Jesse

Owner and General Manager

A Northeast Texas native and longtime Austin resident, Jesse began working at Gill’s in the Fall of 2018. His love of nature and design attracted him to Gill’s, and his business experience makes him well-suited to manage the company. In Fall 2022, after 4 years as General Manager, Jesse purchased the company from Sally and James Gill. Jesse’s values align well with those the company was founded on and has earned a reputation for. He is leading Gill’s forward with a solid foundation and an amazing team!

Debbie

Buyer

Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Debbie graduated from Richard King High School. She has been with Gill’s since 1995 as a salesperson and buyer and is a Texas Certified Nursery Professional. Debbie is always exploring new plant varieties and looking for the best quality plants available for you, our customers. She loves visiting with our customers about their garden interests and uses that knowledge to design & co-ordinate our in-store garden talks.

DeAnna

Garden Center Manager

DeAnna is our garden center manager for 39 years running! She managed our Alameda store for 29 years before moving to our Airline store in 2016. She loves container gardening and teaching children about vegetable gardening. In 2006, in her spare time (ha! ha!) she was named the Nueces County Coordinator for the Learning to Grow Program, installing over 300 vegetable gardens in schools from Agua Dulce to Port Aransas. She was awarded 2nd place Master Gardener Of The Year 2012 for the state of Texas. She is also a Certified Nursery Professional.

Wyatt

Garden Center Asst. Manager

Wyatt has been a hard-working member of the Gill’s team since 2015. He graduated from TAMU-CC with an art degree in 2018. Wyatt is passionate about organic gardening and building healthy soils. He also loves growing veggies and promoting wildlife through the use of native plants. When Wyatt's not gardening he loves all things outdoors including hiking, snowboarding, and camping. 

Kathy

Landscape Designer

A Corpus Christi native and graduate of Texas A&M, Kingsville, Kathy has been with Gill's since 1987. She is a certified board member of the Association of Professional Landscape Designers and member of Leadership Corpus Christi, class 24, as well as the Texas Certified Nursery Professionals and specializes in residential and commercial landscape design, estimates and installations.

Ernesto joined Gills in 2017 as a Landscape Design Assistant and transitioned to Landscape Designer in 2022. He is a Corpus Christi native and a Texas A&M Kingsville graduate with a Bachelor's degree in Fine Arts, and he’s bilingual in Spanish and English. Ernesto has an eye for color and is a talented problem solver and estimator. He enjoys transforming your landscape to maximize the usability of the space.

Hidalgo

Equipment & Facilities Manager

A Corpus Christi native, Hidalgo graduated from W.B. Ray High School and Del Mar College where he studied horticulture. He has worked with Gill’s since 1992 in the nursery, on the landscape crew, and as foreman. Now, as Production & Facility Manager, Hidalgo co-ordinates work between our landscape and garden center department on a daily basis,  manages our landscape equipment program and our garden center & jobsite safety program. On top of that, all physical improvements at our garden center are managed or done by Hidalgo.

Lauralee

Accounting Assistant

Born and raised in Corpus Christi, Lauralee graduated with a BS in Atmospheric Science from TAMUCC. Her love of the environment and mathematics drew her to the accounting position here at Gill’s in spring 2023. In her spare time, Lauralee loves to curl up on the couch with her three cats and catch up on the latest crime documentaries. She also loves to craft and has started her own hanging garden since she started working at Gill’s!

Barbara

Bookkeeper

Barbara, our accountant, is Corpus Christi born and raised. We are very fortunate to have had her with us since 1994! She has been in the family for even longer than that – she worked for Sally Gill's dad at Munroe & Bass Civil Engineers for 10 years before joining Gill’s.

Anthony

Anthony moved to the Corpus area by way of the East Coast in 2023 and joined the Gill's team. He's always got a smile on his face and ready to help with any task.

Andy

Andy has been with Gill’s since 2010 and worked as a machinist for 17 years prior. He also spent some time landscaping for Padre Staples Mall. Andy loves planting and watching vegetables bloom and grow. When not helping out around the nursery, he can be found playing golf and admiring the landscape, or spending time with his family.

Caleb

Caleb joined the Gill's crew in Summer of 2022 as Photographer and Content Creator. He came highly recommended by our friends in the Del Mar College Art Department. Caleb is not only a talented photographer, he's a plant person with a big collection of houseplants and succulents! In Fall 2023, he plans to continue his art education at TAMU-CC.

Clarissa

Clarissa is a Corpus native who joined Gill’s in Spring 2023. She’s a nature fan – she earned her degree in Biology from TAMU-CC and she’s a birdwatcher! She enjoys reading and playing Dungeons and Dragons in her spare time. She’s enjoying learning more about plants and getting to know our regular customers.

Diane

Diane is a San Jose, California native, but we're sure glad she came to Texas! She started at Gill’s Alameda in 1998 until 2001 and then returned in 2006 at our Airline store. In between, Diane worked as a vet tech and is the unofficial Gill’s kitty caretaker. Diane’s gardening passion is for tropical plants. Ask her about them.

Josh

Garden Coach

Josh started at Gill’s in 2019 and is now one of our Garden Coaches, planting trees and installing small landscape areas. Customers rave about Josh's  work! Josh has a degree in Art from Texas A&M Corpus and is a talented pottery maker.

Kim

Since 1993 Kim’s kindness and devotion has helped us build our business.  Her wealth of plant knowledge is a huge asset.  Creating interesting displays using different colors and textures is just one of her talents.  She’s an avid reader and collects roosters!

Matt

Garden Coach

Joining Gill's in 2009, Matt has a love for gardening that doesn't stop. He's constantly reading and learning and loves to share his passion with his customers. Matt is particularly interested in soil composition, ethnobotany, and vegetable and fruit production. As one of our Garden Coaches, Matt can help you design and install beds and other small landscape areas.

Mike

Mike has been with Gill's since 2007. Pre Gill's he was in the underwater service department in Long Beach, California, his home town. Mike has a special interest and extensive knowledge of local trees and is our go to guy for trees.

Ori

Assistant Buyer

Ori joined Gill's in 2017 and does it all in the Garden Center. In 2022, she became our Assistant Buyer. Her passion is houseplants. She's constantly researching and collecting houseplants, and finding cool new varieties to stock here at Gill's. Ori is a 2nd generation Gill's team member - her dad, Francisco, worked in the landscape department for many years.

Paris

Paris joined the Garden Center team as a cashier in Spring 2023. She’s currently pursuing her degree in Environmental Science at TAMU-CC, and she loves music and going to the beach. She’s enjoys working outside and working with gardeners – she came to the right place!

Ricky

Ricky began working at Gill's in Fall 2022. Since then, his plant and gardening knowledge has taken off! He's a natural with customers and always happy to help. When he's not working, he enjoys spending quality time with his son.

Rose

Rose’s interest in gardening is what brought her to Gill’s in Spring 2020. We’re very glad to have her! Her passion for plants really rubs off on customers – she loves helping gardeners get what they need and hearing about their success. In addition to caring for her garden at home, Rose has 4 dogs, 2 cats, and 3 fishtanks!

Arnold has been an excellent member of Gill landscape crews since 2004. He hails from Alice, TX and is a Carroll alumni. He loves the opportunity to “make everything look beautiful” at homes and businesses about town.

Brandon hails from Victoria and Corpus and has been with Gill’s since 2011. He was an English Philosophy major in college and his previous job history pegs him a Renaissance man – he’s worked as a baker, a butcher, warehouse manager, video store clerk, garage door installer, administrative assistant, flooring estimator, and now a landscaper! He likes the opportunity for “artistic creation on a large canvas in a natural setting of beauty.”

Jimmy joined our team in 2014 after working many years in residential & commercial landscape installation here in Corpus Christi. Jimmy leads a crew and guides every project with his expertise in the field. He loves beautifying the Sparkling City by the Sea!

Juan

Juan has been a key part of the landscape team since 2020. He spent a brief time trying other jobs before deciding he really enjoyed landscape construction and re-joining Gill's in 2022. When he's not working hard, he enjoys spending time outdoors with his son and family.

Kevin joined Gill’s in 2008 as a landscape crewman; today he leads a crew, working on landscape construction projects large and small.  His other passion is music so don’t be surprised if you see him with his band entertaining the crowds on the weekend.

Mike has been a member of the Gill crew since 2013. He is a Corpus Christi native and King graduate. He is a key part of the landscape team, and says that he loves the rewarding feeling of turning a normal yard into a beautiful landscape.