Staff
Executive
ellynweisel@discoverwildcare.org
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Ellyn comes with considerable experience in the type of organizations WildCare appreciates and admires. With a Bachelor of Arts degree in History and American Studies from Colby College, Ellyn began her career as Vice President, Corporate Consulting with International Management Group (IMG) in the San Francisco Bay Area. She then served as a Development Consultant for the Boys and Girls Clubs of San Francisco, and first as Director of Outreach and Philanthropy, then as Vice President of Development at Common Sense Media in San Francisco.
Ellyn was previously the Director of Development at WildCare and stepped in as Interim Executive Director for six months before taking the position of Executive Director in September 2019. Before her arrival at WildCare, she served as Chief Development Officer of 10,000 Degrees in San Rafael, California, a nonprofit helping disadvantaged students further their education, which led her to a post as Foundation Director of the DripDrop Foundation, an organization that works to prevent dehydration worldwide. Ellyn’s experience helping mission-driven organizations design and execute a comprehensive and sustainable fundraising strategy is precisely what is needed at WildCare. Her involvement and management in strategic planning, major gifts campaigns, board relations and development, budget creation, and oversight comprise her work at WildCare.
In 2023, Ellyn was nominated as one of the Top 50 Women Leaders of San Francisco. Find her at #43 on thewomenweadmire.com.
bobkendall@discoverwildcare.org
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Bob was the Chief Financial Officer of a not-for-profit art school in West Palm Beach, Florida, for the last 9 years and a Florida CPA for 35 years. Prior to that he was CFO of several SEC reporting companies including a company on the NASDAQ. He was an auditor with the international CPA firm of Laventhol & Horwath. He is a graduate of UC Berkeley.
Communications, Media, and Advocacy
alisonhermance@discoverwildcare.org
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Alison attended the University of Utah for a degree in English Literature with a Minor in Italian Language. When she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, she worked as a Concierge at several of the city’s finest hotels, including the Stanford Court and The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco. Her extensive customer service background served her well when she came to WildCare as both a volunteer and a part-time Assistant Volunteer Coordinator.
Alison has been at WildCare since 2003. She has served as Major Gifts Officer, Volunteer Manager, Web Manager and Director of Communications and Marketing. In 2005 she took over the creation and maintenance of WildCare’s website, and continues to be responsible for all website content.
In her current role as Director of Communications and Marketing, she is responsible for media and public relations for WildCare, and oversees all outward-facing communications from the organization. She does outreach presentations to groups large and small, and frequent television and radio appearances representing the organization. She edits WildCare’s newsletter and also writes extensively about wildlife and the injured and orphaned patients admitted to WildCare’s Wildlife Hospital for various publications. Her experience at WildCare gives her a unique perspective on wildlife and the impact of human behavior on the animals with which we share our habitat.
In a volunteer capacity at WildCare, Alison is on the Squirrel Foster Care Team and the Baby Raptor Reunite Team. In her spare time she enjoys travel, reading, and off-road motorcycling.
dioncampbell@discoverwildcare.org
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Development
nicoletrautsch@discoverwildcare.org
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Following a long-held desire for her work to help animals, Nicole began at WildCare at the Front Desk as a Wildlife Services Representative, answering the Wildlife Hotline and admitting hospital patients. Her previous professional background is in luxury retail business management at companies such as Chanel and Gucci, helping them increase business through client relationship building and perfecting customer service. Nicole holds an MBA in Design Strategy from California College of the Arts. She is a lifelong lover of animals, and has volunteered at animal organizations such as The Randall Junior Museum, SFSPCA and Giant Steps Therapeutic Equestrian Center. Nicole grew up in San Francisco and has many fond memories of school field trips with Mrs. Terwilliger, where her love and appreciation for wildlife blossomed. She is currently a member of WildCare’s Squirrel Foster Care Team, and is the proud mother of another animal lover, her son Emmett.
zoe@discoverwildcare.org
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With a passion to inspire coexistence between humans and wildlife, Zoe is overjoyed to be a part of WildCare’s development team.
Zoe’s determination to become a wildlife conservationist and advocate began with her time as an Animal Biology major at the University of California, Davis. Her drive to learn about the natural world and its inhabitants grew exponentially with every species she studied: honey bees, dairy cattle—she even traveled across the globe to study the primates of Rwanda. Her experience with Wild Campus, a program dedicated to wildlife education and outreach, helped inspire her undergraduate research project focusing on the welfare of Japanese Macaques.
After graduating in 2019, Zoe found her voice for animal advocacy at the San Francisco Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals as a Veterinary Assistant. Zoe’s experiences with education outreach, research, and animal health deeply connects her to WildCare’s mission. She is grateful to be able to continue that mission as WildCare’s Development Manager.
briannabjarnson@discoverwildcare.org
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As a lifelong nature and animal lover, Brianna is thrilled to be part of WildCare’s Development Department team.
Brianna holds a master’s degree in English and has a long, diverse background in education from preschool and K-8 to college. As a former educator and grant-funded program coordinator at Sonoma State University, she brings her experience in outreach and communications to WildCare’s stewardship program.
A North Bay native and nature enthusiast, Brianna began studying animals as a young child and has helped rescue wildlife. She loves all animals and her favorite place to be is out in the forest enjoying the beautiful landscape among the wildlife.
joannegrantz@discoverwildcare.org
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Joanne has worked at WildCare since 2019. Joanne is a dedicated administrative professional with long-standing and diverse experience throughout multiple industries and capacities. In her role as Donor Services Manager, she is responsible for maintaining WildCare's donor database and processing donations.
bethslatkin@discoverwildcare.org
Beth joined WildCare in October 2020 as its part-time grant writer. With nearly a decade of experience as a grant writer and institutional giving manager for Bay Area educational nonprofits like the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and the Berkeley Chess School, Beth is delighted to be in a place that values wildlife and nature education. A longtime board member of International Bird Rescue, Beth became involved in wildlife rescue during the 2007 Cosco Busan oil spill, where she became a volunteer spotter for the City of Berkeley, looking for oiled water birds along the San Francisco Bay shoreline. With a dual background in publishing (MJ, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism) and digital marketing for both nonprofit and for-profit organizations, Beth has been Bay Nature Institute’s Director of Marketing and Outreach since 2011. In her spare time, Beth explores Northern California’s wild spaces, listening out for bird song and the occasional ribbit.
aprillofgren@discoverwildcare.org
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Education
eileenjones@discoverwildcare.org
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Eileen has been in the environmental education world for the last 40 years. She has been a naturalist and outdoor leader on both coasts. These adventures include being a naturalist with Santa Clara County’s Outdoor Science School, an outdoor leader for inner New York City youth at the Manice Education Center and a State Park Interpretive Ranger in Massachusetts. She was the Director of the Clem Miller Environmental Education Center in Point Reyes National Seashore and lived and worked at the Marin County Outdoor School for 9 years as the Naturalist Supervisor and then as the Interim Outdoor School Manager. She is a graduate of the University of Massachusetts with a degree in Environmental Science and is a nature geek at heart.
katelynch@discoverwildcare.org
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Kate grew up in Marin County and was a regular visitor to WildCare as a child. She began volunteering in 1998 when she was still in high school. When she went off to college, she had to discontinue her Saturday morning shift, but regularly used the skills and knowledge she had learned at WildCare when she went on to work as a Vet Assistant.
When the Costco Busan oil spill created a state of emergency in our bay, Kate was inspired to carve out time in her schedule to volunteer at WildCare again. She began volunteering in the hospital and with the Wildlife Ambassador Program in early 2009, and quickly started picking up as many extra shifts as she could manage. In 2011, Kate was hired to work as a Wildlife Services Representative at WildCare’s Front Desk. That same year, Kate began volunteering on the Opossum Foster Care Team. Kate grew to become one of WildCare’s primary opossum foster care providers, sometimes caring for almost a hundred orphaned or injured baby opossums in a year. In 2021, Kate was promoted to Education and Front Desk Manager.
When Kate isn’t busy caring for baby opossums, you can find her talking about opossums. When not totally consumed by her love for opossums, Kate enjoys cuddles with her rescue dogs, being outside in nature, and going to the movies and Giants games.
ryanelogsdon@discoverwildcare.org
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caseypearce@discoverwildcare.org
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Since she was a child, Casey's dream has been to create a world where humans and wildlife cohabitate peacefully. She grew up exploring the Metroparks in and around her home city of Cleveland, Ohio.
In college, Casey earned a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Denison University. She pursued a variety of teaching opportunities during college including being a Teaching Assistant for physiology labs, a Summer Camp Counselor, an Assistant Teacher of an afterschool program, and even a Kayak Tour Guide on Lake Michigan.
In the summer of 2019, Casey did an internship with the New Mexico Wildlife Center to learn more about wildlife rehabilitation and public education. Having the chance to educate the public on how to help injured or orphaned wildlife inspired Casey to pursue a career in wildlife and nature education.
After college, Casey spent time at NatureBridge as an Environmental Science Educator where she fell in love with the outdoor landscapes of Marin County! For fun Casey likes to hike, read, do art, and swim. She is ready to use her diverse experiences in education to teach students about wildlife and help them fall in love with our beautiful world!
carlypucci@discoverwildcare.org
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Text: (415) 463-4624
She/her/hers
Carly grew up backpacking and scuba diving with her dad. These experiences ignited her
passion for the outdoors, and her love for wildlife, which has only deepened with the passing
years. She hopes to share her excitement for learning with other curious minds.
Having dabbled in many areas of education, Carly has seen a variety of approaches.
Some of her experiences include: teaching English in Mexico and Guatemala; working at her
former Waldorf inspired charter school; Working with LandPath’s IOOBY, outdoor education
program; and most recently working at Ocean Alternative, in Santa Cruz. She understands the
value of hands on, experiential learning, project based approaches, and peer led activities.
Carly studied literature, with a concentration in Latin American and Spanish literature, at
California University of Santa Cruz, as well as at La Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile.
She has a love for learning languages and for travel.Thus far she has been to 21 countries, and
enjoys learning about the endless intricacies of planet earth. In her free time you can still find her
in the waves or in the mountains, surfing, foraging or making art.
cecilialedesma@discoverwildcare.org
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Text: 415-463-4624
Facilities
gregneal@discoverwildcare.org
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Hospital
melaniepiazza@discoverwildcare.org
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Licensed by both the U.S. and California Departments of Fish and Wildlife, Melanie Piazza has served as the Director of Animal Care of WildCare’s Wildlife Hospital since 2002. Frustrated by the number of orphans brought into the hospital because of the actions of trappers and also discouraged by the number of wildlife patients that were the victims of entanglement with fishing line and hooks, Melanie founded both WildCare’s Wildlife Solutions program and Marin Municipal Water District’s fishing line recycling program. She is currently also the foster care team co-lead for the squirrel team and manages after-hours intake of critical patients.
Prior to her arrival at WildCare she was the manager of the Animal Protection Society’s Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Mebane, NC for four years. She is a graduate of Elon University. Melanie’s other passion is animal rescue during times of disaster. She is an active member of Oiled Wildlife Care Network, San Francisco’s Disaster Animal Response Team and Marin County’s Community Emergency Response Team.
Melanie was a volunteer at the Marine Mammal Center for nine years and currently fosters kittens for various rescue groups. Any free time is spent running
julianasorem@discoverwildcare.org
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Dr. Juliana Sorem started her association with WildCare as a Hospital Volunteer in 1997 and completed WildCare’s internship program in 2000, before leaving for veterinary school. After graduating from U.C. Davis School of Veterinary Medicine she completed an internship at the Pet Emergency and Specialty Center of Marin, and then spent eleven years working in companion animal medicine and surgery in Oakland.
Dr. Sorem returned to WildCare as a Hospital Volunteer from 2012 to 2017 and was hired as WildCare’s first ever full-time veterinarian in 2017 for both our Hospital patients and our resident Ambassador animals. She is also foster care team lead for the raccoon team.
brittanymorse@discoverwildcare.org
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Brittany Morse is a Bay Area native who has been rescuing and rehabilitating both marine and urban wildlife across the U.S. since 2009. She began her wildlife work at The Marine Mammal Center in Sausalito while taking graduate classes focused on research and neuroscience. In 2012 she moved the Massachusetts where she worked for the Cape Wildlife Center as a Senor Wildlife Rehabilitation Technician and volunteered with many other local wildlife rescue and welfare organizations including the Marine Life Center, International Fund for Animal Welfare, and the Woods Hole Science Aquarium. While living on the East Coast Brittany also received licensures in wildlife rehabilitation from The Massachusetts Department of Fish and Wildlife and the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council.
In 2016 Brittany returned to the North Bay and began her journey with WildCare as a Research Assistant working on a rodenticide study funded by the Environmental Protection Agency. Later that year she accepted the Clinic Hospital Manager position and took on the bat and skunk foster care teams. In 2019 she took the opportunity t to manage her favorite foster care species by taking over the opossum team.
chantalbedard@discoverwildcare.org
Chantal is originally from Canada and first started working with wildlife as a volunteer in 2018 at Wildlife Haven Rehabilitation and Education Centre back home. She has since graduated with a BSc in Biology, focusing on animal sciences, from the University of Winnipeg.
She has also obtained her certificate as a Certified Wildlife Rehabilitator through the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council and is working towards her Certified Veterinary Technician degree.
Before moving to the US in 2023, Chantal worked her way up from volunteer to supervisor at Wildlife Haven, and was also a veterinary assistant at an animal emergency hospital. Once in Oregon, Chantal worked as a wildlife rehabilitator and ambassador animal keeper before accepting the job as Songbird Hospital Manager here at WildCare.
In her wildlife career, Chantal has had the opportunity to work with all sorts of animals from the tiniest of hummingbirds to very large eagles, as well as many different mammal species both big and small. She looks forward to managing the Songbird Hospital and learning from everyone around her, as well as sharing her knowledge of the array of species WildCare receives.
In her spare time, Chantal enjoys gardening, painting and building things (mostly with wood), as well as being outdoors and exploring. She is looking forward to a new adventure in California with her Husband and cat.
nancygroom@discoverwildcare.org
Nancy began volunteering in the Clinic at WildCare in 2019. When volunteers were welcomed back in a limited capacity in late 2020, she was the sole volunteer in the clinic on Monday mornings, which gave her the opportunity to be exposed to more advanced handling and care techniques - out of necessity!
She signed up to be an intern in 2021 - and completed a six month/ 40-hour per week internship while also working her other full time job, running an auto repair shop with her husband in Oakland, CA.
After her internship, she was hired on as a part-time, seasonal employee as a Wildlife Assistant, and then promoted to Wildlife Technician in 2023.
Previously, Nancy has volunteered at Lindsay Wildlife Experience as an ambassador husbandry volunteer, has fostered countless kittens, over 45 dogs (mostly Pit Bulls), and has a lifetime of experience caring for her personal cats, dogs, rabbits, parrots, frogs, and lizards.
In her spare time, Nancy enjoys camping, looking at rocks, rescuing Pit Bull type dogs, and tending her vegetable garden in the East Bay.
laurascaparro@discoverwildcare.org
Laura is a 4th generation native of California who was raised in the Central Valley, equidistant to both the Pacific Ocean and the Sierras, where camping with her family fostered her love for nature and wildlife. In 1991 she moved to Oakland where she currently resides.
Her life in wildlife rescue and rehabilitation started in 2007 during the Cosco Busan oil spill when she was compelled to help any way she could. This led her to volunteering at International Bird Rescue in Cordelia, working with aquatic birds. After a long hiatus to raise her daughter, she came back into the life as a volunteer with WildCare.
Laura started at WildCare in 2019 as a Birdroom Volunteer, and in 2020 during Covid restrictions was given the opportunity to work more closely with Med Staff taking care of a broader range of patients.
In 2021 she did a 6 month, 40 hr/week internship and was then hired as a part-time seasonal Wildlife Assistant. She is now currently at WildCare year- round as a part-time
Wildlife Assistant II.
When not at WildCare, Laura enjoys tending to her native plant garden, hiking the many wonderful trails in the Bay Area, foraging for wild mushrooms, bird watching and attending rock shoes at small venues. She also works part time in the restaurant industry, serving at fine dining establishments that focus on sustainable farm to table dining.
clairefoster@discoverwildcare.org
Claire graduated from Scripps College in 2023 with a bachelors in Biology and Theatre Arts. She started at WildCare as an intern in July 2023, extended her internship to six months, and then was hired as a Wildlife Assistant II.
Her experience prior to WildCare was primarily in large animal medicine with small ruminants and at an equine vet practice in Sonoma County, but she also used to volunteer in Marin Humane’s clinic.
She currently lives in Petaluma on her grandfather’s farm with cats, sheep, chickens, donkeys, and cows, and will be leaving the Bay Area in August to attend veterinary school at University of Pennsylvania.
rebeccalamotte@discoverwildcare.org
Rebecca first started at WildCare as a Hospital Intern in 2022. After completing her 6-month internship she continued to volunteer in the Birdroom, and was later hired on as a part-time Wildlife Assistant II.
Having grown up in the East Bay, she spent much of her time volunteering at Tony La Russa’s ARF (now Joybound People and Pets) and the Oakland Zoo. In 2017 she went off to Washington to study Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, and upon completion of her degree she participated in a number of wildlife-related internships at various facilities in Florida and California.
Currently, Rebecca is back in school doing an RVT program through Foothill College in Los Altos Hills. In her free time she enjoys crocheting, reading, aquascaping, movie nights with her friends and family, and very recently…running!
kristienguyenhoag@discoverwildcare.org
Kristie is a new member of the WildCare family, taking on the role of part-time Wildlife Assistant II for the 2024 baby season.
She began her wildlife rehabilitation experience in Costa Rica where she worked as a vet assistant and nursery animal caretaker at a wildlife rescue. Upon returning to the United States, she got involved at Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network, starting as a volunteer, then intern, and then got hired as a vet assistant and animal care assistant for mammals for their 2023 baby season. However, her passion for animal care started long before, as she has been working with farms, animal shelters and pet clinics since she was young.
After graduating from University of California, Santa Barbara with a B.S. in Zoology in 2023, she moved back to her hometown in Orange County for a few months before embarking on a new adventure in the Bay Area. Kristie is exceptionally thrilled to be part of the WildCare team!
During her freetime, she enjoys ceramics, rock climbing, cooking and exploring both the outdoors and the new city. She dreams to travel the world helping with wildlife conservation wherever she goes.
shaylabaird@discoverwildcare.org
Shayla joined the WildCare family in 2023 as a Hospital Volunteer in the Clinic, and was hired as a Wildlife Assistant I for the 2024 Baby Season. Prior to her time at WildCare, she volunteered at the Alabama Wildlife Center, working primarily in the Songbird Nursery.
In addition, Shayla has previously volunteered at the Bama Bully Rescue and the Cahaba River Society. She also graduated with a BS in Psychology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB). She fell in love with the outdoors early on and continues to camp, hike and backpack.
jessicajacobson@discoverwildcare.org
Jessica has been involved with WildCare since high school when she was a student volunteer!
Previously a social worker, Jessica has been able to turn her passion for working with animals into a new career path. She has been a volunteer at The Marine Mammal Center for 3 years, as well as having worked as a veterinary assistant/technician at two different companion animal veterinary clinics here in Marin County.
She is currently enrolled in the Registered Veterinary Technician program at Santa Rosa Junior College. In January, Jessica accepted a position at WildCare as a Wildlife Services Representative, answering our Hotline calls at the front desk. Not long after, she also joined the Hospital staff as a Wildlife Assistant I!
When not working at WildCare, or seal wrangling at The Marine Mammal Center, she is fostering senior dogs for Muttville in San Francisco, snuggling her own foster fail cat and dog, or paddleboarding around the Bay Area with an eye out for wildlife in need of rescue.
tracynovik@discoverwildcare.org
Tracy’s children attended WildCare’s camps years ago & she wishes she had discovered WildCare for herself back then!
Luckily for us, she did join our team as a volunteer in the Birdroom in 2021. She also volunteers on the E-Line and squirrel foster care team. She is joining Hospital Staff as a Wildlife Assistant I for the 2024 Baby Season.
Prior to WildCare, Tracy got her first degree in Sociology & Criminal Justice, and has lived in Tennessee, Texas, Connecticut, and Seattle as a practicing nurse.
Volunteer
briannabjarnson@discoverwildcare.org
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As a lifelong nature and animal lover, Brianna is thrilled to be part of WildCare’s Development Department team.
Brianna holds a master’s degree in English and has a long, diverse background in education from preschool and K-8 to college. As a former educator and grant-funded program coordinator at Sonoma State University, she brings her experience in outreach and communications to WildCare’s stewardship program.
A North Bay native and nature enthusiast, Brianna began studying animals as a young child and has helped rescue wildlife. She loves all animals and her favorite place to be is out in the forest enjoying the beautiful landscape among the wildlife.
jessicabrezzo@discoverwildcare.org
Website
alisonhermance@discoverwildcare.org
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Alison attended the University of Utah for a degree in English Literature with a Minor in Italian Language. When she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, she worked as a Concierge at several of the city’s finest hotels, including the Stanford Court and The Ritz-Carlton San Francisco. Her extensive customer service background served her well when she came to WildCare as both a volunteer and a part-time Assistant Volunteer Coordinator.
Alison has been at WildCare since 2003. She has served as Major Gifts Officer, Volunteer Manager, Web Manager and Director of Communications and Marketing. In 2005 she took over the creation and maintenance of WildCare’s website, and continues to be responsible for all website content.
In her current role as Director of Communications and Marketing, she is responsible for media and public relations for WildCare, and oversees all outward-facing communications from the organization. She does outreach presentations to groups large and small, and frequent television and radio appearances representing the organization. She edits WildCare’s newsletter and also writes extensively about wildlife and the injured and orphaned patients admitted to WildCare’s Wildlife Hospital for various publications. Her experience at WildCare gives her a unique perspective on wildlife and the impact of human behavior on the animals with which we share our habitat.
In a volunteer capacity at WildCare, Alison is on the Squirrel Foster Care Team and the Baby Raptor Reunite Team. In her spare time she enjoys travel, reading, and off-road motorcycling.
Wildlife Hotline
dioncampbell@discoverwildcare.org
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barbarapritchard@discoverwildcare.org
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andreao'dell@discoverwildcare.org
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Andrea grew up on the Indian River lagoon system in Florida with a love and respect for wildlife, especially manatees and ospreys. She holds a master’s degree in social work and spent many years working with troubled teenagers and their families in Florida and Baltimore. She started volunteering at WildCare in 2016 and became a Wildlife Services Representative in 2020. She lives in Larkspur with her husband, two sons, dog and three cats.
catemason@discoverwildcare.org
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Cate is an avid lover of all things wildlife, animal or plant, and comes to us by way of the restaurant industry. Seeking to help wildlife that are unable to help themselves, Cate brings her compassion, empathy and many skills to WildCare.
jessicajacobson@discoverwildcare.org
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