Meet the Staff

Zack Richardson

Co-Owner, TDI and SDI Instructor Trainer, First Response Instructor

For as long as I can remember, I have had a deep love for the ocean. This passion inspired me to create beautiful reef tanks in my teens and to travel the world in search of epic surf. It was a natural choice for me to become a professional dive instructor. I love that I spend almost every day in the water and that I get to share this addiction with other people. Other hobbies of mine include gardening, attempting to play the ukulele, and lounging with our cat named “Monster.”

Lucia Podlipny

Co-owner, SDI Open Water Instructor, First Response Instructor

Growing up in a little rural town in NH, USA, I would never have imagined I would become a dive instructor. Throughout my life, I have always enjoyed nature and working with people. From directing summer camps, teaching horseback riding and cello lessons, working in restaurants, and studying abroad in pursuit of exploring new environments and cultures, etc, I eventually realized that helping people explore the ocean was something very meaningful to me. I have enjoyed living and diving on Bonaire for the past four years and look forward to sharing my passion for the ocean with both beginner and advanced divers.

Bryan Skiba-Crafts

Co-owner, TDI and SDI Instructor Trainer, First Response Instructor

Despite being raised in the midwest United States I’ve always been drawn to the ocean.  After being certified to dive in 1997 I was hooked and made frequent travels to ocean and dive trips around the world.  In 2017 I gave up a career in finance to sail and dive full time.  Spending several years on my sail boat working as a freelance instructor throughout the Caribbean, I’d find myself spending hurricane seasons in Bonaire, where I fell in love with the island.  After a stint for a couple of years in South Florida teaching technical diving, I moved to Bonaire full time to become part of TDS.  It has provided me a great opportunity to share my passions from technical and rebreather diving, ocean conservation work, training the next batch of scuba instructors, and helping the nervous open water student overcome their fears and see the smile on their face as the experience the joys of the underwater world.

Astrid de Jager

SDI, TDI, and First Response Instructor Trainer

Hi, I am Astrid, the former co-owner of Technical Diving Services. In a previous life, I used to be a musicologist, writer, and editor. I took a short break to become a divemaster on Bonaire and totally fell in love with the island and the underwater world. So shortly after I became a PADI instructor, and after gaining some teaching experience under and above, I became an IAHD instructor and an SDI Instructor Trainer. But you will find I enjoy a Discover Scuba Dive just as much as training new professionals.
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