Real People/In the Swim
The Scuba Volunteers
For 18 years, George Babiak and Vanessa Valdes dove to help keep aquarium exhibits clean
George Babiak: The shark tank at the New York Aquarium looks like an IMAX movie screen. It’s this huge picture window.
Vanessa Valdes: When you clean that tank, one person is the working diver. Then you have a second diver who is the spotter, making sure everybody’s still pretty chill.
George: We were scuba divers for many years before we became diving volunteers. As a diver, you learn how wild animals behave and how to avoid provoking them.
Vanessa: I’m not saying it’s scary, but you have to be in the moment and aware of everything.
George: The enemy is algae. It’s constantly growing. So you go down to scrub structures for two to three hours at a time.
Vanessa: For many years after we got married, George and I would travel to Cozumel, Mexico, for diving. But it was expensive. In 2007, we went to a trade show and saw a booth for the aquarium’s dive team in Coney Island. We thought, Wow, this sounds really cool. It was a way to dive locally …
George: … for free.
George and Vanessa donated their diving skills to the cause.
Vanessa: It sort of changed our lives. On the diving team, age means nothing. What matters is your experience.
George: It taught us how to be extremely comfortable in the water and with the different animals.
Vanessa: Volunteers also do a lot of waving at children, and I personally was involved in three marriage proposals. When you see the person who’s proposing, you pull out this laminated “Will You Marry Me?” sign and put it up against the window. Thank God the other person always said yes.
George: Every animal has its own distinct personality …
Vanessa: Some are shy, some are inquisitive …
George: And you realize that we’re like them. People tend to think, Well, those are animals, and we’re human. But we are all creatures of nature.
—As told to Leslie Quander Wooldridge
George Babiak, 69, a design professional, and his wife, Vanessa Valdes, 67, a physical therapist and acupuncturist, served as volunteer aquarium divers until mid-2025, when they retired and moved from New York City to Calgary, Canada.