International model, entrepreneur and professional mermaid, Emily Alexandra Guglielmo has drawn the attention of her massive following to a noble cause.

The 2nd annual deployment by the 1000 Mermaids Artificial Reef Project in partnership with Palm Beach County’s Department of Environmental Resource Management, REEF CELLS and the newly formed Ocean Rescue Alliance (ORA) will grow the existing diving and eco-tourism destination from 18 artificial reef modules to over 55, adding over 50 tons of ocean friendly concrete to the seafloor and will take place the week of September 21st, 2020 off of Peanut Island near Blue Heron Bridge.

Already a popular diving destination for locals and visitors, the 1000 Mermaids Reef provides a growing home to the many tropical fish, corals and other sea critters that call this region of Florida home.

Brought to you by The ORA, this 2nd annual upcoming deployment will feature new artistic and innovative sculptural reef designs, the first memorial “Celereef” (Celebratory Reefs), 10  memorial reefs dedicated to veterans and first responders, and a custom sculpted mermaid reef which was 3D modeled of globally known professional mermaid Emily Alexandra Guglielmo.

The first entrepreneurial Mermaid to donate the $7,500 required to construct a custom made reef, Emily has built her Mermaid Empire to include The Florida Mermaid & The American Mermaid brands and felt it was important to give back to the ocean through her businesses. By leveraging the latest innovative technology to increase the efficiency of reefs like Emily’s, these reefs are now able to help create more fish habitats while assisting in expanding the artistic eco-tourism diving destination from 18 existing to over 68 reefs along Palm Beach’s pristine coastline.

“The ocean is such an important part of who I am as a person, as a mermaid and as a member of a wonderful community, I´m thrilled and honored to be a part of this”-Emily Alexandra stated.

In addition, Ocean Rescue Alliance (ORA) a marine conservation focused nonprofit organization, whose focus is on marine conservation, restoration, research, education, artistic & memorial reefs. ORA creates artistic and memorial reefs that are designed to increase fish biodiversity, enhance coral restoration, and provide a unique diving location. ORA will deploy their first Memorial reef sculpture, honoring the life of fallen Firefighter, diver, and passionate 4ocean Volunteer Kevin Mehaffey who was tragically taken from us earlier this year. Kevin leaves behind his wife, new born baby and an extended family who quickly organized this memorial in Kevin’s honor. Kevin’s reef will feature a life-size statue of Kevin in his free-diving outfit along with memorabilia provided by his family, including paw prints from the family’s dog captured by VR Scanning Technology which helps with artificial reef conceptualization, construction and increased accuracy in creating the 3,500 lb limestone concrete “Reef Cells” that make up the core of the memorial reef. By utilizing technology versus traditional manual casting methods, the ReefCells and (ORA) teams are able to create lifelike sculptures of living or deceased individuals, by scanning an interested donor in person or by simply scanning a photograph of a loved one who has passed.

“Using art and technology to benefit the underwater ocean ecosystem is a great collaboration,” says Jena McNeal, Senior Environmental Analyst and Artificial Reef Coordinator for Palm Beach County’s Department of Environmental Resource Management. “I see sculptures like these as the future of artificial reef deployments.” McNeal works to create marine habitat and conserve and restore our marine ecosystem throughout Palm Beach County. 

The #1000mermaids project is a public art installation that will also serve as an underwater eco-friendly destination for tourism off of South Florida’s coastline and beyond. For more information, the public can visit 1000mermaids.com, “Like” us on Facebook at facebook.com/1000mermaids, follow us on Instagram 1000mermaids or call (954) 361-4998.