Staff
Owner/ NAUI Divemaster
House@divindawgs.com
Owner / Instructor NAUI/ SDI/TDI
Brent@divindawgs.com
I’ve always been fascinated by the ocean. I love the water and all the adventures and mysteries it holds. My journey into diving began in 2011 and I never looked back. It has been and continues to be a grand adventure and source of great joy. I started teaching because the aquatic world is too marvelous not to share. Diving and training divers are more than just a hobby or business, they are my passion, and I am very excited to share this world with anyone who wants to learn.
Owner/ NAUI Divemaster
Val@divindawgs.com
Having grown up in the Canadian Rockies, I never even dipped a toe into an ocean until I was 17. Nevertheless, I was always passionate about water sports, particularly white water rafting and kayaking in icy Canadian waters. I got my PADI Open Water certification in July 2019 and put it out into the universe that I wanted to find the ultimate dive buddy. A month later, I met Brent at a Down Under Diver’s Club Event at Fantasy Lake. While warm water reef diving is amazing, what really gets my heart racing is wrecks, turtles and pink dive gear. The Graveyard of the Atlantic is my happy place. I recently crossed over and became a NAUI Dive Master. Come learn to dive with us. I am proof that it can literally change your life.
Owner/ Lead Instructor NAUI / IANTD
NAUI Instructor Trainer
Tim@divindawgs.com
By day, Dedan is a Network Engineer. In his spare time, he lives and breathes scuba diving: an addiction that was born in 1996. After 21 years of diving some great places and a whole lot of crappy ones, he became an independent PADI instructor and Master Scuba Diver Trainer. When a couple of his friends had the wacky idea to get into the dive shop business, he decided to cross over and teach specialties for them. Still a student of the sport, he’s recently finished Advanced Nitrox and Deco Procedures. He says he’s not going to pursue trimix, but he’s probably lying. Update: Dedan is currently pursuing trimix, despite the sticker shock of fill prices.
While stationed in San Diego, CA on board the USS Independence CV-62, I completed my first open water scuba certification at La Jolla Beach in 1988. With a deep appreciation for the ocean and a love of diving, I started my path to becoming an instructor. I joined Divin’ Dawgs in 2005 and am currently an instructor for multiple agencies: PADI (since 2000), IANTD (since 2011) and NAUI (since 2015). Working with Tim to make Divin’ Dawgs a NAUI facility is one accomplishment of which I am particularly proud.
Retail Manager, Technician, Scapegoat and Tank Monkey
Father was a US Marine. I was born in Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, DC. Raised in Havelock, NC.
First certified NAUI OW in August of 2019. I was immediately hooked on diving and got my AOW and Nitrox certifications in Oct 2019. My most recent certification was Rescue Diver in November 2021. I have logged 107 dives in the few years since my OW certification. My favorite NC dives so far are the Aeolus and the Fracisconi.
NAUI Divemaster
Head of Security
Greeter
All Around Good Boy
I keep all these jokers in line. I hate water, but I LOVE scuba divers.