Board and Committees

Michael has spent the last 38 years working in the Financial Services industry in various finance roles. As his full-time career winds down he's looking forward to leveraging his lifelong interest in conservation and animal welfare and is pleased to assume his role as the new Treasurer of HOBAS on July 2020.

From a very early age Christine has always had a deep curiosity about nature, especially anything marine science related. She was born and raised in Huntington and grew up swimming in the Long Island Sound and the bays and harbors surrounding her hometown. She is a self-proclaimed horseshoe crab enthusiast and will explain to anyone who will listen about what a fascinating and important species they are.

Christine’s passion for marine conservation led her to earn a master’s degree in Marine Conservation and Policy from Stony Brook University in 2020. She started working for the Oyster Bay-based environmental nonprofit Friends of the Bay in 2021. In 2022 she moved to Oyster Bay and in February of 2024 she became the executive director of Friends of the Bay.

Christine attributes her love of nature in large part due to her mother’s influence on her. When she was a kid, instead of going to church on Sundays, her mother (also a nature lover) brought her and her brother on nature walks to places like the Theodore Roosevelt Sanctuary in Oyster Bay Cove and Shu Swamp in Mill Neck. These are still two of Christine’s favorite places to visit.

Christine tries to spend as much time as possible outdoors, even during the winter because she loves winter duck watching. In her free time she enjoys kayaking, gardening, swimming, beachcombing, hiking and traveling.

recently welcomed two future conservationists to the family-twin boys, born in October 2016.

Coby Klein is an ecologist and adjunct professor at Baruch College. For the past 18 years, Coby has been a birder, bird bander, bird researcher, and general all around bird enthusiast. Coby leads popular field trips for HOBAS and was the coordinator of a bird survey project at Underhill Preserve. He lives in Huntington with his wife, Nomi, and three children, Eliana, Ezra, & Eitan. Look for Coby early in the morning at Makamah Preserve or wandering the Pine Barrens and in the evening in his kitchen making dinner.

Simone DaRos grew up on Long Island and was fortunate enough to spend her summers in Montauk. Being surrounded by the unspoiled East End of Long Island helped to nurture her deep love of nature. Simone grew up with many unusual pets, in a family who loved all animals, great and small. She joined the board in 2006 and now holds the role of Vice President. A first grade teacher in the Huntington School District for over 20 years, Simone enjoys traveling, birding, hawk watching, wildlife rehabilitation and exploring habitats on nature walks and hikes.

After running her non-profit solid waste reduction organization for 20 years, Julie Sullivan presently sits on Huntington’s Conservation Board, restoring Carpenter Farm Park’s meadows to native plants. She also runs her blog, Go Native LI, which is focused around restoring native plant biodiversity. Following a HOBAS donation of 40 native shrubs, Julie became involved with Audubon's Plants for Birds, and happily anticipates serving on HOBAS' Board of Directors as the Conservation Chair beginning July 2020.