Charlie Cooper
Head Instructor
Charlie fell in love with the Pacific Ocean when growing up on the island of Guam. He returned to his love at the first opportunity and has been diving and sailing the Pacific for the past 50 years. He was first certified in 1973 and had more than 2000 dives before deciding to become a divemaster in 2000 and an instructor in 2006. He is now a PADI certified Master Instructor and enjoys teaching and sharing his love of the ocean with everyone he meets.
Professional Certifications:
PADI Master Instructor 2013
PADI IDC Staff Instructor
PADI Master SCUBA Diver Trainer
PADI Open Water Instructor 2006
PADI Divemaster 2000
Emergency First Response Instructor Trainer 2013
Emergency First Response Instructor 2006
DAN Instructor
Specialty Instructor Ratings
Enriched Air Nitrox, Dry Suit Diver, Underwater Photographer, Digital Underwater Photographer, Boat Diver, Night Diver, Underwater Navigator, Emergency Oxygen Provider, Underwater Naturalist, AWARE Fish ID, Search and Recovery Diver, Deep Diver, Diving Accident Management, O2 First Aid, DAN BLS Pro, DANO2, DAN Advanced O2, DAN Hazardous Marine Life Injuries, DAN Dive Medicine for Divers, AED, Remote O2, On-Site Neurological Assessment for Diver
Adam Zeno
Instructor
Adam “Boomer” Zeno has been diving for 20+ years and has logged more than 2800 dives. It was “love at first dive” after doing a Discover Scuba class in Jamaica on his honeymoon. He became a Dive Master in 2011, assisting with classes and local guided dives for at a silicon valley scuba center before becoming an Instructor in 2014. Adam enjoys working in the retail side of the store as well, helping with equipment and filling tanks. He is currently an IDC Staff Instructor and continues to enjoy teaching at Aqua Safari Scuba Center.
Adam enjoys visiting underwater creatures around the world. His favorite dive destinations include Palau, Cuba, Hawaii, the Florida Keys, Mexico, Belize, the Southern Caribbean and, of course, our beautiful California marine preserves.
“Boomer” is an IDC Staff Instructor in Santa Cruz, California.. He teaches PADI specialty classes and certifies students up to the Assistant Instructor level.
Caitlin Cooper
Instructor
Caitlin grew up in Santa Cruz and, from an early age, was in love with the water. She enjoys all kinds of diving and loves learning new aspects of the sport. She enjoys working with Reef Check California, gathering data on the rocky reef system up and down the California coast line. There is always something to learn, and she is constantly adding more specialties to her list.
Monterey and Carmel have her favorite dive sites in the world! She also enjoys driving up north along the Sonoma and Mendocino coast lines. It is fun to get away to warm water locations but, when she does go, she just can’t wait to come home and dive Monterey.
Professional Certifications
PADI IDC Staff Instructor 2017
DAN Instructor 2014
Master SCUBA Diver Trainer 2014
PADI Open Water Instructor 2013
PADI Assistant Instructor 2013
PADI Divemaster 2013
Emergency First Response Instructor 2013
Specialty Instructor Ratings
EFR Adult and Care for Children w/ AED, Fish Identification, Project AWARE, AWARE Coral Reef Conservation, Peak Performance Buoyancy, Night Diver, Enriched Air Nitrox, Dry Suit Diver, Boat Diver, Altitude, Deep Diver, Underwater Navigator, Tec Rec Nitrox and Trimix Blender, Digital Underwater Photography, DAN O2, DAN Marine Life Hazards, DAN BLS, DAN Neurological Assessment.