Joanne “Jojo” Howard   |   Founder / Surf Instructor

Joanne “Jojo” Howard was raised on Oahu and, like many local kids, developed her love for surfing at a young age. She loved it so much, she started a surf club while attending Saint Francis School. While she tackled her Bachelor’s of Science in Business, a well-timed business and culture course took her overseas for the first time, sparking a desire to travel and meet new people.

Jojo has since traveled around the world, working in Europe, teaching in South America, and volunteering in Africa. Currently even serving on the Board of Directors for the non-profit organization Peace by Piece to aid children in developing countries. Her love of people kept her traveling, but her love of surf eventually brought her back home to Hawaii, becoming surf guide on the island of Oahu. She’s made the beach her office for 20 years now, starting her own business with Gone Surfing Hawaii in 2010. She gathered a team of some of the best surf instructor experts in Hawaii.

Brad Thomas   |   Manager / Surf Instructor / Photographer

When asked where he’s from, instructor Brad Thomas will tell you that he grew up on the gulf coast of Florida. He’ll also add that, unfortunately, Clearwater beach didn’t offer much in the way of tasty waves. Luckily, at twelve he got his first taste of surfing in San Diego with his uncle. His globe-trotting travels eventually brought him to Oahu. Why here? Well, he simply couldn’t handle another cold Colorado winter. With an entrepreneurial father and a marketing mother, it seemed natural for him to attend the University of Hawaii to study business.

Brad has had the honor of being dubbed “Sir Bradley” by Jojo herself just because he’s a little too smart for his board shorts. And, while he enjoys acknowledging how bright he can be, Brad loves teaching kids to surf even more. Watching the sparkle in their eyes and the smiles on their faces as they catch their first wave, Brad savors being their surf guide and teacher during that special moment.

Trevor Masterson   |   Head Instructor

Trevor Masterson is known on the beach as “Mini Laird” (as in Laird Hamilton, guys) or “IZM” for “Impact Zone Masterson.” Somehow he always manages to find himself right in the middle of the big waves. Though raised in Washington, DC, Trevor’s traveled to Hong Kong, and studied civil engineering in Delaware. He first charged the waves at fourteen-years-old, and hasn’t stopped since. He says that standing up on a surfboard that very first time changed his life. He came to Hawaii for the environmental science, and stayed for the surf. In fact, it’s one of the main reasons he’s still here. Trevor’s been a surf instructor in Waikiki since 2003. When he’s not surfing, or teaching others to surf at group on private surfing lessons, you can find him doing volunteer work for his brother’s Hawaii cultural classes at HPU.

Rafael Naranjo   |   Surf Instructor / Photographer

Strange as it sounds, Rafael “Rafiki” Naranjo was raised somewhere between Miami and Ecuador. He took to the waves at eight-years-old, on Florida’s East Coast. Eventually, the siren call of Oahu’s legendary surf lured Rafael to Hawaii. He claims his nickname simply fits his laid-back, hippie lifestyle. This self-proclaimed hippie surf guide speaks Spanish fluently, and graduated from Hawaii Pacific University with an environmental strides degree. In fact, the environment plays a big role in his life. He’s traveled to Indonesia to take part in soil restoration, and also volunteered at an Ecuadorian orphanage.

Rafael feels that when people learn to surf, they don’t just learn to stand up on a board, they become more aware of their surroundings and the environment. He also loves to see how happy they are after their first lesson. When he’s not surfing, Rafael spends his time taking on his biggest challenge yet — father to his baby, Noah.