An underwater surprise party

What's the best way to celebrate the 80th birthday of an aquarium volunteer?

By ELISABETH DYER, Times Staff Writer
Published August 14, 2007

Russ Merritt, the oldest volunteer SCUBA diver at the Florida Aquarium is surprised by others while he was cleaning the coral reef at the aquarium. Merritt who turned 80 on Monday has been volunteering at the Aquarium since 1995 and has logged 250 hours diving to clean the tanks for them.
	[Carrie Pratt | Times]

TAMPA

A green moray eel circled Russ Merritt at the bottom of a 500,000-gallon, 74-degree saltwater tank at the Florida Aquarium.

What better way to spend a birthday?

He was scrubbing algae from a sphere of synthetic coral with a well-worn brush Monday when divemaster Chris Porn tapped him on the shoulder and motioned him to the front of the tank.

Fellow divers swam out with laminated posters:

Happy birthday!

You're just a baby at 80

Merritt waved to several dozen people in the viewing area and gave a thumbs-up to his grandson, there for the celebration.

Behind him swam an assortment of the tank's 2,300 fish.

Then he did a flip.

Merritt has volunteered every week for a dozen years. He was in the first class at the aquarium when it opened in 1995 and is the oldest of 40 volunteer divers.

He enjoys being around fish and getting to know their habits, like the porcupine fish with a fondness for long hair.

It often gave divers free hair cuts, but no styling was included.

The shark tank, he says, with only five sharks, is boring.

Much as he appreciates the fish, he avoids interacting with them.

"They would soon associate us with a good back rub, and that is not a good idea," he said, explaining he doesn't want to encourage a fish to nuzzle the next diver who might not want to get so close.

But he loves interacting with the people, especially the kids, who often don't realize he can see them through the panoramic glass - until he waves at them.

"That's fun," he said.

Merritt, who lives in Sun City Center with his wife, worked in the aerospace and blood banking industries.

He started diving in 1972 and did underwater photography in the Caribbean.

He has logged more than 3,400 volunteer hours at the aquarium doing various chores, plus 250 hours in the tank scrubbing.

He does windows too. But not at home.

He figures he will put in another 20 years volunteering if there's any truth to the idea that doing what you love keeps you young.

Elisabeth Dyer can be reached at edyer@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3321.

[Last modified August 13, 2007, 23:55:17]