Meet Our Team
Staff Members
Deb Kramer
Executive Director and Board Member
Deb is the Executive Director and has been involved with Coyote Creek since 2014. As a community organizer, she has drawn thousands of people to the Coyote Creek cleanup events, worked closely with many community organizations and agencies, such as Audubon, Open Space Authority, City of San Jose, and Save Our Trails. Professionally, she was project manager in environmentally-related fields, from water, energy, and waste to now watersheds. Deb is a former board member of Save the Bay, and an alumnus of Cal Berkeley with a degree in Environmental Science. Her favorite past times are hiking, backpacking and gardening.
Rebekah Cotton
Business Manager
Rebekah is the event coordinator and business manager for Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful. She recently returned to Cincinnati, Ohio where she worked in events and catering. She brings with her enthusiasm for process creation for efficient event management and execution. Rebekah is passionate about environmental causes, especially recycling and lowering waste. Joining KCCB is her first step towards a new career path in helping local communities protect and preserve natural habitats. In her free time, she likes to go swimming, hiking, grow vegetables, or spend time with her growing family.
Alexandra Hisen
Media Coordinator
Alexandra is the Media Coordinator and has been working with KCCB since 2022. She is a recent Graphic Design and Advertising graduate from SJSU and is originally from Sonoma County. She has previously worked with nonprofits, including the local College of Adaptive Arts. She also worked with organizations that support women worldwide, including SJSU VDAY and Encouraging Women Across All Borders (EWAAB). At San Jose State, she was a part of the Dwight Bentel Hall Marketing and PR Agency and worked on multiple projects running social media, event planning, and designing graphics. Alexandra's favorite pastimes are painting and drawing and reading a good book.
Annette McMillan
Volunteer Coordinator
Annette is the volunteer coordinator for Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful. She has been enthusiastic about protecting the environment since her teens. She believes open spaces and natural waterways allow us to connect to ourselves and the earth in ways that only nature can provide. As a recent San Jose State Environmental Studies graduate, she educates people about the importance of protecting our creeks and open spaces through creek cleanups and as a BioBlitz docent.
Aja Yee
Event Coordinator
Aja is the Event Coordinator for Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful. Her love for the environment was fostered by her upbringing in Monterey, CA. Aja has been involved in environmental education her whole life, starting with being a docent at the Monterey Bay Aquarium when she was a teen, to currently being a volunteer educator at the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. She also works for the San Francisco Bay Wildlife Society as the Peninsula Programs Coordinator. Aja’s hobbies include tidepooling, rock climbing, and traveling.
Board Members
Tim McRae
President
Tim is the Silicon Valley Leadership Group’s Senior Vice President, Sustainable Growth, where he helps members and partners define and carry out energy-related policy, programs and events. Prior to joining the Leadership Group, Tim developed commercial wind projects, worked on sustainability and energy efficiency, advised on climate change policy, and worked on a variety of legislative lobbying efforts in Sacramento. Tim is a graduate of Georgetown University and UC Davis law school. He serves on the Acterra Business Environmental Awards Advisory Committee. Also, he volunteers in the “Reading Partners” program at Cesar Chavez elementary school in San Jose.
Costanza Rampini
Secretary
Dr. Costanza Rampini is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Environmental Studies at San José State University (SJSU). Her research focuses on human adaptation to environmental change, specifically people’s capacity to adapt to climate change impacts and to recover from extreme events. Her work has focused on communities in Northeast India and in Santa Cruz, California, who are especially vulnerable to coastal and riverine flooding. Through her research, Dr. Rampini aims to inform sustainable development and climate adaptation efforts on the ground, and to ensure that they benefit the most underprivileged communities. Dr. Rampini has been teaching at SJSU since 2016, and her classes cover topics such as climate change, sustainable development, environmental justice, water policy, and environmental research methods.
Clinton Pickering
Treasurer
Clinton is a banker with Heritage Bank of Commerce, the largest Community Bank in the San Francisco Bay Area. Also, Clinton is an active Certified Public Accountant. Since he has lived most of his life along the Calaveras Foothills in East San Jose, he has actively trained for triathlons on the Coyote Creek Trail. Clinton and his son enjoy spending quality time together at Coyote Creek’s various parks learning about nature.
Chuck Cantrell
Board Member
With a career spanning over 30 years, Chuck has made significant contributions as a strategy consultant and executive. When Chuck’s not exploring new places, he’s fighting for a great cause - the environment. Becoming a Keep Coyote Creek Beautiful board member is integral to that fight.
Chuck started the service phase of his career when he accepted an appointment by Mayor Sam Liccardo to become a San Jose Planning Commissioner. He later took his talents to the San Jose Conservation Corps as Director of Development. He loves helping young people thrive and protect our environment. Chuck is on a mission to make the world a better place.
Chuck is a single dad who’s raised three kids all by himself! He’s taken his close-knit family on a journey around the US and to 11 countries. Chuck’s amazing partner Claudia joined his family in 2013 to join in the traveling caravan.