Sunday, January 12th

Students, faculty recount being lost at sea for hours

By JESSICA BLISS, The Tennessean

Brentwood Academy math teacher Chandler Ganick, left, sits with 17-year-old high school seniors Garrett Crouch, center, and Ethan Oesterle after returning from Costa Rica in Nashville. The three, along with Brentwood Academy literature teacher Jimmy Ker, were left adrift in the Pacific Ocean after their fishing boat capsized during a school trip to Costa Rica. The foursome, along with the boat's two crew members, were lost in the ocean for hours several miles offshore before being rescued by passing boats. (Jessica Bliss/The Tennessean via AP)

BRENTWOOD, Tenn. (AP) - The small boat lurched. First upward, to the crest of the oncoming wave. Then down into the valley between each 15-foot swell.

Each time the nose of the small fishing vessel plunged forward, its passengers' feet lifted off the ground. And when the bow slammed into the wall of water ahead, their bodies crashed back to the deck, jarring their tailbones and bruising their legs.

"Life jackets! Life jackets!" the captain yelled.

What began as a memorable deep sea excursion for two Brentwood Academy students and two faculty members in Costa Rica had been upended. And the hours to come would require a calm and a courage unlike any they had called on before.

Hearing the captain's shout, Brentwood Academy math teacher Chandler Ganick scrambled to the spot where the captain pointed and hurled two bright orange vests to the pair of students - Garrett Crouch and Ethan Oesterle - in the boat's bow.

Then Ganick located two more vests, pulling one over his neck and giving the other to fellow teacher Jimmy Ker.

As the 40 mph gales roared across the water around them, they held onto any surface they could grasp. The captain was good, but the 16-foot fishing boat was not prepared.

It stalled. Righted itself. Fought forward the best that it could.

"We're at the mercy of God right now," Ker told his companions. "Nothing is going to get us through this but the Lord."

But as Crouch looked behind them, it was clear rough waters were not the only test they would face that day. He watched as a wave rose up and consumed the back of the boat. In an instant, the stern was completely submerged.

"Get out," Crouch shouted. "We're going down."

'So big and so strong and so mighty'

The Costa Rica excursion began with nothing but blue skies and good vibes.

The trip was part of Brentwood Academy's Winterim program, which sends students across the city and around the globe to experience new cultures, lead service projects and complete internships.

All Brentwood Academy freshmen through seniors participate.

This month, many traveled to far away places like China, Belize, Iceland, Jamaica - and the rustic seaside town of Tamarindo in Costa Rica.

A group of approximately 30 students and chaperones arrived on the Central American coastline on Friday (Jan. 3), settling in at Witch's Rock Surf Camp as they practiced their Spanish, learned to surf and enjoyed the sun.

Ganick and Ker - who leads the school's wilderness club - were there to help oversee the trip. On Saturday night, after a satisfying day filled with hikes and zip lining, Ganick delivered a devotional to the group. He chose to share lyrics from a song his daughter loves to sing.

"My God is so big and so strong and so mighty," he recited.

The next morning, Ganick got on a boat, not knowing how that strength would emerge - both in the wind and himself.

Yellow fin and unexpected winds

In a friendly competition of reeling in yellow fin, Ganick was winning.

His prize catch was in the back of the boat being filleted by the expert hands of their crewman when the wind started picking up.

At first, none of them worried much. They were catching fish and bonding with each other. Though Crouch and Oesterle, both 17-year-old seniors, played football together at Brentwood Academy, neither ever had Ganick or Ker for a teacher, so this was the first time the four had spent any quality time together.

Brentwood Academy's Winterim program is all about new experiences. It is designed to expand the students' knowledge beyond the classroom and their communities and expose them to new academic, artistic and outdoor adventures.

Deep sea fishing brought the group together for one of those adventures. They departed by boat around 7 a.m. on Sunday, traveling several miles offshore in a 16-foot center console fishing vessel navigated by a captain from a local charter company.

That same fishing charter had hosted Brentwood Academy students and staff during past Winterim trips, including several excursions the previous year.

It was photos of the massive mahi-mahi caught during last year's trip that convinced Crouch he needed to go. Deep sea fishing had been on his bucket list. No better place than in a boat on the Pacific.

Crouch caught a black tuna and a yellow fin. Oesterle caught a bigger one. Ganick caught the biggest.

Then, two hours into the trip, the winds began to swirl and the boat lurched.

As a massive wave overtook the back of the boat, they abandoned ship. Crouch and Ganick went one way. Oesterle prepared to go the other. For a split second he locked eyes on Ker, then he grabbed the teacher and pulled him overboard.

They surfaced just in time to see their boat go vertical and sink below the waves.

Lost at sea

Bobbing like buoys in the water, they did a quick survey of their circumstances.

Every passenger - two teachers, two students, two crew members - was accounted for. Ganick watched as the bag with all their cell phones floated away.

"I guess we're going to leave my bag," Ganick joked.

"I guess so," Ker quipped back.

They were at least three miles from shore, but they could see the land - or most of them could, at least. Oesterle lost his contacts in the plunge. But the green blur in the distance of his now-fuzzy vision was his focus.

With nothing else to cling to, they held onto their faith. And they swam.

Constant. Consistent. Calm. For nearly three hours, they struggled against the ocean.

The afternoon sun scorched their faces and left their mouths dry. There were short stretches when the water tossed them like rag dolls, leaving them only seconds to gasp for breath before being pushed under again.

They got separated often, distanced from each other by the height of the waves. Still, they kept the fear at bay. Even the thought of sharks didn't unnerve them.

"I kept praying to God to keep myself calm and my muscles active," Oesterle said.

But even with their wits about them, the high winds and steep swells kept them from getting closer to shore.

"That was the frustrating part," Crouch said. "Knowing you could see it, but not being able to get there."

'Being a Tennessee fan probably saved my life'

Life jackets are designed to keep people alive. But it was Crouch's shirt that truly may have saved him.

It happened to be the same eye-catching color as his flotation device - a bright orange University of Tennessee fishing shirt.

That was what caught the eye of a woman sitting on the bow of a nearby boat, looking out at the waves as the Sunday morning sun climbed higher in the sky. Curious, she asked the boat's captain to move closer.

Crouch didn't know the boat was there until it was right on top of him.

"Being a Tennessee fan probably saved my life," he said.

The passengers hauled Crouch's exhausted body from the water. His face was red and badly burned. His muscles seized from dehydration, keeping him frozen on the boat's floor. As they brought him fluids, he tried to communicate that there were still others in the water who needed rescue.

The captain of the boat was Costa Rican, but Crouch managed to get him to understand. They radioed for help and with keen eyes and an approximate location, they located Ker and the two crewman a few hundred yards away.

Then they coordinated a search pattern for the other two.

A sweet rescue

Ganick and Oesterle still hoped to reach shore. Every time there was a calm in the water, Ganick would power ahead, but he never made much progress.

Almost three hours after they watched their own boat sink, others finally came into view.

First, a blue boat bounced by. It didn't see them.

Then a big white boat passed.

"Should we shout?" Oesterle asked.

"I don't see why not," Ganick replied.

As they waved and yelled, someone on board waved back.

They were saved.

"Well, how are y'all doing?" Oesterle said as he stepped on deck. Then he smiled and asked for some water. He was so thirsty.

The family on board did that and one better. The mom reached into a cooler and produced brownies, fresh and carefully wrapped in tinfoil. She handed one to Oesterle and another to Ganick.

It was the best brownie either man ever had in his life.

Grateful to be back on solid ground

Sunburned but safe, they all returned to solid ground. They called their families. They reassured their loved ones. They gave thanks for their protection.

And they all stayed in Costa Rica to finish the trip they started, closer and more connected than ever.

The very next night, they stepped back on a boat together - this time for a catamaran cruise.

"The same God that controls the winds and waves that we dealt with turned around the next day and gave us a beautiful sunset and a time together of calmness," Ganick said.

And for that, they are grateful.

They are back home home in Tennessee now, ready to return to school and regale their classmates and coworkers with the harrowing tale of their trip.

Crouch hopes to play football in college next year. Oesterle plans to pursue medicine. Both have graduation to look forward to. And their future. A blessing, they said, that can't be overlooked.

"My faith is the same," Oesterle said. "It's always going to be grounded. But I can honestly say, an experience like that will change your life."