FORCE BLUE Veterans Conduct

Tour of Duty in Your National Marine Sanctuaries

November 10, 2026

12 pm Hawaii | 2 pm Pacific | 4 pm Central | 5 pm Eastern

All national marine sanctuaries rely on the energy and passion of volunteers. With the mission of healing veterans and healing the ocean, FORCE BLUE redeploys Special Operations veterans and military-trained combat divers to work alongside scientists on conservation projects. When Special Operations veterans team up with NOAA's marine scientists, there's nothing we can't accomplish. The former Special Operations divers of FORCE BLUE are working with top scientists and environmentalists from NOAA's Office of National Marine Sanctuaries on a multi-year Sanctuaries Tour of Duty campaign to conduct marine conservation missions in and around each of America's iconic national marine sanctuaries.

Join Jim Ritterhoff, Executive Director, Co-Founder, FORCE BLUE, facilitated by Kate Thompson, Outreach and Engagement Division Lead, NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries, with the Veteran panelists below to learn more about FORCE BLUE, the past and upcoming projects, and get your questions answered. 

• Angelo Fiore, Navy Diver, U.S. Navy Veteran
• Dan Henderson, Green Beret, U.S. Army Veteran
• Ricky Brown, Navy Seal, U.S. Navy Veteran
• Stephanie Gandulla, Superintendent, NOAA’s Lake Ontario National Marine Sanctuary

The National Marine Sanctuaries Webinar Series provides formal and informal educators, students, and the interested public with educational and scientific expertise, resources, and training to support ocean literacy in the classroom. You can also visit the archives of the webinar series to catch up on presentations you may have missed here.

After registering you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. The Webinar ID is 871-195-843.

Connecting You to America's Ocean and Great Lakes Treasures