Staff
Surfing is a way of life on the Southern North Carolina coastline. A love of the outdoors and a passion for the ocean is shared by the entire staff of the Tony Silvagni Surf School. All of our instructors are CPR, AED, and first aid certified, with their main focus for surf instruction being safety in the water while having fun!
Tony Silvagni – Professional Surfer
Professional Surfer, Tony Silvagni, is the proud owner of the Tony Silvagni Surf School. Tony has been devotedly competing worldwide for over fourteen years. His most recent accomplishments include 2011 ISA World Longboard Champion, Gold Medalist for the USA surf team, 2011 Association of Surfing Professional of North America Longboard Champion, 2011 ASP Japan Pro Longboard Champion, & 6th in the World on the ASP World Longboard Tour. Tony has qualified for the world tour for the four consecutive years through the ASP North America (Association of Surfing Professional) ratings and through the World tour ratings for professional longboard. In 2009 he placed 24th overall in the world, and won the individual bronze medal at the ISA World Games in Costa Rica. Tony helped bring home the gold with the USA Surf Team which hadn’t been accomplished in thirteen years. Tony was also ranked fourth overall on the ASP North America ratings in 2009 and second overall in 2008. His combination of professional surfing and passion for the sport led to a natural decision to begin sharing his joy of surfing with others. Tony has been a professional surf coach for 7 years and has been instructing others in surf technique and ocean safety since 2005.
Tony moved to Kure Beach, NC with his family in 1993. He has enjoyed surfing the waves of the Southeast USA ever since. Tony’s professional surfing career has taken him all over the world and back. Most recently, Tony has been to Italy, Sri Lanka, and Japan to compete in professional longboard tournaments. Also in 2010, Tony attended the International Surfing Games in Peru. In 2009, he attend the Noosa Surfing Festival in Australia, two ASP South America Surfing events in Brazil, and the ISA World Games in Costa Rica. Tony also frequently travels to California to compete in the ASP North America surfing events. On several occasions, Tony spends time in Hawaii surfing the famous breaks of Haleiwa, Chuns, Diamond Head, & Ala Moana Bowls. During his most recent extended stay in Hawaii, Tony taught surf lessons to President Obama’s Secret Service agents.
When Tony is back home he enjoys extending his love and knowledge of surfing at his home breaks around North Carolina. He has organized and successfully coordinated four charity surf contests in Carolina Beach, NC to bring awareness and fundraising for Lyme Disease. Tony coordinated the Craig Marshall Surf Contest, raising over 20,000 dollars for charity in loving memory of Craig Marshall. Tony has always strived to serve as a good role model and positive example to those around him. His infectious energy and positive personality make him an exceptional advocate for the sport of surfing. Tony is available to teach private surf lessons, group surf lessons, Surf Camps, Stand-up Paddleboarding Tours, Advanced Surf Coaching and Technique. Tony also teaches Swimming lessons, Bodyboard Lessons & coordinates Surf Birthday Parties.
Tony Silvagni Resume
Ryan Perez- Head Instructor & Musician
Ryan grew up playing all kinds of sports in Hope Mills, North Carolina. He was an active child who loved the outdoors and everything that Mother Nature had to offer. When Ryan was thirteen he moved to beautiful Hawaii where he attended high school and later the University of Hawaii at Manoa on a full ride golfing scholarship. He earned a Bachelor of Art degree in Psychology and plans to get a Masters degree in the future. While in Oahu, Ryan taught himself how to surf and play the ukelele, both activities passionately impacting his life! Now that he is back in North Carolina, you can find Ryan teaching surf lessons at Tony Silvagni Surf School or playing his ukelele at various restaurants in the area. Surfing and music are his outlets in life where Ryan experiences pure nirvana!
Dave Desnoyers- Surf & SUP instructor
Dave moved to Pleasure Island in May of 2011 and began giving surf lessons in August with Tony Silvagni’s Surf School. Dave grew up in Massachusetts and developed a natural affinity for the ocean and marine life at a very young age. Growing up in New England certainly did not hinder Dave’s enthusiasm for the coast or surfing, as he would travel for hours just to spend time at the beach! He has surfed many of the beaches on the eastern seaboard, and some as
far away as New Zealand. Dave believes that is surfing, just as in life, you need determination and a good sense of humor to reach your goals. He loves to teach surfing and enjoys working with surf school participants from all over the country. Currently, Dave attends Cape Fear Community College and is studying boat building. One day he hopes to work in the Boat and Yacht Joinery industry, securing a life in close proximity to the ocean. Outside of surfing, Dave’s interests are snowboarding, hiking, camping, photography, music, woodworking, and bouldering.
Phil Castelluzzo- Surf Instructor
Phil grew up on the coast of New Jersey where surfing came with the territory! Surfing took Phil all up and down the east coast as well as California, Mexico, Puerto Rico and Nicaragua. Phil swam competitively for three years in high school and continues to train periodically. In 2008, he moved to North Carolina to attend the University of North Carolina at Wilmington where he is studying Environmental Studies and Oceanography and will graduate in May 2012. His college experience of focusing on the natural environment, mainly the ocean, has helped him gain tremendous respect for the water, yet appreciate the enjoyment it offers. Having lived around the ocean his entire life, Phil has a special love for surfing. He feels that surfing has made him who he is today, and he loves being able to share the joy of learning to students of all ages at the Tony Silvagni Surf School! Phil has also been a Carolina Beach lifeguard since 2011 and is certified in CPR/First Aid/Oxygen/Backboard/AED. When not surfing, Phil enjoys running, swimming, playing guitar and ukulele, skateboarding, and snowboarding. He hopes to live by the ocean his entire life and teach students the best sport in the world!! SURFING!!!
Chandler Von Cannon- Surf Instructor
Chandler Von Cannon is originally from Jamestown, NC and moved to Kure Beach at the age of 10. As soon as she arrived her love for the ocean was evident. Chandler started surfing right away and has been inseparable from the ocean ever since. Prior to moving to Kure Beach, Chandler was very athletic and participated in many sports, but excelled in swimming. She has been swimming competitively since age 5 and continues to compete on her varsity swim team in High School.
Chandler’s strong swimming skills aided in her development as a competitive surfer. She started entering local surf contests and quickly moved her way up as one of the top female surfers on the east coast. Chandler’s surfing has enabled her to travel to many locations both on the east and west coast including Puerto Rico. Chandler began lifeguard training at age 13 and quickly became a member of the ocean rescue team. She is CPR and AED certified.
While her love for the ocean is apparent, Chandler has never lost sight of her academics. She is currently a junior in high school and in the top ten of her class with a GPA of 4.7. Chandler is very active in her local service endeavors and works well with both adults and children. She hopes to continue her service pursuits coordinating her ability to help others in the surfing community and beyond.
Ashley Silvagni- Surf Instructor & Art designer
Ashley Silvagni is the sister of Tony Silvagni. This will be my fourth fun-filled season working for the Tony Silvagni Surf School! My main passion with the surf school is that I love working with kids, especially children with special needs. The surfing industry has broadened my horizons with travel to other countries where I love to meet people of all ethnicities, and discover new cultures. I am a diverse person who is positive and I love helping others in any way that I can. I am currently a student at Cape Fear Community College studying Medical Sonography and hope to be accepted into my program in the near future.
Deanna Diebel- Surf Instructor
Deanna moved up to Wilmington, NC to begin her undergraduate career at UNCW in August of 2007 as a Spanish major and journalism minor. She comes from Atlanta, Georgia, where she was born and raised but the land locked city did not hinder her exposure to or love for all water sports. She began surfing at age six when her father taught her on a family trip to Daytona Beach, Florida. She spent a portion of her childhood summers in the Outer Banks where her parents lived during the seventies. She spent her time there surfing, boogie boarding, skateboarding and doing all things outdoor and water oriented. She knew that she was destined to be closer to the ocean so she took the first chance she had and moved coastward for college. Since then, she has been a member of the UNCW Surfrider Foundation chapter and spent a large portion of her time in the ocean, gaining contest experience as a freshman during the Wrightsville Beach Clean Water Classic.
As a bilingual speaker in Spanish and English and with an intermediate knowledge of Brazilian Portuguese, Deanna’s passion for culture, language and travel has led her to adventures all over the world. She has surfed in Waikiki, Honolulu, and taken various surf trips to Rincón, Puerto Rico. During her five month stent in Valencia, Spain, where she did a semester of her undergraduate studies, she traveled to Italy, the Netherlands, Czech Republic, Germany, Switzerland and the Balearic Islands. Stateside travels include Mexico, the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands. After Deanna graduates from UNCW in May she stands as a candidate for the UNCW Spanish Graduate Studies Program as well as a candidate for teaching English in Spain through the Spanish Government for the upcoming school year. In her free time she enjoys doing yoga, snowboarding and using her Spanish to be involved in community service.
Ryan Dematteis- Surf Instructor
Ryan is a native of Massachusetts, having grown up surfing all around the nor’easter section of the country, mostly Martha’s Vineyard, New Hampshire, and the chilly southern coasts of Maine. He rode his first wave at age fifteen and has been hooked ever since! A local to “The Wall” at North Hampton NH, Ryan has also spent the past few summers on the island of Martha’s Vineyard just off the
coast of Cape Cod. It was here that he was working to preserve the pristine marine environments and surfed the little known breaks along the cliffy south shore. He spent the majority of the past five years traveling the country in search of surf and new experiences in places like California and Hawaii. Ryan is now living and surfing in Carolina Beach, NC where he teaches surf lessons to all ages at the Tony Silvagni Surf School. Ryan is stoked on life and is wicked excited for surf lessons this summer!!
Chris Howard- Surf & SUP Instructor
Chris Howard is 23 years old. He is from Chelmsford, Massachusetts and has lived in Wilmington for the past two years. Raised in Massachusetts, Chris grew up surfing the rocky beach breaks of the New England coast. After high school Chris decided to see what the Pacific had to offer. He traveled the coasts of California and Hawaii, surfing every chance he had. His favorite board to ride is a short board. He loves nothing more then to be in the warm weather with some tasty waves.
Luke Carnevale- Surf Instructor
Luke Carnevale is a nineteen-year-old freshman at East Carolina University who is currently majoring in biology and studying other sciences. He grew up skateboarding, riding dirtbikes and snowboarding in the rural town of Hunterdon County, New Jersey and moved down to Wilmington, North Carolina six years ago. Shortly after, he purchased his first surfboard and immediately fell in love with the incredible sport.
During every lesson he tries to convey his love and respect for the ocean and marine life in addition to teaching the proper etiquette and techniques of surfing. In the future, Luke plans on attending dental school to become a Doctor of Dental Surgery. Furthermore he aims to open a practice by the coast with his older brother and continue to share his passion for the ocean.
Rebecca Naimtu- Surf Yoga Instructor
Becca wants to share her joy of yoga with everyone she meets. Committing her life to yoga as service for the planet, she hopes to help the planet heal from within. Believing in the concept of “think globally act locally” she wants to bring the community together on their yoga mats. Rebeccas approach to yoga is heartfelt and playful as she incorporates all styles of Hatha, Bhakti, and Karma yoga into her classes, cleansing and healing the body mind and spirit. Her teaching style is influenced by Anusara and Vinyasa traditions. Certified in 2009 as a Yoga teacher Becca continues her study of yoga on and off the mat, Currently working towards her degree in massage and bodywork.