OCT Staff

Stephen O’Grady

Executive Director

Steve returned to OCT in 2018 to assume the post of director, after interning at the Trust in 2013 and 2015. As director, he has worked to prioritize land management and restoration needs on OCT properties, and helped determine where to direct the organization’s limited resources most efficiently toward these needs. As we seek to acquire new lands, Steve has worked to identify opportunities where land acquisition warrants the efforts and expense that these projects now demand. Another focus is continuing to grow the Trust’s membership as its scope of work expands. After graduating from Colby College, where he majored in Environmental Science with a concentration in conservation biology, Steve spent two years in the sustainable seafood industry—as a commercial salmon fisherman in Southeast Alaska, head fishmonger at a Boston seafood market, and an oyster farmer in Barnstable. He has also worked for Mass Audubon in Wellfleet as a coastal waterbird technician. He grew up north of Boston, spent childhood summers in Orleans, and feels very fortunate to live and work on Cape Cod.

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Abby Hipp

Outreach Coordinator & Office Manager

Abby joined the OCT team in October 2022 as our new Outreach Coordinator & Office Manager. Originally from Indiana, she has traveled the country for her career in outdoor & environmental education. She spent 10 years as a seasonal park ranger for the National Park Service in Utah, North Carolina, and locally at Cape Cod National Seashore. She worked for the Atlantic White Shark Conservancy prior to joining the OCT staff. She holds a writing degree from Purdue University Calumet and continued her education through Slippery Rock University, earning an M.S. in Parks & Resource Management and an M.Ed. in Environmental Education.

Abby Headshot

Lily Gooding

Land Stewardship Technician

Hi everyone! My name is Lily and I’m from Beverly, MA — on the North Shore of Massachusetts. I’m 22 years old and just recently graduated from the University of Michigan with majors in International Studies and History and a minor in the Environment. I have an editorial and communications background that has prepared me well for writing about environmental issues and sustainability. Moving forward, I hope to explore a career in Environmental Planning and Landscape Design as a method for combatting climate change.

I’ve grown up coming to Cape Cod all my life so it is special to me that I can gain exposure to this field in the environment on the Cape. Outside of all of this, I love to read, go on hikes with my dad, and practice cooking & baking.

Abby Headshot

As part of our long tradition of collaborating with AmeriCorps Cape Cod, the Trust’s staff receives invaluable support from an AmeriCorps Cape Cod volunteer. These hard-working and enthusiastic young people typically serve with OCT on one-two days a week for a year.

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Board of Trustees and Officers

The Board of Trustees provides oversight and guidance to OCT. With expertise in various fields—environmental science nonprofit management, business, governance, law, marketing, and education—trustees help OCT advance its mission. Trustees act as fiduciaries for the organization and ensure that the Trust always has adequate resources, appropriately allocated, for a sustainable future.

A Nominating Committee, composed of trustees and non-trustees, interviews candidates for trustee positions and presents a slate of nominees to the membership for a vote at OCT’s Annual Meeting.  Trustees are typically elected to serve terms of three years, and may stand for reelection three times.

A detailed description of trustees’ roles and responsibilities, and the process by which trustees are elected to serve, appears in the Declaration of Trust, found here.

If you have interest in serving as a trustee, you’re encouraged to contact OCT. You can also complete a Nomination Form.

OCT staff and trustees decorate our headquarters for the holidays.
OCT staff and trustees decorate our headquarters for the holidays.

Current Trustees

Date in parentheses indicates when a trustee’s term expires.

OCT Committees

The Trust is served by committees that report to the board, meeting regularly to work on specific areas of our mission and operations. The committees are:

  • Communications and Marketing
  • Finance and Investment
  • Fundraising
  • Governance
  • Land Management
  • Land Acquisition
  • Nominating Committee
  • Personnel Management

Committees are composed mainly of trustees; members who believe they have pertinent experience are invited to contact us if interested in serving on an open committee. Committee service is a great way to learn about and get involved in the Trust’s work, in lieu of the larger commitment required to serve as a trustee. If you’re interested in serving, please contact the office.  More information on committees can be found here.