Headline Surfer video and photos by Sera King / Chad Schilsky, 26, a New Smyrna Beach native and proprietor of That's Amore restaurant on the beachside off Flagler Avenue, is the newest member of the Community Redevelopment Agency. As if that's not enough excitement, the former Cudas quarterback and college graduate, who last month celebrated the one-year anniversary of the pizzeria he opened with twin brothers, Vincenzo and Pietro Capuano, is engaged to be married to Tamara Valencia.
NEW SMYRNA BEACH, Fla. -- Chad Schilsky has the boyish look like he could step back on the field and quarterback the 'Cudas. But at 26, this native son is all grown up and an entrepreneur with a restaurant that has proven popular 13 months after opening, even in this sluggish economy.
Engaged to be married, Schilsky's ready to give back to this seaside community and the community is ready for him to excel just as he did on the football field and in the classroom, both in high school and college.
Schilsky is the newest member of the seven-member Community Redevelopment Agency.
"I'm excited to be able to give something back to the community that has given me so much my whole life," Schilsky said in an exclusive interview with Headline Surfer over the weekend at That's Amore, the restaurant that he and twin brothers Vincenzo and Pietro Capuano opened Aug. 23, 2009.
"I owe everything to New Smyrna -- my education, my family.
Mayor Adam Barringer asked Schilsky a month ago whether he wanted to follow in his footsteps in bringing a new perspective to public service in New Smyrna Beach.
Schilsky said "Yes," before the mayor finished his pitch.
Earlier this month, he was nominated by Commissioner Jack Grasty, with Reiker nominating Melisa Latty, Commissioner Jim Hathaway offering James Peterson, and Commissioner Lynne Plaskett recommending Ian Ratliff.
As the list was whittled down, Schilsky was the commission's final choice on the seven-member board to succeed Realtor Linda DeBorde, who is stepping down Oct. 1, due to health issues.
Schilsky said he would "vote my own conscience" on all requests that come before the CRA, large and small.
FAST FACTS:
- Schilsky is a 2002 graduate of New Smyrna Beach High School where he quarterbacked the Cudas football team;
- He graduated in 2006, from the University of Central Florida with a B.S. degree in hospitality and business management. He initially attended Weber University in Lakeland, a small college where he was the starting quarterback before a knee injury.