SAN ANTONIO BOTANICAL GARDEN - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Chairman, Buildings and Gardens
Andrew Labay joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in 2017 as a horticulturist responsible for the Lucile Halsell Conservatory's plant production and plant collections. In 2020, he was promoted to Director of Horticulture. In this role, Andrew oversees the management of horticulture operations and plant collections across all gardens. He brings over 10 years' experience in horticulture with a strong background in greenhouse management and perennial fruit crops. Prior to joining the Botanical Garden, Andrew served as a viticulture program specialist with Texas A&M Agrilife Extension. Andrew holds a M.S. of Integrative Plant Biology from the University of Montpellier II, located in the south of France.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Ex - Officio Member
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Emily Knapp joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in April 2021 as the Director of Marketing. In her role, she oversees marketing, guest experience, exhibitions, and the Garden Gift Shop. With more than 15 years of experience as a nonprofit professional, Emily is an adaptable and collaborative operations leader who excels at managing people, projects, and organizational change.
Prior to the Botanical Garden, Emily worked at Desert Botanical Garden, The Musical Instrument Museum, and the Arizona Humane Society. She holds a B.S. in Business Management and a M.B.A. from the Eller College of Management at the University of Arizona.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Member - at - Large
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Director, City of San Antonio, Parks and Recreation
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Executive Committee
- Member of the Board
- Chairman, Long Range Planning
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Immediate past President
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Katherine Trumble joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in May 2020 as Director of Development. With more than 10 years of experience, Katherine is well-practiced in leading a comprehensive fund development program and has built a career around a passion for arts and culture. In this role, Katherine oversees the development department and contributed revenue at the Botanical Garden. This includes membership, annual fund, major gifts, grants, fundraisers, planned giving, and capital projects.
Prior to the Botanical Garden, Katherine worked at the McNay Art Museum, the Briscoe Western Art Museum, Montgomery Museum of Fine Arts in Montgomery, AL, and El Pomar Foundation in Colorado Springs, CO. Katherine holds a B.A. in American Studies and Government from the University of Texas at Austin and a Master of Public Policy from the University of Denver.
Job Titles:
- Director of Programs
- in 2017 As Director of Programs
Katie Erickson joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in 2017 as Director of Programs. Katie has over 15 years of nonprofit experience in educational programming, engaging diverse audiences, and developing community partnerships. Most recently, Katie served as director of education at the San Antonio Museum of Art for 10 years and brings extensive experience in programming with Pre-K-12, family, and adult audiences. Katie received her B.A. in Art History from the University of California at Santa Cruz and M.A. in Museum Learning and Visitor Studies from the University of Leicester.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Chairman
- Finance
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Treasurer
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of Conservation and Collections
Michael Eason joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in 2017 as the Center for Plant Conservation representative guiding the South Texas rare plant conservation efforts. In 2022 he moved to full time to continue to develop their rare plant conservation program and curate the living collections, focusing on native plants of Texas and northern Mexico. Michael brings over twenty years of experience as a conservation botanist, with extensive knowledge of the flora and ecology of the southwest region of the U.S. Previously, Michael worked for the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center, where he managed their conservation and field survey programs. Through his consulting business, Texas Flora, he designs and installs native plant gardens, as well as performs plant inventories, wetland delineations, and rare plant surveys on public and private lands. In 2018, he published Wildflowers of Texas and is currently working on several other book projects. Additionally, he has served on the State Executive Board for the Native Plant Society of Texas and is currently the State Botanist for the organization.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
- Member - at - Large
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive Officer
- Member of the Executive Committee
Sabina Carr is chief executive officer for the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Sabina joined the Garden in the fall of 2019 after an extensive national search and is the first female leader of the organization in its 40-year history. She arrived at a significant juncture for the public garden that transitioned to privatization in January 2019. Sabina directs all operations for the 38-acre public garden located in the heart of San Antonio's cultural corridor, and under her leadership oversees fundraising, education, marketing, business administration and horticultural efforts. During her first two years, she doubled annual visitation to 368,000, doubled membership households to 12,000+, and increased the annual operating budget two-fold.
In the spring of 2021, the Garden completed a successful $40M capital campaign that transformed the organization with stunning new gardens, facilities and amenities, including a culinary garden, an outdoor teaching kitchen, family adventure garden, and new state-of-the-art event and education center. Carr activated these new spaces with expanded hours, premiere events such as Lush: Twilight in the Garden, and blockbuster art exhibitions including the world debut of Frida Kahlo Oasis. She created horticulture exhibitions including Wildflowers in the Garden and Orchid Week. She negotiated a partnership with SONY to bring internationally-acclaimed Lightscape to the San Antonio Botanical Garden in winter 2021, welcoming 112,000 guests in its first year. Carr recommitted the Garden to the conservation and collection of native Texas plants with the hiring of a full-time botanist while also increasing educational programming to more than 14,000 students annually. She guided the development of the Garden's 2022-2026 strategic plan focused on horticultural excellence, exceptional guest experiences and fiscal sustainability. With the new strategic plan in place combined with the increase in activations, she has attracted significant earned revenues and broadened audiences across all San Antonio zip codes.
In 2022, she was awarded with the prestigious Club Civic Improvement Commendation Award by The Garden Club of America recognizing her dedicated and innovative leadership. She is a past president of the American Public Gardens Association, a national network of over 800 member gardens and over 9,000 individual members in 14 countries. Prior to joining the San Antonio Botanical Garden, Carr was Vice President, Marketing for the Atlanta Botanical Garden where she helped lead that garden's impressive growth over 15 years by quadrupling three key areas: annual operating budget, annual visitation, and household membership. Before her career in public gardens, Carr worked in New York City and held marketing positions with American Express, Condé Nast, and Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising. She holds a B.A. in English Literature from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas.
Sam Hogg is the Director of Operations at the San Antonio Botanical Garden. Sam joined the Botanical Garden in 2016 with 10 years of experience in the facilities operations industry. In this role, Sam oversees the functioning of all 34 building systems including mechanical, electrical, fire/life safety, plumbing, and waste management for the 38-acre property. Sam has been heavily involved in the operating facets of the $40M capital project, with Phase I & II ranging from landscape irrigation to the state-of-art facilities.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Associate Director of Gardens and Conservatories
Scott Litchke joined the San Antonio Botanical Garden in 1992. Over the past 28 years, Scott has played a vital role in the horticulture of the Botanical Garden, specifically in the development of the Texas Native Trail area. In 2020, Scott was elevated to Associate Director of Gardens and Conservatories. In this role, Scott is responsible for managing and coordinating garden activities for the 38-acre urban oasis, including the award-winning Lucile Halsell Conservatory. Scott provides leadership with the horticultural design development, indoor/outdoor displays, planting projects, garden renovations, and maintenance. Scott also supports the establishment of new garden areas and exhibitions.
Job Titles:
- Chairman of the Executive Committee
- Member of the Board
- Chairman, Board Management
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Board
- Member of the Executive Committee
Job Titles:
- Member of the Executive Committee