2013 Memorial Garden Honorees

bob breen

Bob Breen
Marine Biologist, Sanctuary Advisory Council Member
NOAA's Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary

Bob was inducted to the Memorial Garden for his important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. In the 1970s, Bob was one of the first proponents of setting aside ecologically important areas, like the Gulf of the Farallones National Marine Sanctuary, for special protection. He realized the unique qualities so much that he served on the sanctuary's advisory council as the ‘education chair' until his death.

dr. nancy foster

Dr. Nancy Foster
Director of NOAA's Sanctuary Program
NOAA's National Ocean Service, Assistant Administrator

Nancy was inducted to the Memorial Garden for her important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. She started working for NOAA in 1977, and pioneered through the years to hold ranking positions such as the director of the National Marine Sanctuary Program, assistant administrator of the NOAA Fisheries and assistant administrator of the NOAA Ocean Service. She brought a quality and strength to the agency unequaled in its history.

Ruthetta Maxwell Halbower

Ruthetta Maxwell Halbower
Volunteer
NOAA's Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary

Ruthetta was added to the Memorial Garden for her long-term support of Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary. At the age of 73, Ruthetta began volunteering at the sanctuary, and for the next 11 years she donated more than 11,000 hours greeting visitors and managing day-to-day office operations. She recognized the importance of community involvement and stewardship ethics, and made a point to reach out to Scituate residents to make Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary a household name.

Terell Horne

Terrell Horne III
Senior Chief Petty Officer
United States Coast Guard
NOAA's Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary

Chief Horne was added to the Memorial Garden for his dedication to the mission of the National Marine Sanctuary System. He lost his life while on-duty protecting the waters of Channel Islands National Marine Sanctuary. The suspects that rammed his boat carrying him and his three teammates were arrested for killing an on-duty federal officer.

brian keller

Dr. Brian D. Keller
Science Coordinator
Southeast Atlantic, Gulf of Mexico and Caribbean Region
NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries

Brian was added to the Memorial Garden for his important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. Dr. Keller was a scientist, mentor, conservationist, and marine manager. Brian had a rewarding career in the Florida Keys, where his science and his humanity touched many lives. Brian possessed a very rare combination of intellectual precision and human warmth: qualities that furthered his ability to work with diverse groups to achieve natural resource conservation, and that enriched the lives of those who knew him.  

captain rusty mason

Captain Rustin “Rusty” Mason
Mooring Buoy Specialist & Chief Morale Officer
NOAA's Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Rusty was added to the Memorial Garden for his dedication to the mission of the National Marine Sanctuary System. He perished while diving as part of a surveying mission in the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary's Tortugas Ecological Reserve South. He died doing what he loved. Rusty was living the dream as a dive master and personal dive guide as Washington, D.C. VIPs, NOAA leadership, elected officials and other visitors to the sanctuary. He will be remembered as a jovial member of the sanctuary family, quick to make a person smile, and was the self-proclaimed "Morale Officer" of the sanctuary.

amy massey

Amy B. Massey
Biologist
NOAA's Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Amy was added to the Memorial Garden for her important role in the history of NOAA's National Marine Sanctuary System. Her enduring love for the coral reefs and marine life of the Florida Keys and her exceptional diving ability made her a natural leader in the sanctuary's Team OCEAN program. She helped grow this on-the-water education program to provide educational information to boaters and prevent boating impacts to coral reefs and other shallow habitats. Amy was a true leader in marine science education and reef restoration and was faithfully dedicated to her mission to serve the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary.

commander paul moen

Commander Paul D. Moen, NOAA Corps
Upper Region Manager
NOAA's Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary

Commander Moen was added to the Memorial Garden for his important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. He served as manager of the Upper Region Key Largo office of the Florida Keys National Marine Sanctuary from 1994-1998 during his shore-side NOAA Corps. He was acutely involved in key developments in the sanctuary, from management plans to policies to vessel operations to major office renovations. Upon retirement, Commander Moen returned to his home in Key Largo so he could enjoy the sanctuary waters that he served and loved.

luke nachbar

Luke Nachbar
Constituent Outreach Liaison
NOAA's National Ocean Service

Luke was added to the Memorial Garden for his important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. Luke had an eternal passion to be an ocean champion, in particular for NOAA and the Sanctuary System. While Luke worked on the Senate Appropriations Committee, he quickly came to realize that NOAA's Sanctuary System was perhaps the crown jewel in the agency. In that, he assisted in allowing various key System facility priorities to move forward, including construction of the Dr. Nancy Foster Florida Keys Environmental Complex; NOAA's first-ever small boat program for the System; and strategic early planning for Monterey Bay National Marine Sanctuary's Exploration Center. Luke's dedication is evident throughout the Sanctuary System today.

mike overfield

Michael L. Overfield
Marine Archaeologist, Resource Protection Team

NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries
Mike was added to the Memorial Garden for his important role in the history of the National Marine Sanctuary System. He changed careers late in life, and he came into the world of marine resource protection with interpersonal skills and sense of intuitiveness that takes others decades to develop. He was actively engaged in emergency response projects as well as maritime heritage activities including the Hassler Expedition, the hunt for the USS Alligator, the African America Voyage to Discovery, and the 1871 Whaling Fleet survey in Alaska. Mike's vision of fostering dialogue between scientists, stakeholders, regulators, and other interested parties helped each better understand the complex nature of human use of the oceans and provides a model for future engagement.