Diveheart provides scuba diving opportunities for people of all ages with disabilities.
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Hinsdale Magazine | Spotlight
Suburban man leaves media conglomerate to launch scuba-diving organization for disabled individuals By Mike Ellis
bout this time of the year, it is a frequent resort of commencement speakers, whether decorated or relatively anonymous, to tritely inform graduates that young adults right out of college have a tendency to bounce around from one job to the next, before settling on their career path. But there is another type of career shifting that, while less common, is no less important in the lives of the individuals that make such maneuvers; and that is the transition from a stable, prosperous career to something more adventurous or risky, generally impelled by a certain passion or interest of the individual. As one might expect, this proverbial rolling of the dice is attended with variable success; but those who effectively
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make the transition are often glad they decided to change course. Jim Elliott was such an individual, pursuing a successful career at Tribune Co. (WGN Radio) in the city up until 1997. Having recently played a part in launching CLTV (Chicagoland Television), Elliott was coming off what he described as his best year in the industry, when he abruptly elected to shift gears, and become a scuba instructor for people with disabilities. Certainly a bit of prefatory information is required to comprehend the impulse for this transition. Growing up, Elliott visited his father, a disabled veteran, at the Hines VA Hospital in the western suburbs.