Our Team

Prior to joining Keep America Beautiful in 2021, Abby spent twelve years saving historic places with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. As the Director of Marketing Partnerships, she developed corporate campaigns and managed print and online advertising to generate new revenue for the National Trust. She was the VP of Marketing for Gannett Digital, driving the marketing strategy for more than 100 local newspaper and broadcast websites. Abby played a major role in the early growth of America Online, structuring strategic alliances with Fortune 500 companies and creating advertising sales strategies that generated millions of dollars in revenue. She began her career in consumer marketing at MCI helping to attract and retain high value long-distance customers. Abby has an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a BA in economics and art history from Georgetown University.

David Wheeler currently serves as Keep America Beautiful’s Senior Director of Strategic Partnerships. Prior to joining KAB in 2021, David led development and management roles in various environmental nonprofits for many years, including serving as the Executive Director of a New Jersey-based wildlife conservation nonprofit for eight years. He has taught Environmental Communications and Introduction to Sustainability courses at Rutgers University and other schools. He wrote the book "Wild New Jersey: Nature Adventures in the Garden State," and previously wrote a monthly column for the Star Ledger. David holds an M.B.A. in marketing from New York University's Stern School of Business and a B.A. in public communications and literature from the American University in Washington DC.

Erin Slaughter joins Keep America Beautiful with over 11 years of experience in non-profit fundraising and development. Her passion for relationship building has allowed her to cultivate strong connections with donors, sponsors, and stakeholders, leading to long-term partnerships. Erin's expertise lies in creating and implementing effective fundraising strategies that generate sustainable revenue for non-profit organizations. 

In her free time, Erin enjoys reading, being outdoors, and traveling. She believes that experiencing new cultures and meeting people from different backgrounds is an essential part of personal growth. 

Erin shares her life with her partner, Britt, and their three beloved cats, Radley, Roux, and Matilda. She is dedicated to making a positive impact in the world and is driven by her desire to improve the lives of others.

April serves as the Director of Training for Keep America Beautiful. She leads the National Conference program, manages the KAB National Awards Program, and curates and publishes the semi-monthly Affiliate e-News. She has acted in a support and development role for the Affiliate Network since 2005 and is continually amazed and inspired by the affiliate network and the yeoman’s work each person brings to their community. Influenced even earlier by her parent’s career paths as a military service member and equal employment and anti-discrimination investigator for the Department of Defense, April is passionate about social justice, and the environment and impassioned by beautiful spaces and places.

She has lived in Germany and Italy and early career opportunities that eventually brought her to KAB include working as a Public Relations manager at IBM; leading an international judging competition for a tech start-up firm, ThinkQuest that awarded over $5 million annually in scholarships to school-aged kids for building educational web sites; and serving as a volunteer recruiter and manager for the Avon Breast Cancer 3-Day Walk, which engaged nearly 2,000 volunteers per event. April’s most rewarding volunteer cause is the Make a Wish Foundation of CT, where she has served as a Wish Granter for over 15 years. April resides in Connecticut and she and her family have supported Keep Norwalk Beautiful as volunteers and boosters and have participated in numerous events, cleanups, and activities to keep her community clean, green, and beautiful. She holds a BA in Communications from Marist College in Poughkeepsie, NY.

Dave has a passion for the environment, community development, urban conservation, and community-led public art.

During his fifteen years as president of Keep Indianapolis Beautiful, Inc. (KIB), Dave led the organization to more than four-fold growth, by directing programs toward broader and deeper human and ecological outcomes; and a commitment to authentic relationships with diverse grass-roots leaders, philanthropists, and the corporate and public sectors. His sources of pride include KIB's creation of hundreds of green jobs for Indianapolis youth; more than eighty community-owned parks; and industry-leading work on mapping social and ecological stresses to plan and deliver the equitable planting and care of more than sixty-thousand trees. Dave also helped found and lead Reconnecting to Our Waterways (ROW) a collective impact initiative dedicated to positive environmental and community change along Indianapolis waterways; and is past chair of the national Alliance for Community Trees, a network of community forestry organizations.

Dave has also served as a consultant to KAB, working one on one with affiliate leaders; and, developing KAB’s toolkit Increasing Your Affiliate’s Impact: Ingredients for Long-Term Success.

Dave has been recognized for his professional leadership, including the Arbor Day Foundation’s J. Sterling Morton Award for his lifelong commitment to trees and conservation; and the Sue Smith Professional Leadership Award from Keep America Beautiful (KAB.)

He lives in Indianapolis with his wife, Shannon. They both are graduates of DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. In their spare time, they love to travel to beautiful places, hike and birdwatch.

Prior to joining Keep America Beautiful, Gabi was a Director at Coastal Quest, where she supported government and community partners in advancing and funding their resilience efforts. Gabi came to Coastal Quest from Rare, where she managed its flagship program to revitalize coastal habitats, protect biodiversity, and secure coastal livelihoods in Central America. In that role, Gabi oversaw program implementation, contributed to program strategy and fundraising, and supported diverse partners to advance solutions for coastal communities and the ocean. Gabi’s contributions and leadership were essential to achieving critical program milestones, including the program’s expansion into new geographies and the successful launch and execution of a behavior change campaign to promote responsible fishing behaviors. Prior to this, Gabi supported several environmental projects across Latin America in Belize, Cuba, and Costa Rica. She brings a wealth of experience in behavior change, capacity building, and event and project management and is deeply passionate about supporting community-led solutions. Gabi holds a B.A. in Economics and International Studies from DePaul University and a Master’s in Sustainable Development Practice from the University of Florida.

Grady graduated from Georgetown University with a BA in English and minors in international business, history, and studio art. A professional project manager, Grady worked on the production teams of the 2008 Papal Mass at Yankee Stadium, the Bravo series Long Way Round, the PBS series Texas Ranch House, and Michael Moore's documentary film SiCKO while living in New York City.

In April of 2010, Grady began an 18-month trip around-the-world, during which he visited 25 countries on 5 continents. Upon his return to the United States, Grady founded RETREET to redefine disaster relief and, through it, find purpose, community, and fulfillment for himself and others. Almost a decade into running RETREET, the organization merged with Keep America Beautiful, where it now is being taken to scale across a vast network of affiliates. Grady is an eagle scout, a 2015 graduate of Municipal Forestry Institute, the past-president of the Texas Urban Forestry Council, an at-large commissioner for the City of Dallas’ Arts & Culture Advisory Commission and the chair of the city’s Public Art Committee, and the president-elect of the Trinity River Audubon Center advisory board. Grady also is studying to become a certified arborist.

Jason Smith is the Affiliate Operations Regional Director for the Eastern Region.

Jerí Irby is Keep America Beautiful’s RETREET Manager. Before joining the organization, Jerí spent over 9 years developing her professional forestry experience with Oklahoma Forestry Services. While with OFS Jerí held the roles of Area Forester for the Regeneration and Tree Improvement program from 2017-2022 and Forestry Education Coordinator from 2012-2017. Jerí is a passionate conservationist who has worked with diverse audiences that range from youth to adults on forest practices and land management. She has effectively developed and managed partnerships with a wide range of organizations including government agencies, private businesses, and non-profits.

Jerí is active in the Oklahoma chapter of the Society of American Foresters as well as a board member of the Oklahoma Invasive Plant Council. She holds a Master of Science in Land Resources and Environmental Sciences from Montana State University and a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources and Ecology Management from Oklahoma State University.

Mallory Coffee is the Director of Affiliate Development and Staff Liaison for the State Leaders Council.

Before joining the KAB National Network, Mallory was the Keep South Carolina Beautiful State Leader and Community Outreach Program Manager at PalmettoPride. While serving in this capacity, she spearheaded the creation of more than 10 local affiliates in South Carolina as a trainer for KAB. During this time, she also served as the Vice President for the KAB State Leader's Council.

Before joining PalmettoPride, she created and served as the Executive Director of Keep Bamberg County Beautiful, a national and state award-winning local Keep America Beautiful affiliate. 

Sabrina Ross is a dynamic human and professional with a background in service delivery, neighborhood planning, project planning, and collaborations. Ross is passionate about informing and empowering residents through neighborhood planning, envisioning community economic development strategies, and building strong communities.

Before joining Keep America Beautiful in May 2024, Sabrina was with GreenLight Fund and was instrumental in developing targeted strategies to address community needs. Previously, as Community Engagement Manager at Unified Vailsburg Services Organization, she successfully led civic engagement and beautification projects with a large team of volunteers. In her role at the City of Newark Department of Health & Community Wellness, Sabrina exemplified dedication and compassion, coordinating support and resources for victims of violent crimes. Ross's extensive involvement in advisory and volunteer roles further highlights her commitment to urban development and sustainability initiatives.

Sabrina has a BA in social behavior science and a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in nonprofit management. If you don’t know Ms. Ross, you will because she may be knocking on your door to invite you to attend a block club meeting, join the fun at Healthy Havens Gardens, or engage you in initiatives to clean and beautify the community.

Sue Smith is the Executive Director, Keep-America Beautiful- Chicago