Amber Moore

Amber Moore, Development Manager, has spent most of her career in business development - securing funds and strategic partnerships for both the private and non-profit sectors. She has also been volunteering for non-profits that range from animal welfare to domestic violence since the early age of 7. She is currently a “baby vegan” but has been a vegetarian since her older sister became one in 1998. When Amber is not working you can usually find her wandering in nature with her two dogs, foraging and mushroom hunting (responsibly of course).

Ana Kuprava

Humane Educator

Andie Langlois

Andie Langlois, Animal Caregiver, has just started her journey at CAS this past August after a 5 year run at a local horse barn. She has worked with horses her entire adult life and as a little girl wanted to be a veterinarian. Andie grew up riding and taking care of horses, raising chickens, and befriending cows. She has always been passionate about animals and animal rights. Andie is going back to school to study anthropology and environmental science in hopes to continue her work with animals and conservation. You can find Andie cuddling some sheep, joking with the Farrier, and rubbing some pig bellies. She is a wonderful new addition to CAS!

Andrea Burritt

Andrea, Sanctuary Managing Director, began her vegan journey back in 2007.  When she found herself struggling to stay committed in 2015, she began volunteering at a farmed animal sanctuary.  In doing so she not only renewed her reasons for being vegan, but found her passion for sanctuary work and giving rescued animals the life they always deserved.  After spending 6 years working at farmed animal sanctuaries in the South and New England, Andrea joined CAS in 2021 as the Adoption and Transport Coordinator and was promoted to Sanctuary Operations Director in mid-2022. She is excited to take on a new role helping animals find loving homes so even more can be rescued.  When she's not at the Sanctuary working, Andrea can often be found cuddled up with her senior dog Lola, or taking in all the beautiful sights New York has to offer.

Andrea Nassar

Andrea joined CAS in 2021 as the Director of Humane Education Programs after 15 years working in public education. Andrea taught English to speakers of other languages as well as Spanish. However, she always dreamed of spending her days at a sanctuary. Andrea has been a vegan for 8 years and currently lives with her own rescues, including pigs, dogs, a cat, and a duck.

Annie Motter

Animal Healthcare Manager Annie has been putting her love of animals into practice since becoming a vegetarian at the age of 5. Her final step towards veganism was inevitable when she started as an intern at CAS in 2016. From intern to animal caregiver to healthcare manager to animal care director, Annie always seems to find herself drawn back to the incredible people, animals, and message that CAS represents. The welfare of humans, animals, and the planet we share is inextricably linked -- Annie is excited to help work towards a future where all three are equally important.

Dominic Armao

Dominic, Animal Caregiver, joined CAS in October of 2022. He has been vegan since 1999 and is happy to have found a job caring for animals and return to the Mid-Hudson Valley after a long absence.

Ingrid I.

Ingrid joined CAS in 2022. She takes great concern in speaking for the voiceless; she used to be a language teacher and currently works in the United Nations explaining political matters including Climate Change and how animal agriculture affects our planet. She believes that everyone makes a difference. She has been vegan for the animals since 2016. In her spare time she studies sign language and enjoys teaching anything she learns.

Isa Jones

Senior Healthcare Assistant Isa started working at CAS in October of 2021 as an animal healthcare assistant. They have some experience with exotic animals including reptiles, small mammals, and birds of prey, but are fairly new to caring for farmed animals. Their experience in human healthcare has been a huge help with their role at CAS. In their free time, Isa is an avid birder, enjoys taking care of their myriad of house plants and giving the best life possible to their three guinea pigs. Isa lives in Kingston with their partner Liam.

Kaden Maguire

Kaden first volunteered at Catskill Animal Sanctuary in 2014 as an Animal Care intern and fell in love with the residents. They’ve never been able to stay away for long and love facilitating perspective-changing relationships between the non-human residents and human visitors. When not at CAS, Kaden is finishing their graduate degree in mental health counseling with the hopes of continuously building relationships where all beings have a chance to heal and live freely.

Kathy Stevens

Kathy Stevens, Founder, views the Sanctuary as the embodiment of her two greatest passions: animals and teaching. While Kathy speaks, writes and raises money in support of our work, her greatest joy is in connecting good-hearted people with the animals we love, then stepping back to watch as the animals work their magic and change human lives. Her second greatest joy? Kissing pigs.

Lauren Barbieri

Lauren Barbieri, Education Manager, first visited the Sanctuary in July 2015. This was also the first time she was able to connect with turkeys, goats, cows and other animals; this transformative experience led her to veganism and, in February 2017, to join the team. Today, with the goal of creating a kinder world for all beings, Lauren helps kids of all ages tap into their innate senses of compassion, fairness and justice.

Lauren Rich

Lauren, Humane Educator, fell in love with the sanctuary the moment she spotted a group of sheep basking in the sunshine.  Carefree, they lay scattered on the hill by the road leading to the welcome hut.  Seeing this reinforced her long-held belief that all animals deserve to be this happy.  Less than a year later, Lauren joined the Humane Education team to do her part in making the world a better place for animals.  Prior to this first sanctuary visit, Lauren transitioned to Vegan after seeing the documentary, Earthlings, in 2017.  When she’s not at the sanctuary, Lauren enjoys hiking, power yoga, tennis and snuggles with her rescue dog, Hope.

Lesley Johnson

Working at Catskill Animal Sanctuary is a dream come true for Lesley, who enjoys using her writing and research skills to help the most exploited animals on our planet. She is deeply passionate about this cause, as well as rescuing and caring for cats, and folding animal care laundry with a precision that has earned her the awe and admiration of her colleagues. Lesley's favorite Sanctuary resident to introduce to visitors is Bruce the Duck, who rivals any seasoned lap cat with the duration of his lap-time visits.

Lily Peña

Lily Rose Peña is a life long vegetarian who is relatively new to animal care work, and loves every second of it! She studied environmental and urban studies at Bard College where she became enamored with outdoor work, vegetable farming and spending time with birds. She hopes to combine her interest in sustainability with her dedication to making the lives of farmed animals peaceful and joyful. You can often find Lily gazing at blue jays and hugging her sheep friends in her free time!

Luca Haliotis

Luca, Humane Educator: Luca's journey at Catskill Animal Sanctuary began in 2018, when they joined the humane education team. Luca is passionate about creating spaces that welcome and celebrate all species, and you can often find them in deep conversation with their good friend, Imogen the turkey. Luca lives with their partner Ken, and their two cats, Pabu and Mars.

Mackenzie Riggins

MacKenzie, healthcare assistant, has always loved being with animals. As a child, she always had dogs, cats and even a horse. When she was old enough to get a job, she ended up getting a job at veterinary office as a kennel attendant. She would give daily meds and fed the boarding dogs and cats. She would also help the veterinarians and veterinarian technicians with appointments or X-rays. As she continued to work at the veterinary office she then got promoted to the kennel manager. She later continued her career and went to work full time with the SPCA as a veterinarian assistant at the shelter part. After being at the SPCA for about a year and a half she got offered the veterinarian assistant position at the clinic which included being in the surgeries with the doctor and helping out with wellness clinics as well as humane law cases. Her first humane law case was with the Washburn sheep that CAS rescued in 2022. It’s so amazing to see the sheep that CAS rescued all healthy and happy and living their best lives! She loves being around all different kinds of animals and is currently studying to become a veterinarian technician. On her spare time she pet sits for dogs and cats. She also enjoyed riding her jet ski, going camping and traveling with her family. She is an outdoors kind of person and enjoyed being around family and friends. She loves driving her Jeep Wrangler with her dogs!  As of right now she has 3 Newfoundland dogs and a cat. Their names are Guinness, Hennessey, Odin, and Mazzie.

Megan Sisti

Megan joined the CAS team in July 2022 as an animal caregiver and is now a Healthcare Assistant. Growing up she has always had a love for animals, to the point where she has always dreamed of working with them when she grew up. As a kid she never thought this could be achievable, until she went to college and decided to pursue her childhood dream of working with animals. Megan is proud to say that she made her dream into a reality, and is thrilled to be on a team that puts compassion for all species above all else. Her favorite part of working with animals is getting to know their unique personalities! When Megan is not at CAS you can find her with friends playing board games, swimming, or hiking, as she loves being outside in nature.

Melissa Pullum

Senior Animal Caregiver

Michelle Hodge

Michelle Hodge, Homestead Manager, has been an animal lover since early childhood and vegan for nearly two decades. Michelle believes that being true to yourself and living your best life, while sharing with others, connects us to each other in a compassionate, meaningful way. For Michelle, there's nothing more rewarding than meeting fellow animal lovers, sharing stories with guests from all over the world, and connecting with folks as everyone enjoys a home cooked vegan meal. She brings this energy to our Homestead each day and welcomes every guest with compassion and kindness.

Nodira Akhmedova

Nodira joined CAS in 2018 as a Humane Educator, a year after she became vegan. She is passionate about education as a tool for transformation to a kinder and more sustainable world. When not at CAS, Nodira works at the United Nations, and teaches yoga and Middle-Eastern dance. She started baking after becoming vegan, and now is working her way through Compassionate Cuisine cookbook. While loving all the animal residents at CAS, she shares special connection with Hermione, the goat.

Rebecca Shaw

Rebecca Shaw, Donor Engagement Specialist, first began her journey with CAS in 2011 as a Camp Kindness attendee. At the young age of 8 she immediately fell in love with all of the animal residents, including beloved Rambo and Tucker, and started advocating for animal rights. She rejoined the Sanctuary’s team in 2022 as an Animal Care volunteer and Communications Intern, and shortly after accepted her current position - offering aid to donors and sponsors. She is excited to continue her work fighting for animal rights and promoting a compassionate and sustainable lifestyle. When she is not at the Sanctuary, you can usually find her snuggling with her dog, Cooper, and cat, Carly...aka the best snuggle partners.

Rich Bollin

Rich Bollin, Buildings and Grounds, hears his name on the radio about 150 times a day — “Rich, can you fix this door?” “Rich, the truck won't start!” “Rich, how soon can you build a barn!?” The man who can fix nearly anything especially enjoys the antics of Russell, the free-ranging pot-belly pig who races to the outer edge of the Sanctuary every morning to raid the compost pile. Rich also holds a special place in his heart for Leo, our special-needs goat, and always stops to give Leo some snuggles.

Rita Rafferty

Rita Rafferty, Animal Caregiver, is a Bronx Native who, as a child, enjoyed visiting her grandparents' summer house in the Catskills. It was there they instilled in her a great love for the mountains, the woods, and all that wandered the Earth. Through her grandparents' reverence for animals she learned about compassion, patience, connection, and respect. As an adult, Rita spent an abundant amount of time volunteering with animals as it was her passion, even receiving The Presidents Volunteer Service Award for her efforts. After building a successful career in hospitality in various parts of the U.S., she decided to pursue her passion for animal advocacy full-time and felt there was no place more appropriate to start this journey then the Catskills, the place where it all began, and no team better to take this journey with than the team at CAS.

Samuel Homan

Buildings & Grounds Manager

Sarah Beth

Sarah Beth joined CAS as a Tour Guide & Greeter in 2022 after volunteering with animal care since 2017. In May of 2023, she started full time as a Humane Educator and Merchandise Specialist. Sarah became a vegetarian in the summer of 2016 (starting with educating others about the horse racing industry). After visiting her first farm sanctuary (CAS), she made an instant connection with Amos the cow—who stole her heart while giving her a big kiss on the cheek. She was a vegan within a few months of this visit. CAS's approach to educating others in a kind manner kept bringing her back and she is honored to help facilitate new human-animal relationships every weekend.

Sophie Hoinoski

Sophie, Assistant Healthcare Manager, joined the CAS family in December of 2022. She has been an animal lover since day one and working to heal animals, both physically and emotionally, to be her true calling in life. She has worked in veterinary hospitals with dogs and cats, interned at an avian wildlife hospital, and volunteered at a pig sanctuary. Working at CAS has been an entirely new and exciting experience for her and an absolute privilege getting to know and love all the unique animals that call the sanctuary home.

Wendy Haberman

Wendy joined CAS as a Humane Educator in 2021 after working as a physical therapist for 20+ years and raising 2 amazing children. At the age of 11, while living on a horse farm, she raised a gorgeous and loving little Jersey calf named Bonco, which lead to her being vegetarian for most of her adult life. Wendy has been vegan since 2017 and loves to help others onto that path as a health coach and a lover of all animals. When not leading tours at CAS, she loves to hike and kayak. She shares her home with Molly, a 16 year old dog rescued from Puerto Rico, and Thistle, a loving and very large “shoulder cat”. Sharing animal rescue stories with visitors as they meet the animals face to face – and then seeing the lights come on in their eyes – is one of Wendy’s greatest joys.
The Board 

James Shackelford

James Shackelford joined the CAS Board to support the sanctuary and the many farmed animals who call it home. An animal lover whose first great love, Molly, a rescued Catahoulan Cattle Dog, passed away in 2022, James has spent nearly 20 years leading global communications and marketing campaigns for Fortune 10 brands and startups. He has worked with brands including Microsoft, Walmart, Salesforce, Aon, amfAR, and UNICEF and currently serves on the BOD of the Haitian Global Health Alliance, the advisory board of the St. John’s University Public RElations Program and is a member of the Global Health Security Roundtable. He served on the national board of directors of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) from 2020-2022 and previously as Chair of the PRSA National Diversity & Inclusion Committee.

Julie Squires

Julie Squires, treasurer, is a Certified Compassion Fatigue Specialist, Life Coach and Grief Educator who brings a unique perspective and approach to support the sustained energy and passion of those exposed to secondary trauma working with animals. Julie has an extensive background in veterinary medicine and works to help animal workers maintain their mental health and wellbeing as an internationally recognized speaker, podcast host (Rekindling), group and 1:1 coach and on-site seminar facilitator. Julie came out of the womb loving animals and she calls CAS her "happy place". She is a former humane educator and loved introducing guests to those that call CAS "home" and seeing them build a connection with farmed animals. 

Kate Keisel

Kate Keisel, LCSW, is the co-founder and CEO of the Sanar Institute, a leading organization that addresses the impacts of interpersonal violence related trauma. Her work prioritizes person-centered approaches grounded in posttraumatic growth and resilience to holistically address the vulnerabilities created through human trafficking, sexual and domestic violence, image-based sexual abuse, stalking and labor exploitation. Kate holds a B.A. in international studies with a focus on human rights in Latin America and a master’s degree in clinical social work focused on complex trauma and resilience. Ms. Keisel is an animal lover at her core who has utilized animal-assisted therapy in her clinical career. She is excited to connect her love of animals with her passion for supporting the healing journeys of all living beings.

Kathy Stevens

Kathy Stevens co-founded CAS, where her love of animals and her belief that education has the power to transform come together, in 2001. Since then, the sanctuary has been a haven for thousands of farmed animals, and has spared countless more through programming that invites us to connect the dots between our lifestyle choices and the suffering of animals. Kathy is the author of Where the Blind Horse Sings and Animal Camp, a former Huffington Post blogger, and a contributor to numerous anthologies on animal rights, animal sentience, and the imperative of plant-based living. She lives on the grounds with her beloved dogs Chumbley and Scout, and loves to hike, bike, kayak, and spend time with family and friends.

Michelle Alvarez

A native of New York City, Michelle fell in love with the sanctuary as a volunteer in 2008. She joined the staff soon after, and for over 13 years, served as Outreach Manager and Director of Outreach & Special Events. Among her many tasks were planning and executing the organization's signature events and representing CAS at national conferences, public and private events, etc. Before realizing her profound love for animals, Michelle was a social justice lawyer for nearly a decade at the Natural Resources Defense Council, Alternatives for Community & Environment, and The Center for Reproductive Rights. In her spare time, Michelle loves parenting and fostering rescued cats, enjoying craft beverages, and hiking in search of waterfalls. Michelle is serving our board as the secretary. 

Sam Moon

Sam Moon (they/them) is a nonprofit operations leader and has worked for animal advocacy, environmental, and wellbeing economies organizations. They received an MBA from Montclair State University in 2022 and hope to pursue a law degree in environmental and animal rights in the near future. They have been vegan for almost 5 years and enjoy hiking, CrossFit, and spending time with their family.