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.
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.
Tom Keras
Director of Land Management
After venturing outside of New England for the last six years, Tom is excited to bring his conservation experience back to his home state of Massachusetts! In his first conservation job for Montana State Parks, Tom learned the value of building relationships in nature, through education and stewardship, for the sake of land preservation. Spending time in the Maryland Park Service and various conservation roles in Colorado only confirmed this idea. Having four generational links to the Outer Cape and being married on Cooks Brook Beach in Eastham, the Cape is a special place for Tom's family. It feels natural that Tom is serving as your Director of Land Stewardship for OCT. When he is not on the clock, you will find him spending time with family, enjoying the Cape's natural beauty, surf casting, fly fishing, hiking, or watching a Boston sports game. He is honored to work and serve the Orleans community.
Sam O'Neill
Land Stewardship Technician
Sam joined OCT in August 2024 after completing a year of service with AmeriCorps Cape Cod. During his term of service with AmeriCorps, Sam helped to manage and protect conservation land across the Upper Cape and is excited to bring the skills he developed there to further OCT’s mission. Born in Providence, Rhode Island and raised in Massachusetts, Sam has a deep respect and love for New England’s natural beauty, and you can often find him on hiking trails along the Cape, riding his bike on the Cape Cod Rail Trail, or seeking out a new spot for rock climbing. He received his BA in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts Boston and has worked across New England in carpentry, manufacturing, and in political organizing. Sam is thrilled to bring his experience and skills to OCT's land stewardship efforts, preserving the nature of Orleans, for everyone to learn from and enjoy!
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.
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.
Current Trustees
Date in parentheses indicates when a trustee’s term expires.
Kevin has been an OCT member and active supporter and volunteer for nearly 30 years. He currently serves as a member of the Town of Orleans Select Board and has served as a public member of the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board, member of the Orleans Conservation Commission, a Water Commissioner, chair of the Renewable Energy Committee, and member of the Orleans Personnel Advisory Board. Kevin has a BS in accounting from the University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth, a BS in mechanical engineering technology from Northeastern University, and an MBA from University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth. With Vince Ollivier he owns and operates a small farm that follows organic growing practices. He taught environmental science—specifically energy efficiency and conservation—at Cape Cod Community College and continues to provide energy consulting services.
Clerk
Jeanne has spent her career in nonprofit leadership, coalition building, program planning and management, and volunteer recruitment, training and coordination. Jeanne spent her professional career building regional collaboration between business and education and establishing extensive working relationships in both the urban and rural settings of Southwestern Pennsylvania, most recently, prior to her retirement in 2001, as the Vice President of Workforce Education and Development for the Pittsburgh Technology Council. She was the founder and past national president of the Association of School/Business Partnership Directors. In her volunteer career, Jeanne has served as national president of ARCS Foundation, Inc., (Achievement Rewards for College Scientists), an organization dedicated to addressing the serious shortage of American scientists and engineers. She founded the Pittsburgh Chapter and currently chairs their Fund Development Committee. Mrs. Berdik also serves as a member of the Pittsburgh Botanic Garden Board of Directors and Executive Committee. She is the past-President of the Nauset Garden Club in Orleans. She was a founder and is on the Steering Committee for a regional initiative—Pollinator Pathway Cape Cod. Jeanne is a past-President of the Junior League of Pittsburgh and served on the Board of the Association of Junior Leagues International. She was a member of the founding committee of the Pittsburgh Children's Museum. Jeanne is married with three grown children and six grandchildren. She lives in South Orleans.
Drusy graduated from Wellesley College with a degree in English and Geology and continued her studies in geology at Harvard University.
Meff currently serves on the Town of Orleans Select Board and formerly chaired the Orleans Open Space Committee. He spent summers in Orleans beginning in 1952 and has lived in town full-time since 1974. He received his BA from Colgate University in 1974 and began working at the Cape Cod Five Cents Savings Bank in 1975. He retired in 2011. Over the years, Meff has served on various town committees, including the town’s Comprehensive Planning Committee.
Judy's family purchased their Orleans home in 1960, and moved here permanently in 1970. She received an A.A. Degree at Cape Cod Community College, and a Bachelor's in Marine Biology from Roger Williams University. Her professional career included employment at WHOI and NOAA/NMFS in Woods Hole, and Battelle Ocean Sciences in Duxbury. She also worked at Suffolk University managing their occupational safety and health, and environmental compliance programs. Judy returned to Orleans in 1997 and started a farm/greenhouse business and re-opened the historical farm stand next to her family home, which she and her husband continue to operate. Judy is an active community volunteer and serves on several town appointed committees. She has been involved with the town’s environmental resource management efforts and marine and freshwater pond water quality monitoring programs for the past 21 years. Judy has also been an active member of the OCT Board of Trustees.
Deirdre grew up among the apple orchards and dairy farms of the Hudson Valley in Dutchess County, N.Y. and vacationed in Wellfleet for many years. In her teens, she learned firsthand about environmental protection with the near death of the Hudson River and subsequent, ongoing, cleanup.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
- Education
- 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.