Jon Gary reflects on a 27-year career in animal welfare, sharing how leadership, resilience, and investing in people have helped transform one of the nation’s largest municipal shelter systems.
Jane Tomsich shares how modern animal welfare is shifting from simply sheltering animals to empowering communities, preserving the human-animal bond, and creating innovative programs that keep pets where they belong.
Christy Schilling shares how Better Together Forever is helping families overcome housing, financial, and medical barriers so they can keep the pets they love and avoid unnecessary shelter surrenders.
Megan Winters shares how Harbor Humane Society transformed its approach to animal welfare by focusing on community support, reducing barriers to pet ownership, and helping people keep the pets they love.
Caryn Fugatt shares how a volunteer dog-walking opportunity evolved into a leadership career in animal welfare, and why preserving the human-animal bond is at the heart of everything Pope Memorial Humane Society does.
Dara Worthington shares how thoughtful leadership, community support, and a commitment to seeing the potential in every animal have helped Friends of Strays grow into one of Florida’s most impactful shelter organizations.
Kerri Burns shares how a career spanning disaster response, animal welfare leadership, and community service taught her that the future of animal welfare depends on collaboration, compassion, and putting people first.
Alexis Fine shares how investing in staff, building strong community partnerships, and leading with compassion has helped Williamson County Regional Animal Shelter create better outcomes for animals and the people who care for them.
As a volunteer with Chatham Animal Rescue and Education (CARE), Chris is helping lead efforts to address cat overpopulation through Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR), affordable spay and neuter access, and community collaboration.
After first entering animal welfare in the late 1990s, Kristen left the field due to the trauma of working in shelters with extremely high euthanasia rates. Years later, she returned with a new mission: changing the system from within.
