Ryan Gunning Media Kit
Bios, headshot, an approved quote, and contact details for journalists, podcasts, and event organizers.
Short bio
Ryan Gunning is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran (Sergeant, 2014–2018), University of Alabama graduate, and President & Founder of The Calm Seas Project in Jacksonville, Florida.
One-line bio
Marine Corps veteran, University of Alabama grad, founder of The Calm Seas Project. Jacksonville, FL
Medium bio
Ryan Gunning is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran who served from 2014 to 2018 as an Airborne and Air Delivery Specialist and parachutist with the Marine Raider Regiment, finishing as a Sergeant. After the Marines he earned a bachelor's and an accelerated master's in operations management at The University of Alabama. With fellow University of Alabama graduates he founded The Calm Seas Project, a Jacksonville, Florida nonprofit that takes veterans and first responders out on the water. He lives in Jacksonville.
Long bio
Ryan Gunning is a U.S. Marine Corps veteran (Sergeant, 2014–2018), University of Alabama graduate, and President & Founder of The Calm Seas Project, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering all-expenses-paid fishing and diving excursions for veterans and first responders. As a Marine Airborne and Air Delivery Specialist and parachutist with the Marine Raider Regiment, he worked within Marine Special Operations Teams as an enabler, completing Airborne School in 2015 and SERE School in 2016 and deploying to Africa in 2016 and the Middle East in 2017 and 2018. At The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa he earned a B.S. in operations management with a minor in supply chain management and an accelerated M.S. in operations management (June 2025), and was named repeatedly to the President's List and Dean's List. He founded The Calm Seas Project with fellow University of Alabama graduates and lives in Jacksonville, Florida, where he fishes, dives, and builds the organization.
The Marine Corps taught me that no one gets through the hard days alone. That truth didn't expire when I hung up the uniform, and The Calm Seas Project is how I keep faith with the men and women who still carry the weight of service.
Speaking topics
- Veterans and first responders reconnecting through time on the water
- Founding The Calm Seas Project and building a veteran nonprofit
- Using the GI Bill well: internships, student worker programs, and two degrees
- Why operations management suits veterans
- Fishing and diving on Florida's First Coast
Media contact
Email ryan@calmseasproject.org. For coverage and honors, see the press page; more photos are in the gallery.
Service photo
A photo of Ryan Gunning from his time in the U.S. Marine Corps, approved for editorial use alongside the headshot. Please credit Ryan Gunning.
Photo licensing
Photos of Ryan Gunning on this site (including the official headshot and gallery images) are owned by Ryan Gunning. Journalists and event organizers may use the headshot and other photos of Ryan for editorial coverage of Ryan Gunning or The Calm Seas Project with credit: Ryan Gunning. For other uses, email ryan@calmseasproject.org. More photos: gallery.
Videos of Ryan Gunning
Clips of Ryan Gunning and The Calm Seas Project that editors and hosts may embed from YouTube. More on Ryan Gunning's YouTube channel.