Chairman
Paul Tonna, a product of the Red Cross Swim Programs in the 1960s and 1970s, embarked on his lifeguarding career as a member of the 1974 waterfront staff at Baiting Hollow Boy Scout Camp in Calverton, New York. In 1975 and 1976, he successfully passed the Suffolk County Still Water Civil Service exam and began working as a lifeguard for the Town of Huntington.
During his college years (1976-1980), he swam for NYU. In 1977, he passed the Jones Beach Lifeguard test and was assigned to Sunken Meadow State Park. In 1982, he transferred to Robert Moses Field 3, where he met his wife Carol in 1985, and worked as a weekend lifeguard until 1998.
In 2016 and 2017, Mr. Tonna volunteered as a Jones Beach Junior Lifeguard Instructor. Serving as a Jones Beach Lifeguard is a family affair. His younger brother, John Tonna, worked at Orient Point, Sunken Meadow, and Robert Moses Fields 4 and 5. His son, John Tonna, worked at Sunken Meadow and Jones Beach Field 2. His son, Joseph Tonna, worked at Sunken Meadow and currently serves at Jones Beach Central Mall. His nephews, Patrick and Eamon Tonna, currently work at Sunken Meadow.
Paul served as a Suffolk County legislator from 1994 to 2005 and led the county’s legislature as presiding officer for three years. Throughout his tenure, he was a staunch advocate for the underprivileged, homeless, and marginalized, as well as workforce housing and environmental conservation. He sponsored, co-sponsored, and successfully passed numerous laws and initiatives, including pioneering non-smoking legislation, innovative programs aimed at eradicating child poverty and homelessness, legislation designed to enhance the standard of living for all Suffolk County residents, and groundbreaking Greenway funds to safeguard open spaces and farmlands.
In 1998, Governor George Pataki appointed Paul as a trustee of the Long Island State Parks Commission. In this role, he dedicated his advocacy efforts to ensuring that Long Island State Parks & Recreation receive the necessary governmental and charitable financial support. Notably, he focused upon providing resources for the recruitment and training of Jones Beach Lifeguards, the world’s premier lifeguard corps. Currently, Paul Tonna serves as Managing Partner of Praxis Public Relations, Inc., a Long Island-based business public affairs company. He holds a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from New York University, a master’s degree in theology from Immaculate Conception Seminary, and doctoral studies in systematic theology at Fordham University. Paul resides in Huntington, New York, with his wife Carol and their children: Peter, Paul, John, Grace, Mary, Carolann, Joseph, and Lucy.