Behind the Scenes

Board of Directors

Kerry Oldridge / President

Kerry is a native Canadian who now calls Southern California home. Her love of animals and dogs in particular started in childhood. Art, music and animals are her three loves, but helping animals is her driving passion, and connecting people who can help animals in need her primary goal with United Hope for Animals.

United Hope for Animals was born out of Kerry’s desire to help neglected dogs in Mexico, and she expanded the organization following a realization that many dogs in Southern California were suffering under adverse conditions as well. Kerry is an accomplished painter, enjoys photography and walking her coterie of hounds around the trails of the San Gabriel Valley.

Laura Knighten / Program Director, Shelter Support Program

Laura is a San Diego native who came to Los Angeles after graduating college. She currently teaches writing at UC Irvine and shares her home with dog-loving hubby and a naughty but talented Coton de Tuléar dog and a Corgi-Spaniel mix rescued while she was volunteering for UHA.

She began doing rescue work while doing her dissertation. She thought she was just going to walk dogs but is now essential to the organization’s operations, and there isn’t any aspect of UHA she hasn’t conquered though many hours of trying. Just for fun she and her dogs compete in agility, and the whole family are Ireland-o-philes and love to travel to the Emerald Isle.

Key Volunteers

Claudia Angel-Gall / Events Coordinator & Rescue Adoption Coordinator

Claudia was born and raised in Southern California. She has been volunteering with UHA since 2008. She organizes UHA’s adoption events and serves as the UHA’s adoption rescue coordinator. Her love affair with animals began when she and her husband Stephen adopted their first dog Max, a Rottweiler/Shepherd mix, from the Pasadena Humane Society. Their fur family has grown and now includes cats and dogs.

Claudia currently teaches 3rd grade in East Los Angeles where she enjoys teaching her students about the importance of spay and neuter and responsible pet ownership.

Ric Browde / Shelter Coordinator

Ric Browde spent his early years moving around the United States and Europe. While attending university Browde formed his first rock and roll band. He also taught English, wrote music, and worked as a roadie. He later became the assistant and later full-on producer of the popular guitarist Ted Nugent. He also worked with the Scorpions, had a string of hits, both as a writer and producer for bands including Poison, Joan Jett, Faster Pussycat and the Dogs D’Amour. Browde has recorded thirty six albums to date and sold over twenty million records earning eight platinum and eleven gold records.

He has also written a cult favourite novel, While I’m Dead…Feed the Dog, and now manages a luxury villa rental company in Italy. In his “spare” time he volunteers with UHA at the Baldwin Park Shelter to help lost and abandoned dogs find new homes.

Sonia Tellez / Lead Photographer

Sonia has two cats and two dogs, all rescues from the street, family members and the shelter. She did not grow up with many animals however.  Due to limitations of apartment living, her animal buddies were limited to goldfish as a child.

One day, her husband (then boyfriend) surprised her with an adorable, black puppy for her birthday. She instantly became an animal lover.

Sonia is a photographer who enjoys working with animals. She photographs adoptable dogs in order to facilitate adoptions. She believes all dogs deserve a warm bed and a loving home and hopes to help expand the program to make this possible.

Rob Testa / Shelter Support Program

Rob believes that every dog deserves a place to rest his/her head, and UHA is the optimal means to make this happen. He has two rescues, Sophia and Jake, who make every day a holiday and every meal a feast. Rob is potty trained, great off leash, and is honored to be a part of such a purposeful family like UHA.

Rob believes that every dog deserves a place to rest his/her head, and UHA is the optimal means to make this happen. He has two rescues, a Pit Bull/Boxer named Sophia and a Pit Bull/Shepherd named Jake. They make every day a holiday and every meal a feast. Animal rescue is a full-time job, and he is honored to be a part of such an impactful family as UHA.

Rob is potty trained, medium to high energy, great off leash, knows basic commands, and gets along well with others.

Casey Erlanson / Volunteer Coordinator

Casey is a California girl born and raised in the Central Coast, and from day one loved animals! She was constantly bringing home strays (much to the dismay of her mother, as there is no way to tell a 10 year old you can’t keep the sick kitty or a lost puppy). She moved to LA in 2004, and adopted a beautiful rescue dog the second she had the space to allow.

Casey and her dog Angel are now an inseparable pair, and she felt it only seemed fair to help others find their own loving four legged family member. She has been so grateful to find an organization like United Hope for Animals to work with and help fuel the fire she had as a young girl to help any animal in need.

If Casey isn’t working (to pay the bills) she is hiking with her dog, painting, or hanging with UHA trying to network as many beautiful dogs she can out of the shelter and into a forever home!

Janette Cooksey / Online Networking

Janette is a Southern California native. She grew up surrounded by animals. She loves all dog breeds, but has a special spot for Terriers. Her current dog is a Wire Fox Terrier named Winston “Winnie” that she adopted from Terrier Rescue.

Janette graduated from the University of Redlands with a Business Management Degree. She has been working for a Vitamin manufacturing company for the last five years as a Category Sales Analyst. Her job allows her to work at home, so she gets to spend many hours with her beloved dog.

In her spare time she volunteers for UHA, Desperate Paws of Orange County and Abandoned Terrier Rescue. Her volunteer work for UHA consists of going to the shelters to help photograph and videotape the dogs and updating the adoptable dogs on the computer (PetFinder and AdoptAPet). On the weekends, she enjoys knitting, reading and hanging out with her dog.

Amanda Wray / Online Marketing

Amanda grew up in California surrounded by animals, and she can’t imagine life without them. When she was finally able to make a living out of her home she got two dogs of her own and is now happily devoting a great deal of time to dog rescue.

She is a graduate of Art Center College of Design and works as an independent graphic and web designer in the San Gabriel Valley. Her background also includes award-winning writing for community newspapers, a stint as an Assistant Editor for Dog Fancy Magazine, and as an occasional photographer on freelance projects. She created the new UHA website and is setting up a donor management system for the organization. She also goes to shelter days to photograph and videotape dogs, and on her days off knits doggie sweaters and experiments growing unusual vegetables in her garden.

Adoption Coordinator Team

Sasha Rose Abelson

Sasha was born and raised in New York City and moved to Los Angeles 4.5 years ago after graduating law school.  She currently works at a non-profit in Santa Monica working on enviromental policy issues.

Sasha has been volunteering at Baldwin Park for two years now.  She has a soft spot for dogs that are sick or injured and have little chance of being adopted by the general public. She recently rescued a bait dog from the Kern Shelter. The dog has been named Angel due to her sweet and loving disposition. Sasha hopes that Angel will serve as an ambassador of the pit-bull breed and educate the on the horrors of dog fighting.

Erin Berich

As a native Oklahoman, Erin grew up on a Morgan horse farm surrounded by a menagerie of animals-from horses to dogs to chickens to the resident neighborhood donkey. In 2001, Erin moved to California and began teaching a class for students with severe disabilities at John Burroughs High School in Burbank. Erin and her husband, Nick, live in Pasadena with their 3 dogs; Ladybug, a 16-year-old Pekingese, Dodger, a 10-year-old rescued Catahoula, and Chewy, a 3-year-old rescued Pekingese (who Erin found through the help of UHA!). Erin is also blessed with the companionship of her 23-year-old Quarter Horse/Thoroughbred gelding, Captain.

Erin began volunteering with UHA in 2009. She loves to spend time with the pets at the shelter and at adoption events and finds it extremely rewarding to place a pet in the perfect home. In October of 2010, Erin’s dog Chewy became a certified Pet Therapy dog with Love on 4 Paws. When not spending time with her own four-legged companions (or two-legged husband), Erin splits her volunteer time between UHA and Love on 4 Paws.

Menna Kearns

Menna is a California native who returned to the Golden State in 2008 after a 12 year stint in the Pacific Northwest. Growing up in the foothills of the Santa Cruz mountains, dogs and cats were always in her home, as well as the occasional hamster or bird, and recuperating skunks, opossums, or raccoons.

By day Menna moonlights as a web/software developer – but when not coding, she spends time with UHA, helping out with everything from dog wrangling during photo shoots to social networking. During her _other_ spare time she volunteers at the California Wildlife Center, plays her accordion, hangs out with her three dogs + one foster, attempts to learn new languages (human or artificial), and hunts for good local music.  A recent small dog convert thanks to her pup the “Chihuahua Ambassador,” she has a special place in her heart for the little ones that she meets at the shelter.

Meena Pharo

Meena loves all creatures but has a special affection for the Pit Bull Terriers.

She believes in giving all animals equal opportunity no matter what breed and educating the public on the true and accurate disposition of the lovable, loyal, and clown-like Pits.

Meena is the administrative contact on PF and Adopt-A-Pet. She is also the contact for anyone that is interested in volunteering for UHA.

Jana Savage

Jana is an East Coast native, born and raised in the metropolis that is Bangor, Maine. After a stint in Boston, where she got her degree in Economics, she decided the next logical step would be to move to Los Angeles to pursue a career in acting and writing. She was not aware of her other life’s passion that she would find there, animal rescue.

After adopting her first dog from the West LA animal shelter, she became what is known as a “crazy dog person”, a title she is very proud of. Her boyfriend tells her she cries way harder when animals die in movies and she doesn’t deny it, it’s just more sad. Volunteering with UHA has been an amazing opportunity for her to save lives, gain a deeper sense of meaning in her life, and meet wonderful people.

Jana lives in Santa Monica with her boyfriend Casey, who is also now a crazy dog person (she comes home regularly to find him watching “Pit bulls and Parolees” and weeping). She also lives with her Chihuahua/Terrier mix, Marty, her Dachshund/Beagle mix, Harry and her Pit bull/Lab/Whippet mix, Phoebe.

Catherine Winiarski

Catherine joined UHA in 2009. She worked first as a dog walker, then as an adoption coordinator and dog handler at photo shoots, and now as a foster parent as well. She adopted her Italian greyhound Marco from a rescue and wanted to do more to help the many animals in need at local shelters.

She is constantly in awe of the success of UHA’s adoption initiatives and is thrilled to be a part of them. In her home, she has fostered terriers, a mini poodle, a cockapoo, a Rottweiler, a Pomeranian, and a chihuahua, giving them a good diet, training, exercise, vet care, and plenty of TLC until they are adopted into permanent homes. Marco has been an excellent mentor to them all.

A native of southern California, Catherine is an English instructor at Long Beach City College and the University of Redlands. She researches Shakespeare and other Renaissance authors and is currently working on online editions of Shakespeare’s plays. She enjoys camping and hiking with friends and family (and her dog when possible), going to local jazz and rock clubs, and exploring LA restaurants and coffee shops.