WK preservation group inc.
Founders, Directors, and Officers
Board of Directors
DIRECTOR: Kay Kennedy Carter
Kay has fifty years of experience in leadership roles in education, business, social, church and volunteer activities worldwide. She has been a founding member and board member of several groups and has led volunteer organizations of as many as 400 people. Her special skills are mentoring future leaders, organizing successful teams and creating effective communications across groups. With her many talents, she is a valuable asset to the WK Preservation Group.
DIRECTOR: W. L. “Tex” Carter
Tex has fifty years of project development and construction experience, working and living in both the US and globally, and leading teams from a few to thousands. With experience and expertise in a wide range of assignments, Tex has served on corporate and service boards, and actively contributes to the development of people and groups interested in improving the quality of life in our world. Tex, married to Kay Carter, resides in Tarpon Springs, Florida.
DIRECTOR: Marie Rhodes Eide
Marie Rhodes Eide joined the WK Preservation Group Inc. board in April 2022 and has served as its social media lead since 2021. A nearly lifelong Florida resident, Marie has a profound love for the state and a passion for preserving its natural places.
Marie, a Palm Harbor resident, brings to the board deep experience in communications, including 20 years in Tampa Bay area journalism, corporate communications, and social media strategy. She is the senior copywriter at BluePearl Veterinary Hospitals.
DIRECTOR: Rebecca Hughes
Rebecca has served in a number of professional settings, including food service, veterinary medicine, nonprofit volunteer management, real estate management, and corporate learning and development. In her current role on the Learning and Development team at Apprentice, she develops and delivers training for pharmaceutical manufacturing teams around the world. As a Certified Volunteer Administrator, Rebecca brings an eye for strategic and effective volunteer engagement to WKPG. She has served as the WKPG’s Volunteer Manager since October 2021.
DIRECTOR: Jody McDevitt
Jody started volunteering with WKPG in January 2022 and joined WK Preservation Group Board of Directors in January 2024.
Jody has over 25 years of sales, customer relations, and partnership development experience. Since 2010 he has concentrated his efforts in the climate-tech sector which includes positions specific to electric grid stability, energy conservation, renewable energy, EV charging solutions, and more.
Originally from Southwestern Pennsylvania and a graduate of The Ohio State University, he found his way to the Tampa Bay Area after decades of vacationing to visit his wife’s family.
As a passionate champion, he is always looking for solutions to help protect the environment, preserve natural spaces, conserve resources, and reduce the impact on the environment. His personal mantra is ‘be the somebody.’
DIRECTOR: Bruce Turley
Bruce Turley joined the WK Preservation Group Board of Directors in April of 2022.
Bruce came to Pinellas County after attaining a degree at Florida State University and prior to that, S.W. Florida where he had a strong interest in marine biology and conservation fueled by the then destructive and common practice of massive dredging and development. His teenage awareness for the need for conservation instilled a lifelong passion for conservation.
After moving to Pinellas County from Tallahassee in 1977, Bruce finished a liberal arts degree from the University of South Florida and while employed by Wilcox Nursery in Largo. It is in this position that he wanted to put his horticulture / agriculture background and love of visual arts to work in a practical expression in horticulture and landscape design. His love of nature and the incredible beauty of natural areas brought Bruce to a dedicated interest in promoting Florida native plants at Wilcox Nursery and Landscape with their use in sustainable landscape design.
Bruce has previously been on the board of the Pinellas Chapter of the Florida Native Plant Society and the City Beautiful Commission of the City of St. Petersburg. He is currently serving as past president of the FANN organization and is a current president and founding member of the Native Plant Horticulture Foundation.
DIRECTOR: Debbie Watts
Debbie started volunteering with WKPG in 2023 and recently joined the BOD in May 2024. Her interest was drawn to the WKPG project after personally experiencing the natural beauty of this local area over these past few years as she and her husband settled in the Tampa Bay region in 2020.
Debbie has worked primarily in the agriculture sector for over 30 years in Canada, Europe and United States. She leads a team of professionals who are dedicated to promoting responsible food production practices in order to feed the world and protect the planet. Debbie’s passion for biodiversity protection came after living abroad and continuing to witness the loss of biodiversity in many countries. In North America we still have a chance to save what is left and WKPG is one of those special projects.
Officers
Founders
WK Preservation Group Inc. was organized in early 2020 as a Nonprofit 501 (c) (3). The Founders of the original organization were a group of people who shared a common interest in conservation of our environment. They joined together to save what became known as the West Klosterman Preserve from development and to protect its habitat for plants, animals and trees, many of which are protected or threatened species. The original Founders of WKPG are:
Kay Carter
Tex Carter
Ken Dambrosio
William Ferris
Beth Hovind
Brad Husserl
Phyllis Kennedy
Don Richter
