Lab Owner Helps People with Disabilities One Dive at a Time

An avid scuba diver and artist, Norman McMillan has always channeled his passion for the water into his work, filming life in and around the ocean and using the images as inspiration for sculptures of yachts and marine life. About 15 years ago, he took things a step further and began using that passion to help others.

While filming underwater, McMillan—Owner of Ocean Orthodontic Laboratory in Jupiter, FL—conceived the idea for Free in the Sea (FITS), a non-profit that helps people with disabilities scuba dive independently. “Typically people with Multiple Sclerosis or paralysis experience scuba diving strapped to another person,” says McMillan, who learned to scuba dive at age 16. “I realized the propulsion vehicles I use to move heavy film gear through the water could also help propel people with mobility impairments so they could scuba dive on their own.”

In 2003, using money...