North Carolina Coastal Land Trust
Slate of Nominees to Board of Directors FY 2023/2024
For the election at the October 7, 2023 Annual Meeting
Nominated for a 3-year term:
Hannah Holt, Wilmington – Hannah is strongly committed to the mission of land preservation and stewardship. She recently retired from Holt C-Stores, her family business of 33 years. She served as Director of Operations and as Secretary/Treasurer for the company’s three operating entities managing financial statements, future development, mergers and acquisitions and stockholder relations. She has served on a numerous local boards including the Coastal Land Trust Board with one stint as President. Hannah founded and is the driving force behind the Holt C-Store Golf Tournament which has raised over $1 million since 2013 benefiting both the N.C. Coastal Land Trust and UNCW. Hannah’s long association with UNCW includes serving two terms on the UNCW Foundation Board and, in 2012, the establishment of the Holt Oil Fellowship in Public Administration dedicated to the memory of her late father, Charles B.C. Holt. Hannah has also served on the Airlie Gardens Foundation Board and she and her wife, Stephanie, were major donors for the Butterfly House at Airlie. Hannah earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Industrial Relations from UNC-Chapel Hill in 1987.
Brian Rubino, Kitty Hawk – Brian is a principal of Quible & Associates, P.C., where he leads the coastal environmental division. His favorite work involves habitat enhancement and restoration along NC coastlines. Brian received a BS and MS in geology from East Carolina University in 1997 and 2001 and is a Professional Geologist in NC (#1933). He resides in Kitty Hawk, Dare County with his wife and his two children. Brian has served on the Coastal Land Trust’s Land Protection Committee since 2017 and has previously served on a local bank advisory board. In 2023, he received a Pelican award from the NC Coastal Federation for living shoreline design, permitting and implementation. Brian is excited to be considered as a Board Member for the Trust!
Pam Watkins, Wilmington – A native of Asheboro, North Carolina, Pam has called Wilmington home for over 45 years. An educator with a degree from Guilford College, she taught for Randolph and New Hanover County Schools and sometimes served as a librarian. She married Bruce Watkins and started a family, and together they opened Bruce Watkins Supply, established 518 N. Second Street, LLC, and P & P Holdings, LLC. She and Bruce were both active in many organizations, including the Cape Fear River Watch and the Community Boys and Girls Club of Wilmington. Pam has always been a great lover of the outdoors, and has enjoyed many trips with her family kayaking, hiking, biking and camping all over the country. After the passing of Bruce, she hopes in some small way to help continue his amazing legacy in preserving North Carolina’s natural areas. She currently enjoys going on various adventures with her two young grandchildren and traveling.
Nominated for re-election of an additional 3-year term:
Nick Parker, Wilmington – Nick has been with Live Oak Bank, a niche bank based in Wilmington specializing in small business, for eight years. Nick currently serves as a Vice President on the RV Park and Campsite Lending Team. He received his undergraduate degree from UNC Wilmington in Finance and Marketing and received his MBA from UNC Chapel Hill. Nick currently chairs the Finance Committee and sits on the DEI Committee at the Coastal Land Trust. Nick is married to his wife Kendall, and they have a Golden Retriever named Teak.
Chad Pearson, Wilmington – Chad leads the Decision Point Wealth Management group in providing wealth management and succession strategies for small business owners and their families. He began his finance career with Merrill Lynch in NYC in 1992, after attending UNC-Chapel Hill’s Business School and the University of Manchester, UK. Chad has been a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ (CFP®) since 2004, and became a Certified Exit Planning Advisor (CEPA) in 2018. Chad currently serves on the board of First Tee. He is a past board member of the Landfall Foundation Board and the NHRMC Foundation Board. He has served on the Coastal Land Trust’s Finance Committee for eight years.
Bob Emory, New Bern – Bob retired in 2017 from his forty-five-year career as a forester with Weyerhaeuser Company. He spent the last seventeen years of his career as Weyerhaeuser’s Southern Timberlands Environmental Affairs Manager. Bob has been appointed to, and is currently serving as a member of, the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission. He previously served as a member, appointed by the Governor of North Carolina, of the North Carolina Coastal Resources Commission, from 1994 to 2014, including seven years as Chairman. He has also served as Chairman of the North Carolina Forestry Advisory Council and is leading the capital campaign to replace the organ and renew the Nave at Christ Church in New Bern. Bob served prior terms on the Board of Directors for the Coastal Land Trust and served on the Coastal Land Trust’s “Your Land” capital campaign steering committee.
