2024 Board Officers
President
Rebecca holds BS of Zoology and MS of Biology degrees from Auburn University. She completed her PhD in Entomology at the University of California, Davis. Her main research interests include the phylogenetics, taxonomy, and systematics of trapdoor spiders. She recently published a revision of the trapdoor genus Ummidia in which she described around 30 new species from across North, Central, and South America.
Currently, Rebecca is an Assistant Professor in the Natural Sciences Department at Piedmont University where she teaches introductory biology courses as well as genetics and invertebrate zoology.
Rebecca has a true passion for effectively communicating science both with students in the classroom as well as with the public and believes that effective science communication at all levels and societal science literacy are crucial to create an informed society. She has volunteered with Black Belt Environmental Science and Arts Program (BBESAP) and the Louis Kreher Arboretum doing outdoor education for children as well as with conservation groups like the Alabama Plant Conservation Alliance (APCA).
Rebecca loves being outdoors, hiking, camping and, yes, looking for spiders! She also loves getting her students and members of her community outside to appreciate all the beauty and enriching experiences that can be had in outdoor spaces. She grew up taking regular camping and hiking trips with her family to the Smoky Mountains and other natural areas. Her father taught her the importance of “walking quietly in the woods” in order to truly appreciate the natural world around her. In college one of her professors, Dr. Debbie Folkerts, stirred her interest in natural history, education and outreach, and conservation.
As a member of the Board, Rebecca is excited to become a part of an organization that values both preserving undeveloped natural spaces as well as working with groups to make enriching and engaging outdoor spaces for local communities. She lives with her husband, cats, and tortoise (and possibly a spider or two) in Habersham County, where she spends as much time enjoying the outdoors as possible
Secretary
David S. Moore
Director Emeritus
The Historic Oakland Foundation
Atlanta native, David Moore, joined The Historic Oakland Foundation as its Executive Director in May of 2006 after 30 years as a trust officer in the financial services industry.
David served in the roll of Executive Director for 15 years, garnering support for Historic Oakland Foundation’s mission to preserve, restore, enhance, and share Historic Oakland Cemetery from donors, foundations, community leaders, public officials and policy makers. During his tenure, David focused on the Foundation’s consistent branding and messaging to strengthen the awareness and image of Oakland Cemetery and its critical role in preserving Atlanta’s rich history and culture.
In January of 2021 David assumed the role of Director Emeritus. His responsibilities included completing Oakland’s first ever capital campaign and building the endowment through the foundation’s planned giving program. David retired from that positon at the end of 2023.
David attended Vanderbilt University and the Woodrow Wilson School of Law in Atlanta.
David is a member of Raising Expectations Capital Campaign Committee, The National Memorial Day Association of Marietta, the Kiwanis Club of Downtown Atlanta (Past President), the Atlanta Coffee House Club (President), The Atlanta Breakfast Club (Joker), and Saint Catherine’s Episcopal Church of Marietta, Ga.
David and his wife, Mary, have two adult daughters and live in Marietta, Ga.
Treasurer
Chris is a native of Massachusetts. He has a BS in Chemical Engineering from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell and a JD from George Washington University Law School. He is currently a patent attorney and Member at the law firm of Quicker Law, LLC in Atlanta. Prior to entering the legal profession, Chris was an officer in the United States Navy’s Nuclear Propulsion Program.
Chris has spent months camping outdoors over decades of membership in Scouts BSA, both as a youth member and adult leader. He enjoys golfing and spending time hiking and enjoying the outdoors in his frequent travels with his wife of 25+ years. You will also find him on long walks in his neighborhood with his dogs.
Chris returns to the STPAL Board after a 4-year term as one of its first officers.
At-Large Directors
At-Large Director
Aimee Tomcho enjoys working with landowners and conservation partners to apply nature-based solutions to today’s most pressing biodiversity and climate challenges. Aimee believes stewarding ecosystems and their services is the most compelling idea of our time and she works to make certain that conserving natural resources is an economically feasible option for everyone. As a founding director of ForestHer NC, she prioritizes underserved landowners and professionals as the voice of durable progress.
During her 25-year career, Aimee focused on how messages about fire ecology, ornithology, and land legacy can elevate understanding and compel action towards a more just social and environmental culture. Currently American Forest Foundation’s Senior Forestry Manager in the Southern United States, her career began at her local county park and includes roles with National Audubon Society, US Forest Service, National Park Service, and Department of Defense.
Aimee holds a BS in Wildlife Science from Virginia Tech and a MS in Forest Resources from Clemson University. She currently resides in Burnsville, North Carolina near Southeastern Trust for Parks and Land’s Bald Mountain Preserve. She is the proud mother of two amazing sons- Ben (18) and Jayce (16), as well as one beloved dog and 5 sassy chickens.
At-Large Director
Daniel was born in Dublin, Georgia, where he spent most of his time hunting, fishing, riding bikes, and playing in the woods. He received a BBA in Management Information Systems from the University of Georgia after which he spent three years working as a software developer in South Carolina. He then returned to UGA to earn an MBA focused on Real Estate and Finance. After graduate school he moved to the Atlanta area and has spent the past 16 years working for Weyerhaeuser Company. As a Senior Land Asset Manager, he manages recreational real estate sales in a region covering three states in the southeast. When not at work, he enjoys golfing, reading, cooking, and spending time outside, especially hiking and sitting around the firepit with his family.
He lives in Decatur with his family, Lula the golden retriever, several fish, and the most recent addition, Sandy the bearded dragon.
At-Large Director
Recreation & Parks Director, Johns Creek, GA
Hometown: Suwanee, Georgia
Erica is a licensed civil engineer with almost 20 years’ experience in design, planning and now operating public parks. Her projects are scattered through many metro-Atlanta counties and outlying State Parks. She is heading the newly created Recreation & Parks Department in Johns Creek, GA.
Erica developed a love of the outdoors early in life. Her first job was in a local bike shop where she started mountain biking in her teens (a hobby she still loves). In college and afterward, she spent a decade chasing raindrops throughout the southeast as a whitewater kayaker and met her husband. As a mother of two, she and her family enjoy hiking, biking and camping in the north Georgia mountains.
Erica joined the board to contribute her knowledge and experience toward appreciation of greenspace and public spaces.
Fun fact about Erica: She likes snakes, but hates cave crickets.
At-Large Director
A native of the midwest, Jean started her career in Wash. DC many years ago. A sabbatical hike on the Appalachian Trail was cut short to earn an MS in Management from Georgia Tech. Jean prioritized people over profit, and focused her career in Human Resources. This career culminated in heading up HR for the Atlanta International School for many years, followed by a position at Jewish Family and Career Services wearing multiple hats. Having recently reached the age where she can pursue her passions rather than a paycheck Jean is enjoying multiple avenues to “do good.”
Throughout Jean’s career and parenting, she has been active in many educational and non-profit organizations. Most recently, she was honored as Volunteer of the Year in 2022 by Second Helpings Atlanta, and is the current Volunteer of the Year for Trees Atlanta. Jean is a Co-chair for the Air & Water Sector of Root Local, an organization founded in early 2022 focussing on sustainability networking. Her newest endeavor is creating a Georgia Chapter of the national group Great Old Broads for Wilderness.
Jean and her husband Bill live in northwest Atlanta with their pup. While keeping track of their two adventurous adult daughters, they enjoy easy hiking, biking, and paddling when time allows. She is very excited about the possibility of joining the Board and supporting STPAL’s mission!
At-Large Director
Mrs. Tasha L. J. Messer finds joy in inspiring the next generation of Eco-Activists. Whether delighting in sowing seeds to cultivate edible and pollinator plants, or expanding perspectives through binocular gazes during an exploratory and meditative learning activity she coined “Bird Walks and Whispers”…creating student-led moments where curiosity abounds has become her signature. Present and past accolades to her credit include: Georgia Beloved Naturalist (GBN), EcoRise Teacher Ambassador, Georgia Master Gardener Association (GMGA) District Director-NW3, Birds Georgia Master Birder, Georgia School Master Gardener, Edible Schoolyard Academy Alumnae, and Captain Planet Project Learning Garden Liaison.
A self proclaimed foodie, she and her family love simulating their own test kitchen environment by preparing interesting new celebrity chef recipes. What she is most looking forward to in 2024 is experiencing even more exciting things, that take her out of her comfort zone, during a year-long celebration of her milestone birthday. She considers being asked to join the Southeastern Trust for Parks & Land board as one of the first gifts honoring this very special time in her life.
At-Large Director
BS Geology, Georgia Southwestern University: MS Geography Western Kentucky University
Tony retired in 2022 after 35 years of service with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. He is a licensed professional geologist with the state of Georgia. He holds a BS in geology from Georgia Southwestern University and a MS in geography Western Kentucky University. At the EPA his primary specialty was in natural stream and wetland restoration but he also worked in the areas of watershed management, groundwater remediation, hazardous waste cleanup, non-point source pollution, wetlands protection and water quality. For the first half of his EPA career he was a staff scientist and in the second half served in management and leadership roles.
In his spare time he enjoys playing guitar and singing with friends, camping, canoeing, hiking, walking and yoga. He volunteers with Trees Atlanta removing invasive exotic species like english ivy and bradford pear.
As a member of the board Tony looks forward to sharing his experience with stream and wetland restoration, forest restoration and environmental leadership.
Fun facts about Tony: He completed a 14-day trip down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon in his canoe. He was mentioned in a 1980 Reader’s Digest article (Trapped in a Flooding Cave) as being “cool under pressure. In the early part of his EPA career, he conducted hazardous waste compliance inspections at the Cape Canaveral launch pads and the rocket Vehicle Assembly Building.
He lives with his wife Camille and dog Rhett in Decatur, GA.
At-Large Director
Attorney
Tate Law Firm, LLC
Hometown: Jasper, Georgia
Will is a practicing attorney in his hometown of Jasper, Georgia. He has undergraduate and graduate degrees in civil engineering from Georgia Tech and a JD from Georgia State University College of Law. Prior to law school, Will worked as a geotechnical engineer.
When not practicing law, you’ll find Will enjoying mountain biking and hiking with his family. He’s a big fan of our property Talking Rock Nature Preserve and loves seeing so many folks from his community out enjoying the nature and trails at this site. (Check out his t-shirt! in this photos!)
Will joined the board because he truly wants to develop public land that can be used by the community around it.
Fun fact about Will: He hiked Half Dome Yosemite National Park (Y’all – that’s quite a hike!)
Will – thank you for serving on our board of directors. We’re excited to have your talent and enthusiasm for our mission!
At-Large Director, Past President
Tim began his career in automotive as a founding associate of Carmax, Tim spend a decade rolling out stores across the east coast and southern states and helped define the sales and merchandising models that are still used by the company today. He spent time as a GM Partner with the Flow Automotive Group out of North Carolina, consolidating multiple dealerships in Virginia under the Flow banner. Tim was the AVP-GM of Inventory Solutions for JM Solutions which was acquired by DealerTrack in 2009. His most recent position before joining Cox Automotive was as SVP of Dealer Sales and Services for KAR auction Services the owner of ADESA.
Tim joined Cox in 2014 as VP of Sales Strategy. Tim was the VP of Enterprise Dealer and Mobility Sales up unitl January 1st 2023.
Tim resides outside of Atlanta with his wife and 2 boys and enjoys mountain biking and piloting airplanes when he finds time.
Tim is a Graduate of The University of Virginia with a B.A in History.
Staff
Interim Executive Director & Director of Conservation
[email protected]
Keith Ray comes to us with over 15 years experience in biology with a focus on conservation and ecology in southeastern ecosystems. He attended Auburn University, where he received a Master’s in Biology. A fish biologist at heart, Keith has spent his career focused on studying patterns of biodiversity and what historical influences factory into what species should be found in a particular area. He has several scientific publications, and through his work, Keith has described three new species of fish! He has done research around the world, including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Brazil, and in more than 20 states! He has also consulted and collaborated on projects in Canada, Venezuela, Colombia, and more. Many of his projects dealt with identifying and conserving endangered species and how to minimize impacts on rare habitats caused by human development and industry. He has worked for the Georgia DNR surveying for hellbenders and bog turtles, two of Georgia’s most threatened species. Most recently, Keith was a biology professor at Reinhardt University where he taught introductory courses in biology and geographic information systems (GIS), and advanced courses in field biology and biology education.
Keith has also been a successful grant writer with almost $700,000 in grants awarded, including as Co-PI on an award of almost $650,000 from the National Science Foundation.
Keith says it was his grandmother who fostered his interest in conservation. She always appreciated how long it took trees to grow and how removing one is not something that is easily undone. Another person that influenced Keith’s career in conservation was Dr. Steve Powers, introducing Keith to working with the ecology and evolution of fish in the southeast. Through Dr. Powers, he learned that land conservation is a key component to retaining many of the rarest organisms that we have.
Keith has previously served as member of STPAL’s board of directors and has volunteered his time with other organizations dedicated to the conservation here in the southeast including the Mountain Conservation Trust and the Georgia Chapter of The American Chestnut Foundation.
Keith loves to hike and camp and enjoys spending time with family and friends. He is also a prolific reader – he reads all the time! (By the way, his favorite book is A Walk in the Woods by Bill Bryson) His 3 sons also keep him and his wife very busy.
Advisory Board
Bob Williams
Charles McMillan
Daniel Jesse
David Jones
David White
Debbie Stebbins
Barney Crooks (Past President)
Eric Nelson (Past President)
Trace Copeland (Past President)
Patricia Daniel
Laura McCarty
Mark Scruggs
Mike Bass
Rod Hardee
Susan Crain
Tom Adams
Jody Boyer
Temaria Gray