LADY J

CAPTAIN
JARRYD VERMAAK
Captain Jarryd was born in South Africa. He grew up in Durban spending his days on the beaches with his friends. Jarryd studied Marketing and advertising after school while working for a successful restaurant/cocktail bar opening new franchises around South Africa. Jarryd entered the yachting world in 2009 as deckhand onboard a 188’ Feadship. Since entering the wonderful world of luxury yachting, he has crossed the Atlantic 5 times and cruised many different waters including the Mediterranean, Caribbean, US East coast and the Gulf of Mexico. His hard work, attention to detail and growing knowledge, along with strong communication and entrepreneurship skills allowed him to work his way up to Captain of very busy private and Charter programs. Jarryd first joined LADY J in 2015. His longevity and charter experience have allowed him to hone his skills to provide a five-star yacht program and experience to guests every time. He is very team and guest focused. He has a lively bubbly personality and gets on with all guests, always sharing a joke or two, making for a memorable charter experience that guests won’t ever forget. In his free time, Jarryd enjoys diving, water sports, traveling, and reading.

FIRST OFFICER / DIVE MASTER
SHAUN KENDALL
Shaun was born in Cape Town, South Africa and grew up in Durban. After having studied Marketing and worked in one of South Africa’s most famous bars as a mixologist and flair tender, he left South Africa in 2009 to work as a bartender on the world’s best Boutique Cruise sister ships Seadream 1 and 2, travelling the world for four years. In 2014 he joined private yachting and landed his first job on an explorer superyacht, circumnavigating the globe. Since then, he has stuck to mostly Caribbean and Med itineraries but did spend a few months in Alaska shortly after receiving his Officer ticket. He has a love for the ocean, above and below the surface. Shaun’s passion is SCUBA diving, and he is a certified Dive Master. He also loves kiteboarding and surfing too. He is a great team player, always approachable, and enjoys imparting his knowledge and experience to fellow crewmembers. He is currently working his way to his Masters license.

CHIEF ENGINEER (Rotation)
MICHAEL BISHOP
“Mikey” was born in Durban, South Africa where he grew up surrounded by water and was an avid surfer. He worked as a mixologist in cocktail bars in Durban before leaving to work as a Mechanical Mate for the London Underground Railway. After five years in London, he missed the ocean and moved to Fort Lauderdale, Florida to begin his career in yachting. He began working as a deck hand, quickly finding his way to the engine room where he excelled. Nine years later he is an extremely talented engineer who plans to continue his education and attend more engineering courses during his free time. He currently resides in Mallorca, Spain with his beautiful wife and baby boy. Mikey considers himself lucky to work on a rotation schedule onboard Lady J so that he can also spend time with his family at home, where they enjoy hiking, swimming, reading, and surfing.

CHIEF ENGINEER (Rotation)
MATTHEW STALLARD
Matt is from Winchester, Virginia in the Blue Ridge Mountains. He grew up sailing in the Chesapeake Bay and sport fishing in the Outer Banks of North Carolina. After earning a degree in economics from the College of Charleston, South Carolina he decided to follow his love for the ocean and pursue a career at sea. He has been onboard yachts for 15 years. When not turning wrenches, Matt enjoys being in the mountains hiking and camping, or on the water paddling and fishing.

CHEF
ANTHONY HORNER
Anthony grew up on the Mississippi river in Wisconsin. He attended the University of Wisconsin, and obtained a bachelor’s degree in philosophy. During his time in University, he studied abroad in France where he volunteered on an organic farm. One thing led to another and next thing he was training in Gastronomy in France in an intensive culinary program focused on Gastronomic French Cuisine and Pastry, followed by an even more intensive internship. Anthony then travelled through Central America and Thailand. While he was traveling in Thailand he acquired his Thai cuisine certification. After a few years of travel he returned to the United States, and worked in a Spanish Tapas-Style Restaurant in Miami, which ultimately introduced him to find a culinary career in the wonderful world of luxury private yacht charters. While not whipping up culinary delights in the Lady J galley, Anthony enjoys training for Olympic distance triathlons, swimming, cycling, reading fantasy fiction and playing trombone and bass guitar. While Anthony considers himself a Jack of all trades in the galley, his strength lies in Mediterranean, Thai and Central American Cuisine. With his well-rounded culinary expertise, Anthony intends to wow guests with his international flavours.

CHIEF STEWARDESS
MELODY JONETHIS
Melody was born and raised in West Palm Beach, FL in a rather musical environment as both of her parents are musicians. In fact, Melody’s name was inspired from their love and passion for music. Since Melody is also musically inclined, she moved to New York City after High School, where she attended and graduated from the American Musical & Dramatic Academy of Fine Arts. After college, Melody performed as lead vocalist for top music agency Hank Lane, playing throughout the tri-state area. Melody later performed onboard the cruise line Regent Seven Seas as lead vocalist for all production shows. After living in NYC for over 10 years, she moved to Sydney Australia where she was a private nanny for 2 years. In 2016 Melody started her yachting career and over the course of 5 years has worked on yachts based in Europe, Caribbean and the USA working her way up to Chief Stewardess. With Melody’s love of travel and living life to the fullest, making the transition into yachting was natural and easy. Melody loves making guests feel special and giving them the ultimate VIP treatment. With her bubbly and outgoing personality, she makes a great asset to Lady J’s hospitality team.

BOSUN
MOSES JARDINE
Moses grew up in Durban, South Africa, where he went to school in the mountains of Howick and spent his days between farms and beaches. After primary school, Moses moved to Cape Town where he lived for a year while working in the high-end hospitality industry, this experience led him to take the leap into the world of yachting where he has quickly gained vast amounts of boating knowledge. His interests include working out, sports, surfing, and fishing. His happy and outgoing personality are a great asset to the Lady J team. Moses enjoys every aspect of the yachting life and his hard work and dedication have paid off since working his way up the Lady J ladder from Deck Hand to Bosun.

SECOND STEWARDESS
TAN NAKUL
Tan grew up in Thailand and started off as a flight attendant for a Regional Airline. She loves to discover new cultures and meet people from different places. Oceans and beaches are always on the top of the list during her free time. She loves boxing, cardio, and any form of fitness. Meditation has become a big part of her life,
ensuring her day is calm and full of positive energy. Tan takes pride in showing the best version of herself to ensure guests are fully enjoying each moment of their holiday.

THIRD STEWARDESS
SOPHIA KAZADI
Sophie is a girl from Boise, Idaho, who left to see what else the world had to offer. After graduating from college, she left on a solo trip to Australia, and then lived in the Netherlands for a short period of time before joining yachting. She enjoys trying new things, experiencing new cuisine, and making great friends along the way. She is a bubbly, outgoing girl who is always ready to lend a helping hand. Sophie enjoys all things about the water, with a long background in competitive swimming. She loves to relax on secluded beaches with a book and some good music. She has a silly and sassy sense of humour and can always be counted on for a laugh or a specialty cocktail that will enhance your taste buds.

DECKHAND
TYLER FRANKS
Tyler was born in Memphis, Tennessee. He grew up playing on his high school basketball and golf team. Tyler then moved to Knoxville where he attended the University of Tennessee to study marketing. During his time there, he started up his own valet company which became very successful and is still going strong to this day. Throughout his life, Tyler has been boating on lakes all through Tennessee. Since then, he has been pursuing a boating career which brought him down to Fort Lauderdale, and eventually onboard Lady J. During his spare time Tyler enjoys playing golf, basketball, fishing, and spikeball on the beach.