Leadership

Brendon Pantano

CEO

A third-generation operator, Brendon grew up working in his family’s waste hauling company. He continued his career in the industry, working at both large public and private waste and recycling companies. From riding on the back of a truck, to environmental compliance and operations, Brendon has experience in every aspect of the business. With Coastal Waste & Recycling, Brendon saw a unique opportunity to provide better waste and recycling services to customers in the Southeastern U.S. 

Travis Hitchcock

COO

Travis brings nearly 20 years of experience in the waste and recycling industry to his role with Coastal. His diverse industry knowledge has allowed him to lead transitions, integration, and service delivery for hundreds of municipal and government contracts during his tenure. He is fully aligned with Coastal’s vision of providing high quality, customer-focused, waste and recycling services across the company.

Kristi Beaudoin

CFO

Kristi Beaudoin is a finance executive with over 15 years of professional experience, including 12 years in the waste and environmental industry. Kristi has extensive knowledge in leading the accounting and finance organizations in companies of all sizes, most notably at Republic Services where she oversaw the financial operations across California, Arizona, and Nevada. She has spent a significant amount of time working in Mergers & Acquisitions and has played a key role in ensuring successful integrations in multiple industries including waste, software, and consulting. Kristi holds a CPA and has a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting and an MBA from the University of Dubuque.

Christian Gorino

Chief Revenue Officer (CRO)

Christian brings over 15 years of private equity and investment experience to Coastal Waste & Recycling, including several years specifically focused on private investment and mergers and acquisitions in the waste and environmental industry. Prior to joining Coastal, Christian was a partner at private equity firm, Summer Street Capital Partners, for 13 years and supported Coastal’s strategic growth from its inception with CEO, Brendon Pantano. Prior to joining Summer Street, Christian was in the Structured Capital Markets group at Barclays Capital in London. Christian earned a BS in Finance from Georgetown University and is a CFA charterholder.

Kurt Hadermann

Chief Information Officer

Kurt brings more than 25 years of transformative technology leadership across manufacturing, finance, and logistics sectors. As CIO of Coastal Waste & Recycling, he leads enterprise-wide digital innovation and business-IT alignment, ensuring technology drives measurable results and operational excellence. With deep experience in post-acquisition integration, custom software development, and infrastructure modernization, Kurt’s work has delivered record earnings and significant efficiencies across complex organizations. Passionate about people, Kurt believes technology should empower teams, simplify operations, and support growth with purpose. His strategic mindset, data-driven approach, and collaborative leadership style make him a catalyst for sustainable success at Coastal.

Dennis Pantano

VP, Hauling Operations

Dennis Pantano, a second-generation waste professional brings over 45 years of solid waste industry experience. Dennis started his career in the industry in 1974 when he joined the family business “Fredonia Sanitary Services” with his father. Dennis grew the business and later sold it to BFI where he continued his career and held various roles including Market Area Vice President of the North East Market. In 1999 Dennis joined Waste Management of New York where he served as Regional Vice President. In 2003 he joined Regus Industries as Chief Operating Officer where he managed the collection, post collection, rail and landfill operations of the company. In 2007 Dennis joined Waste Services Inc. of Florida, currently known as Waste Connections where he led the operations in central and north Florida. In 2013 he joined Casella Waste System as Regional Vice President where he oversaw the operations in New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and New Hampshire.

Chad Abell

Vice President, EHS & Engineering

Graduating from the University of Dayton with a BS in Biology, Chad has over 20 years of experience in Environmental, Health, Safety and Business Leadership for both private and public organizations. His diverse experiences range from surface coal mining, general industrial manufacturing, recycling and solid waste. Chad began his career consulting his clients in areas of OSHA, MSHA, Federal, State and Local EPA regulations. More recently he has spent the past 15 years leading solid waste and recycling operations. Chad came to Coastal Waste & Recycling to be part of a great team of operators and business leaders in a growing market.

John Casagrande

Senior Vice President of Business Development

John brings over 40 years of proven experience in the solid waste and recycling industry to Coastal Waste and Recycling L.L.C. As part of the Executive team he is instrumental in the strategic planning and operation of all companies. John came to the South Florida market in 1979 to begin a family-owned waste hauling company where he was instrumental in the growth and success of the business which led to the company being purchased by one of the world’s largest public waste companies, Attwoods, PLC. 1999 he moved to Waste Management where he joined the executive team as General Manager for the Southern Group. Throughout his 14-year career with WM, he was placed in roles of increasing levels of responsibility including General Manager, District Manager and ultimately Market Area Vice President. He was responsible for the strategic planning and complete operational execution of the hauling company, landfills, Material Recovery Facilities and transfer stations. 

Patti Hamilton

Vice President of Brand & Culture

Patti has more than 35 years of executive leadership experience focused on the areas of operations, sales, strategic marketing, business development, employee leadership advancement and community affairs. Her career spans automotive, golf, waste management, recycling and event operations. Coastal’s commitment to their core values and culture, was the perfect fit for her passion for sustaining a great culture and building a team of completely engaged employees. 

Didi Diaz

Vice President of People Experience

Didi is a Human Resources professional bringing nearly a decade of experience in human resources, payroll, and recruiting. Before joining us, Didi worked for businesses in the hospitality and cruise industry, with a focus on full employee life-cycle needs. During her career, Didi has led HR technology implementations, open enrollment, employee wellness programs, recruiting and onboarding efforts for offices within the US and abroad. Didi is a graduate of Florida National University and earned a Human Resources Certification with the Society for Human Resource Management.

Matthew Cowan

General Counsel

As General Counsel of Coastal Waste & Recycling, Matthew serves as a trusted advisor on strategies to effectively and proactively achieve successful outcomes in critical commercial, operational and legal issues. Matthew has over 15 years of experience, including nearly a decade serving in various legal roles with companies across a broad range of industries. Prior to going in-house, he worked in private practice handling both transactions and commercial litigation focusing on corporate, environmental and maritime law. Matthew received his Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Florida and his Juris Doctorate degree from the University of Miami. 

Matt Orr

Vice President, Post Collections

A Florida native, Matt brings over 30 years of industry experience to his role at Coastal. His extensive experiences include both hauling and post collection leadership roles. Working for both private and public organizations, he has experienced successful advancement and responsibility for multi-line operations. His most recent roles include Senior District manager for Post Collections and Director of Post Collections for the state of Florida. As part of the executive team, he is focused on expanding operations in the South Atlantic Area, that encompasses the South Carolina, Coastal Operations.