Board Members
2026 Board Members
Meet Our Board
Gabi is a 24 year old active, motivated adult. When she graduated high school she searched and applied for many positions but could not get hired, not surprisingly 82% of individuals with special needs are
unemployed.
Additionally, she works at pop up shops on the weekends, delivers coffee to businesses, and speaks at conferences around the country encouraging others that they can start their own business.
As a result of the launch and continued work of Gabi’s, Gabi herself has blossomed into a creative, confident woman. She was honored with the 2019 Self-Advocate of the Year Award by North Carolina Down Syndrome Association.
Mary worked for IBM for 12 years, then she had 6 children and stayed home until Gabi, her only daughter who had Down Syndrome started Kindergarten. When Gabi graduated from High School and could not get hired anywhere we decided to create Gabi’s Grounds Coffee, the goal was to open a coffee shop but Covid made us pivot to start another non profit,  called Gabi’s Pals (Packaging, Assembling, Labeling, Shipping).  Â
Jeff has been in commercial banking in Raleigh, NC for over 13 years. His focus is to promote an extraordinary banking experience for his clients that cover all of their banking needs.
Jeff provides high level expertise to all financing aspects including commercial real estate, builder/construction loans, working capital lines of credit, equipment and business purchases.
Throughout Jeff’s career, he has served on various councils, committees, and boards of non-profits in the greater Triangle area.
Jeff is a graduate of UNC- Chapel Hill and the NCBA School of Banking. In Jeff’s free time he enjoys hanging with friends, playing golf, and taking walks with his fiancé and dogs.
Sterling Fulton, MHA is a visionary systems leader and the founder of Silver Insight Solutions, where she equips nonprofits and philanthropic organizations with equity-centered strategies, AI-informed evaluation tools, and capacity-building frameworks. With over 20 years of experience transforming public health and social impact organizations, Sterling brings a proven track record of turning complexity into clarity and values into infrastructure.
Most recently, Sterling served as Director of Training and Evaluation at the Center for Black Health & Equity, where she directed national capacity-building initiatives, secured over $1.9M in grant funding, and authored The Health Justice Guide—a nationally adopted curriculum advancing equity in community-based organizations. She designed evaluation systems for multi-million-dollar portfolios, strengthening operational alignment across programs, finance, and grants management.
Sterling’s board service with Gabi’s Workforce reflects her commitment to inclusive systems where all people can contribute and thrive. She brings expertise in strategic evaluation, logic model development, grant readiness, and impact measurement—core capabilities that support Gabi’s mission of creating meaningful employment for adults with special abilities.
A proud Hampton University and Penn State graduate, Sterling lives in Cary, NC, with her husband, Executive Career Coach Dana Gower, two adult sons, and two beloved
Carol has over 30 years of banking experience in a variety of roles, including regional
branch operations, Treasury management and process implementation and
improvement. In 2023, she began her current role as SVP, Private Banking Officer,
managing a portfolio of over 350 nonprofits and associations in the Triangle area. She is
relationship-driven and passionate about the nonprofits in the community, providing
bimonthly Nonprofit Lunch & Learn sessions and serving as a resource to engage and collaborate.
Carol is a native North Carolinian and has a history of personal involvement with nonprofits in the Raleigh area. She served as a board member of Community Music School of Raleigh for seven years, as its board Vice President from 2016 to 2017, and
President from 2017 to 2019. For several years, she has coordinated a team of volunteers to facilitate Junior Achievement classes in elementary classrooms in Raleigh area schools, and she currently serves on the Junior Achievement of Eastern NC board of directors.Â
In addition to Gabi’s, Carol also serves on the boards of NC Arts in Action and SAFEchild. She has volunteered at events held at great local organizations including the Salvation Army, Rise Against Hunger, the Food Bank, and Urban Ministries.
Carol holds a B.S. in Business Administration from the University of North Carolina at
Chapel Hill, a B.M. in Music — Music Education from Meredith College, and is a 2018
Graduate of the North Carolina School of Banking.
She resides in Raleigh and is
grateful to be a part of TowneBank, a community bank that genuinely cares about the
communities in which it serves.
Originally from a small farm in Central New York, James Larkin has called North Carolina home for more than 15 years. He is a graduate of Appalachian State University, where he earned a degree in Construction Management and developed a deep appreciation for the Blue Ridge Mountains. James believes creativity and passion have an important place in the workplace, in education, at home, and within the community. He consistently strives to exceed expectations in both his professional career and community involvement.
James began his construction career working as a laborer and installer in his father’s construction business before pursuing formal education in construction management. Following graduation, he joined The Whiting‑Turner Contracting Company as a superintendent, where he spent ten years leading projects with a focus on safety, quality, schedule, and team culture. Building on this experience, James transitioned into his current role as an Industry Coordinator.
As an Industry Coordinator for The Whiting‑Turner Contracting Company in Raleigh, North Carolina, James plays a key role in supporting business development and strategic growth initiatives. He is known for his relationship‑driven approach, collaborating closely with internal teams and external partners to identify opportunities, strengthen market positioning, and connect organizations with the right resources and solutions.
Beyond his professional career, James is an avid adventurer and lifelong traveler, having visited more than 30 countries, six of the seven continents, and swum in every ocean. His passion for exploration and genuine connection with others is evident in his daily life.
In addition to his career and community involvement, James is also a small business owner, operating Axes and Ales, a private firetruck party bus. Through this venture, James was introduced to Gabi’s, an organization that immediately resonated with him.
Since 2021, James and Axes and Ales have been active supporters and advocates for Gabi’s, and he now serves on the Board of Directors, bringing his experience, passion, and creativity to support Gabi’s Workforce.
