In his professional life, Steve Ziadeh often has the feeling he’s underwater.

As a senior marine aquarist with New England Aquarium Services, he provides aquarium maintenance, aquatic life education and aquarium design, among other services.

“It’s a pleasure to see other people get enjoyment out of the service I provide,” said Ziadeh, 25, as he worked on a 360-pound tank at Yellowfin’s restaurant in the Ocean Park section of Old Orchard Beach.

Ziadeh is a 2014 graduate of the University of New England and has a degree in biological sciences with an emphasis in aquaculture and aquarium sciences.

New England Aquarium Services is based in Biddeford. The goal is to provide “showpiece exhibits that mimic what one would find in nature,” said Ziadeh.

His favorite part of the job is “when someone’s face lights up when their tank is awesome. That’s a good feeling.”

The hardest part of the job is accommodating clients’ varying schedules.

“Sometimes you go in before a business opens, sometimes you wait till they close,” he said.


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