Aileen Gabbey, executive director of the Maryland SPCA, announced Tuesday that she will be stepping down from her position this summer to relocate with her family to Georgia.
She said her husband, who is a teacher at Gilman, was offered a position at a private school in Savannah.
"It will be so hard to say goodbye," said Gabbey, who began as a Maryland SPCA volunteer after moving to Baltimore in 1996.
She directed the group's volunteer program before being named executive director in 1999. During her tenure, the Maryland SPCA built a state-of-the-art adoption center, expanded community services like spaying and neutering and partnered with other organizations to create the Baltimore Animal Welfare Alliance.
The Maryland SPCA also credited Gabbey with increasing the number of pets saved in shelters.
Gabbey was raised in upstate New York, but said she and her husband are not fond of winter and lived for several years in St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands, where she began her advocacy for animal welfare.
"We love Baltimore," said Gabbey, but after recent harsh winters, she said they were missing the warmth. "This past winter was a tough one, " she said. "It hasn't changed that we still hate winter."
The SPCA board of directors plans to launch a search for a new director and Gabbey will remain in the position until her move to Savannah this summer.
When asked about future plans, Gabbey said she had not decided, but looked forward to more nonprofit work.
"I like working for a cause," she said. " And I will always have a place in my heart for Maryland SPCA."