Meet the team

Jaime Archer     

I have been part of the planned giving team since 2017, and it’s a privilege to help supporters turn their compassion into lasting impact with Best Friends. I love speaking with people about how to create their legacy plans to reflect what matters most to them — ensuring that animals receive care, protection, and a second chance for generations to come.

I live on the southwest side of Chicago with my wife, Ashley; our children, Jasper and Jaimeson; and our lively pack: Copper, our playful and silly beagle mix; Dory, our sassy Chihuahua mix; and Tyriona, a former community cat.

Rescue work is central to my life and fuels my commitment to this work every day. I started fostering dogs when I was 16 and knew I wanted to dedicate my career to helping animals. Over the past decade, we have fostered hundreds of dogs, and in 2018 we co-founded Mutts of the Midway, a foster-based rescue group. Seeing firsthand how transformative a second chance can be inspires me to help others create a legacy that saves lives across the country and well into the future.

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. Each of my pets over the years has enriched my life and inspired me in different ways, but my dog Holly may have had the greatest impact of all.

Holly was part of our family for nine years. She came to us with significant behavioral challenges, and earning her trust took time, patience, and consistency. In the end, that effort deepened our bond, and she became the most loving and loyal dog my family ever had.

When my wife and I first visited Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, we felt an immediate and profound connection. We quickly realized that this was an organization that treated every animal with the same compassion and respect we had for Holly.

Over time, we became more deeply involved, volunteering more and more with Best Friends. In 2014, I was fortunate to join the planned giving team, transitioning from a 17-year career in financial services into work that closely aligns with my lifelong passion for animals. I am a Certified Financial Planner™ professional and currently serve as a board member of the American Council on Gift Annuities.

Today, I live in Kanab, Utah, with my wife, Megan; our seven cats — Sasha, Rose, Winnie Fred, Stinker, Figg, Rockefeller, and Beignet; four dogs — Matilda, Eleanor, Hank, and Claude; six sheep — August, Abby, Emmett, Josie, Mabel, and Norman; 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 — and cat, Gato.

Andrea Grane    

As a little girl sitting in my high chair eating dinner, it was always one bite for me and one bite for my dogs. And when people asked me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I would tell them: vegetarian (in my attempt to pronounce veterinarian). I've always had a love for animals, and growing up around them has taught me immeasurable lessons that I continue to learn today.

I worked in the art industry for many years, but a tiny, emaciated puppy named Atlas (whom I fostered and eventually adopted) changed the course of my life. Atlas was rescued from a not-yet-no-kill shelter during a hurricane, and he opened my eyes and my heart to what was happening in shelters across America. From then on, I spent all my spare time volunteering at local shelters, doing everything from cleaning kennels to hosting adoption events and fundraisers. It was then that I learned that my true calling was in animal welfare. Prior to joining Best Friends, I was given the great opportunity to start my planned giving career working for Bideawee, one of America's first no-kill shelters, located in New York.

I may not be a veterinarian today, but my passion for helping animals has never ceased. And I'd like to think that the 5-year-old me is thrilled that I work for Best Friends — a place that resonates so much with my mission and my heart's intent. Today, I still have Atlas, and our family has grown to include my animal-loving bird whisperer of a husband, my animal advocate and lover-of-all-things-great-and-small young daughter, and our newest pup addition, Clifford, the not-so-big red dog. We enjoy our days living in the beautiful New England town of Longmeadow, Massachusetts.

It is the absolute privilege of my life to work for Best Friends Animal Society since 2018.

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 four demanding but loveable cats: Opal, Ceviche, Hoisin, and Yamz. My hobbies include traveling, learning Chinese, getting foster cats ready for adoption, and telling all dogs I come across how good they are.

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 family and I are lucky to share our lives with our rescued pets: a tuxedo cat, Juniper; a dilute calico cat with the most purrs, Puddin’; and an orange-and-white cat, Carlyle.  I would be remiss if I did not mention our community cat who has made our porch, deck, and yard her home: 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, gardening, 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.

I cherish both my human family and my animal family — three grown daughters, two granddaughters, and two pets: Edgar, a Labrador; and two rescued Best Friends cats, Harrison and Birdie. We live in Salt Lake City.