Meet the Bubbles or Not Team
The key to a great company is great people. The Bubbles or Not founder, Bob Bennet knew this. He also knew that to train people to become great divers, you had to have excellent instructors. Credentials and certificates were never enough for Bob; he sought out instructors who were humble, and who truly wanted to see students grow and succeed. Instructors with the desire to constantly better themselves and share their knowledge. The Bubbles or Not team is a family of divers focused on introducing people to the joys and wonders of SCUBA.
Robert T. Bennett
Founder – Bob Bennett retired from the U.S. Army and then worked for the Department of Defense. He began diving in 1989 and his experience ranged from open water wreck diving in the Northeast to cave diving in Central Florida. Bob’s primary interest was technical diving, always pushing himself to learn and experience more. During his 25 years of diver training, Bob trained over 500 students from open water through Trimix. We love and miss you Bob.
Rose M. Bennett
Owner – Rose retired from the Department of the Army after 24 years of service to manage the daily operations of the dive shop. She began diving in Hawaii with Bob over 20 years ago. Recently, Rose obtained her PADI Dive Master professional certification, a promise she had made to Bob many years ago. Like her late husband, Rose embraces the vision of educating the next generation of divers and instructors. With the support of her team, Rose continues to build a family-oriented dive shop focused on introducing people to the joys and wonders of SCUBA.
Dr. William Belcher
PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer – Dr. William “Zebulon” Belcher, Ph.D. is currently employed as an archaeologist and is a board-certified forensic anthropologist (American Board of Forensic Anthropology) with the University of Hawai’i-West O’ahu in Kapolei. Prior to this position, he served as a forensic anthropologist and archaeologist with the U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, where he last served as the Deputy Laboratory Director for the last 19 years.
James Currence
PADI Master Instructor – James is a retired Army Master Sergeant of 22 years. He served seven years with the Pooler Fire Department as Engine company Lieutenant and Advanced EMT. James began his professional diving career in 2019 in Savannah Ga. He and his family all love diving. With a history of being an instructor in the Army and fire department, James loves to teach and share his passion for diving. His Favorite class to teach is Rescue and Full-Face mask. He is also an Optima2 rebreather diver. Along with his many skills, he is also one of our service tech, Cylinder Inspectors and our resident Ocean Reef FFM Service tech.
Mark Fairbrass
PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer – Mark has been scuba diving since he was a small child in England. He initially trained with BSAC but switched to the PADI system once he moved to the US. Mark is a college professor specializing in teaching Marine Biology. He spends much of his time working with Coast Guard Academy scholars working towards a degree in Marine and Environmental Science. As part of his college activities, he works on projects designed to monitor the marine fish populations off the coast of Georgia and Florida. He is currently working with the National Marine Fisheries Service to tag sharks off the GA coast. These tags allow shark migration patterns to be tracked and population sizes to be estimated.
Brandon McCarter
PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer – Brandon began his diving adventures during his Senior year of college at The Citadel as an elective course. Upon graduation in 2003, he was immediately commissioned in the U.S. Army and temporarily put diving on hold. While stationed in Germany in 2014, Brandon reconnected with diving, achieving his Advanced Open Water certification while on a trip in Greece. In 2019, he was stationed in Bangkok, Thailand, where his passion for the sport further grew and he transitioned to a technical diver and PADI Professional. From 2019 to 2022, Brandon received multiple dive credentials from several accredited agencies, culminating as a Closed-Circuit Rebreather (CCR) Trimix Diver. He currently serves on active duty at the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island and is working towards becoming a technical dive instructor.
Mike Robinson
PADI Open Water Instructor – Before moving to Georgia, Mike was enlisted for 8 years in the Marine Corps. In 2019, while stationed in San Diego, Mike was introduced to the world of diving and became certified as a PADI Open Water Diver and Freediver. After leaving the Marine Corps and relocating to Georgia, Mike decided to pursue a professional dive career so he could spend more time in the place he’s happiest – underwater! Mike received his PADI Divemaster and Open Water Scuba Instructor certifications in 2023 and is currently working towards his Master SCUBA Diver Trainer certification. When Mike isn’t diving, he enjoys camping, off-roading, and spending time with his wife, Courtney, and dogs, Delta and Whiskey.
JOE VINES
PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer – Joe is a career firefighter-EMT-I serving as an Engine Company Lieutenant with 26 years of experience. Joe started his diving career in 2004 as part of a local dive team with the fire department, where he’s went from an Open Water diver to a PADI Pro. Joe is currently working on his PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer..
Joe Williams
PADI Open Water Instructor – Joe began his diving career in 1996 while stationed in Turkey and has enjoyed many years of recreational diving around the world. Joe retired from a 30 year military/federal career in 2021, spending most of that time in the acquisition/contracting career field. He became a Master SCUBA Diver and Divemaster in 2022 before his OWSI certification in 2023. Joe lives in Brunswick, Georgia, where he enjoys retired life and working part time as a contracting subject matter expert for a federal contractor. He looks forward to spending his time as a dive professional.
Malissa Howell
PADI Master Scuba Diver Trainer – Malissa has been a commercial truck driver since 2012, traveling all over the United States. In her spare time, she loves to go on cruises; where she took part in her first Discover Scuba Diving in January 2023 and fell in love. She became obsessed with scuba diving, obtaining many specialty certifications, leading her to want to share her passion with others. In late 2023, she officially became an Open Water Instructor through the Bubbles-or-Not instructor program. Malissa continues to work as a cross-country trucker, which provides her the unique opportunity to train divers from coast to coast.
BIANCA SHAW
PADI Dive Master – Bianca was born and raised in Southern California. Essentially growing up on a beach, the ocean has always been part of her life. After serving in the U.S. Airforce, she settled in Georgia where she lives with her husband and their three children. Bianca was led to become a Divemaster by Bob Bennett, and she is passionate about helping others in their scuba diving journey.
ERIC KINZEL
PADI Dive Master – Eric began diving in high school in 1989. He dove on and off throughout the years but didn’t get serious until his teenage son, Julian, got the scuba bug during a Discover Scuba Diving class in Jamaica. Eric and Julian worked side by side, earning their Dive Master certification together during a month-long stint in the Grand Caymans. Eric has a passion for working with first time divers. He loves introducing people to scuba through the Discover Scuba Diving program or by assisting with Open Water and Advanced classes.
Alexia Gonzalez
PADI Dive Master – Alexia has been in love with the ocean since she was five. She became Open Water certified in 2014. Alexia is a PADI Divemaster and may work towards her instructor certification. She graduated from Kennesaw State in July 2020 with an integrated studies degree focusing on environmental science, marketing, and leadership. Alexia loves to share the world of diving and sustainability through social media and her blog and is the PADI Aware manager for Bubbles or Not.
RHONDA McMULLEN
Community Event Liaison – Rhonda entered the dive community as the parent of two avid divers, her teenage twin sons. After two years on the shore, watching her boys experience the joys of diving and many conversations with the late Bob Bennett, Rhonda finally took the plunge. Her dive experience has been amazing and is one that she is excited to share with others. Rhonda began her training in early 2022 and is currently an Open Water diver. She has plans to pursue her Advanced Open Water certification this year.
Rhonda is a Special Education Teacher pursuing her Master of Education and works with elementary-aged students. She is also the Public Affairs Officer for the US Sea Cadet Corps, a local youth group that provides leadership training and opportunities to young people in the community.
As a Community Event Liaison, Rhonda would like to bring the world of diving to the youth of the CSRA as well as to parents and educators. Her mission is to promote community-based events to divers and non-divers in the surrounding area. These events may include local cleanup dives, area beautification activities, and awareness events to bring PADI Aware opportunities to the CSRA.
Butch Lasseter
Service/Technician Specialist -Butch has been diving for over 25 years and is also a PADI Dive Master. He has been a technical cave diver since 2006 and is trimix certified. Butch enjoys riding his bike and most outdoor activities. He also likes cooking and smoking or grilling meats.
David Jones
Service/Equipment Technician – David became an Open Water diver through PADI in 2009 and is currently an Advanced Open Water diver. He wants to eventually become an Open Water Instructor to help teach the next generation of PADI SCUBA divers. In his spare time, he enjoys fishing, hunting, college football (Go Gators), going out on the lake, and spending time with his wife Samantha, daughter Addison and the family cats, Bob and Cheeto.