Meet the team

Jaime Archer     

I joined the planned giving team in 2017. It is an honor and a privilege to help animal lovers with their legacy plans on behalf of Best Friends.

I live on the southwest side of Chicago and share my home with my wife, Ashley, and our pack, which is made up of Vixey, our sweet Texas brown dog; Copper, our playful, silly beagle mix; Dory, our sassy Chihuahua mix; and Tyriona, a former community cat.

Our pack has helped us foster over 200 dogs in the past 10 years, most of them through Mutts of the Midway, our foster-based dog rescue group that we co-founded with a few friends in 2018.

Jess Casola

I guess you could say Pablo is partly responsible for my joining the Best Friends family. Pablo is a sweet and scruffy pup that my husband, Dan, and I adopted after he was rescued from the side of a road in Alabama.

At that time, Dan and I were living in Washington, D.C., and looking to adopt a dog of our own. We found our perfect match in Pablo through an online picture posted by a rescue organization in Alabama — which, it would turn out, is a Best Friends Network Partner. Since then, rescuing animals has been a mission very close to my heart.

I was raised in North Carolina with dogs part of the family and attended grad school to study nonprofit management, which eventually led to a planned giving position with World Wildlife Fund.

And then came Best Friends. Joining the planned giving team at Best Friends has been such a joy and an honor. I can’t think of a better legacy to leave than one of kindness to the animals who love us unconditionally.

When I’m not talking with Best Friends donors, you can find me reading, hiking, or cycling. I had hoped Pablo would be a running companion when we adopted him, but it turns out he’s a true couch potato. We love his laziness though — makes him all the better to snuggle with.

Matt Claflin   

Animals have been part of my family since the day I was born. Though each of my pets over the years has made my life better and inspired me in different ways, my dog Holly may have made the biggest impact on my life.

Holly was part of our family for nine years, and she came to us with some significant behavioral challenges. It took time and patience, but we eventually did earn her trust. She was the most loving and loyal dog my family ever had.

When my wife and I visited Best Friends Animal Sanctuary for the first time, there was an instant, deep connection. We realized immediately that this was an organization that treated every animal with the same respect that we gave Holly.

Over the years, we spent more and more time volunteering for Best Friends. In 2014, I was fortunate to be able to join the Best Friends planned giving team after a 17-year career in financial services.

I live in Kanab, Utah, with my wife, Megan; our five cats Sasha, Rose, Winnie Fred, Stinker, and Figg; our five dogs Matilda, Sammie, Puppet, Eleanor, and Hank; our six sheep August, Oberon, Abby, PB, Magnolia, and Emmett; and our rabbit Anna.

Karen Gallardo    

I've been in fundraising for more than 30 years and have had the privilege of working for several great causes. I joined Best Friends in 2014. Since that time, I've met the most wonderful and kind supporters.

One of my favorite parts of my job is learning about our supporters, their animal families, and the impact they have made and want to make in the lives of homeless pets. I also enjoy helping supporters learn about the many ways of giving, including gifts of assets.

I also teach yoga and meditation and enjoy leading yoga classes in different animal areas at the Sanctuary. I live in Yellow Spring, West Virginia, with my husband and four terriers: Mulligan, Jorge, Harper, and Berkeley.

Angela Li    

I am a Los Angeles native who worked in the fields of arts and culture, human services, and higher education before coming to Best Friends. I learned about Best Friends on a rock-climbing trip to Zion and Bryce canyons over a decade ago and have been a member ever since.

Now being able to work for an organization that is so near to my heart is a dream come true! It brings me joy to help my fellow animal lovers feel good about the legacy they are leaving and the impact they are having on the animals through their estate plans.

I live in South Los Angeles, where my husband and I report to two demanding but loveable cats: Pantoufle and Opal. My hobbies include playing the ukulele, getting foster cats ready for adoption, and telling all dogs I come across how good they are.

Kathy Stolzenburg   

In the early 2000s, while living in northern Virginia and working full time, I became a volunteer wildlife rehabilitator, nursing injured wildlife at home and later rescuing cats in need in our neighborhood after moving to West Virginia.

Yet still, I knew very little of Best Friends, whose mission so closely mirrored my own. But then a certain dog came into my life.

In the spring of 2012, my husband went out for what was supposed to have been just another morning run. Shortly after he left the house, I received a call that he had found an injured puppy abandoned on the trail.

That dog, Towpath (with me in the photo), brought us firmly and forever into the world of animal welfare, and we've never looked back. Come to find out my in-laws had visited and volunteered at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.

And in 2016, we accompanied them for another tour, whereupon witnessing the canyon's magic up close I said to myself, "One day I am going to work with this team." Well, that day arrived in May of 2019 when I was lucky enough to join Best Friends as an employee.

I now live with my husband, Will, in Reno, Nevada, along with our dogs Towpath and Missy and four indoor cats — all of them rescued, of course.

Sarah Wilder

At an early age, I was raised to be in awe of and appreciate all animals. I spent every summer in Delaware with my grandmother, where I helped care for and release injured birds, raised a passel of baby opossums whose mother passed away, and of course fed any stray cat in the neighborhood. 

All of this put me on the path to being an animal enthusiast.

Before I joined Best Friends, I worked in fundraising for history museums and in the environmental sector. After 20-plus years of my career, I am thrilled to finally use my skills to ensure a better future for the animals and to work for an organization whose values are truly aligned with my own.

My husband, son, and I live in Atlanta, where we are lucky to share our lives with our rescued pets: a sweet, long-haired, mini dachshund, Rusty; a tuxedo cat, Juniper; and a dilute calico cat with the most purrs, Puddin’.

I would be remiss if I did not mention our four community cats who have made our porch, deck, and yard their home: Stanley, Gus, Bernard, and Mama Kitty.

Beth Wolfer   

I love working for Best Friends, which I’ve done since 2014. I get to combine a deep love of animals with my personal mission: helping people find and express their voice. As a gift planner, I enjoy getting to know fellow animal lovers and supporters and helping them work toward their legacy goals.

In my spare time, I enjoy freelance writing, hiking, making therapy visits to hospitals with my dog, and serving as a coach for TEDxSaltLakeCity speakers. I also teach and coach public speaking for the Best Friends National Conference and at the University of Utah. Finally, I'm a member of the Holladay (Utah) Arts Council.

I cherish both my human family and my animal family — three grown daughters and four pets: Kozzy, a Lab/golden mix; Edgar, a Labrador; and Toby and Harrison, two rescued cats. We live in Salt Lake City.