Divi Owners: Lorna and Bob Pecora

I should get in touch with MasterCard and suggest that Lorna and Bob Pecora do a commercial for them.  When the Pecoras talk about their annual vacations in Aruba, they describe the people of the island and the friends they have made as “priceless.”

When Lorna married Bob, he was already an Aruba lover and a Divi owner.  He bought a two-bedroom pre-construction after one visit to the island.  It wasn’t hard for Lorna to fall under the same spell.  She adores the island and its people.  For two weeks every fall, now going on 27 years, they can’t remember anything, but wonderful vacations while in residence at Divi. The island is beautiful.  There is no language barrier to overcome.  It’s safe and the food is great. While there, it’s mostly about relaxation, some reading, and a little bike riding.  They also take advantage of the Links at Divi.

Aruba is their home away from home, which during the other fifty weeks of the year is in Illinois.  When they get to the island, they like to mix it up a bit.  The first week is always at Divi Village.  The second week, they spend at the Golf Villas, which overlook the manicured greens, the shimmering lagoons and the blue Caribbean Sea just beyond.  Other than that, they’re pretty committed to certain institutions on the island:  Jimmy’s for happy hour and Mulligan’s for dinner.

They have made countless friends with their fellow fall travelers and count the days until the meet up again at Divi. The Pecoras witnessed friends get engaged at sunset on the beach at Divi, which was a romantic moment for them just watching it happen.  (It’s not unusual to see such bliss while at Divi; Divi likes to make romance happen.) For their own private romance, the Pecoras dine on the beach under the stars at Flying Fishbones.

October’s Employee in the Spotlight

Archuendro Finies is a native of Bonaire; and that right there says a quite a lot about him.   Naturally, he loves the water.  Bonaire is surrounded by lots of it, all of it clear, warm and inviting.  He loves sports, most of them, of course, having to do with water:  swimming, diving, snorkeling and windsurfing.  But, being that he is from Bonaire, he plays soccer, too.  He’s also good-natured, another inherent Bonairean trait.

Endro, as he’s known around Divi, started working at Flamingo Beach Resort last December as an intern with the dive operation.  He quickly progressed from trainee to dive master to dive instructor.  “Endro is an example of many youngsters on the island.  He has tremendous enthusiasm and passion for his work,” said dive operations manager Serge De Groote. When he’s not at Divi, you will find him at Sorobon at Lac Bay, on the opposite side of the island with many other windsurfing aficionados.

Sorobon provides an ideal combination of wind, water, sand and sun for windsurfing and the bay’s shape creates wind zones that make this the perfect practice ground for novices to champions.  Many tourists consider a trip over to Lac Bay part of a Bonaire vacation.  You’ll catch Endro gliding effortlessly across. He’s good.

It’s no surprise that he says windsurfing is his idea of a great time.  He’ll occasionally mix it up with cave snorkeling. Exploring the “lost world of Bonaire” helps him de-stress.  And, of course, he dives, always packing his ELF.  That’s a device for shooting lionfish, which are known reef eaters and also inflict a very nasty sting on humans.  (He can tell you.)  When he’s underwater enjoying Bonaire’s reefs, he’s working to protect them.

Endro says that what is important to him now is hitting all the goals he has put in front of him.  So, don’t be surprised to find him walking the grounds one day in the not too distant future – not in a wetsuit, but with a pin on his shirt that says,“Archuendro Finies, Assistant Manager, Divi Flamingo Beach Resort.”

If he can add something to Flamingo Beach Resort, he would add more activities.  Cave snorkeling anyone?  Let us know!  We’ve got the perfect guide.