A plaque is dedicated to an Erie leader who has devoted countless hours to the community.
The Erie County Sheriff’s Department Scuba Team was honoring Sam Leo.
A new plaque was revealed on Dobbins Landing with hopes of keeping memories alive. Leo is the co-founder of the scuba team and was a volunteer for over 50 years.
When Leo passed away in September 2019, the team wanted a way to shed light on the work, time and effort he committed to the community.
“Volunteerism is such an important part to our community. There are so many things that are done by volunteers that people don’t understand or even seem to think about. But like the sheriff was saying, we didn’t have a water rescue team in Erie, and we’ve got so many miles of waterfront, and there was nobody here to protect it. When Sam founded it, it’s something that just lived on for years and years,” said Norma Carey, former co-captain of the Erie County Sheriff’s Department Scuba Team.
Leo responded to several hundred water-related accidents and emergencies and has assisted in the recovery of over 100 drowning victims.
