 100% well trained and knew how to help us out. 

The Hilton Garden Inn was very handicap friendly, from the lobby to the room. Thanks Team Gleason for the memories!

No White Flags!