It is time to go as her work here is done, Bermuda Underwater Institute executive director Nancy Brennan told The Royal Gazette .

And while further challenges await her on the horizon, part of her will remain at the institution she helped set up and with the Island she called home for the past two years.

Ms Brennan announced recently that she had accepted the post of executive director at the Plimoth Plantation in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.

"I am leaving in December. It is the natural time for me to go because the Institute is now open. I have done what they hired me for which was to work on the fundamentals of opening up.'' These included getting the exhibits finished, putting the membership programme in place, hiring and training staff and getting BUEI known in the community.

"We have gotten a lot done in a few years. This is a brand new model for a cultural institution. There were no proven models or road maps for us to follow and a lot of opportunities came up along the way that we did not expect.'' Ms Brennan said BUEI -- which is intended to become self-supporting eventually -- was "financially on track'' despite delays which had caused fluctuations in visitor numbers.

"I will be very glad when we are through this start up phase and visitors and locals know we are fully operational. That will be at the end of October.'' But financially, she added: "We're doing pretty well.

"This is for a variety of reasons including the popularity of our gift shop and meeting facilities. What has particularly exceeded our expectations has been the success of the membership programme.

"We thought in all of 1997 we would achieve about 500 memberships and we are at over 1,200 now. A lot of members have also joined at higher levels than I originally forecasted.'' This indicated two things, continued Ms Brennan.

"One is that there is base support for the institute in the community and that is gratifying. It also shows that people are interested in the range of resources that memberships will allow them to take advantage of.

"That is just wonderful,'' she added, "and is a point that should not be underestimated.

"It is truly wonderful for the Institute as it gives us a foundation in the Bermudian community to build on.'' In this sense BUEI was ahead of where it expected to be, said Ms Brennan.

"The next step is to find out how well the Institute is serving its members.

We are just in the process of doing surveys which will go out next month.'' She added that BUEI would probably also meet with groups of members and focus on different subjects with them.

But while the financial status of the institute was on track, "we will continue to watch it carefully along with cost savings like any well run institute does''.

Further down the road there will be lectures and film series which will also "contribute toward the bottom line'', noted Ms Brennan.

And there would be further opportunities for BUEI to serve visitors and the local population that its leaders were looking at.

Proposals for next spring, she continued, were that BUEI might begin operating water tours or become the venue for a water taxi drop off and pick up site.

"The water is one of Bermuda's greatest resources. Moving people around from place to place, whether they be tourists or commuters, would be something that they would enjoy immensely. This could support and enhance the Government ferry.'' Also planned for the future are a printed visitors' guide to the facility and an audio tour. These will help make the unfamiliar information associated with deep ocean marine science less confusing; she said.

Turning to her upcoming post at Plimoth Plantation, one of the largest institutions in the US, Ms Brennan said: "It will be a very different kind of job. I am not sure it could be any more different.

"Where as working at the Institute has been an opportunity to create a framework for the Institute and breathe life into its mission statement, Plimoth is an old organisation that needs to have a creative and entrepreneurial approach to move it into the next century.'' And as Plimoth is one of the ten largest employers in its county, she continued, it will provide an opportunity for her to see how it can assist in the modern, economic development of its area.

This was a subject that she was actively involved in when she worked as executive director of the Baltimore City Life Museums before coming to Bermuda.

"That was not part of the job here and I am looking forward to getting back to that.'' On a personal level, Ms Brennan added: "My husband, son and I have absolutely fallen in love with Bermuda and its people. We have friendships here that I hope will be bringing us back often.

"As my husband is fond of saying, Cape Cod bay does not have Bermuda's visibility so as divers we want to come back often.'' NANCY BRENNAN -- "We have gotten a lot done in a few years. This is a brand new model for a cultural institution.''