Board of Directors

Photo of Sean Cassidy

Sean Cassidy

Board Chair

Sean Cassidy joined the board of Born Free USA in 2016. He owns clothing stores in New York and San Francisco under the name of LAFAURIE. Sean is also a writer. He splits his time between Los Angeles, New York, and Paris.

Jessica Nelson

Board Secretary

Jessica Nelson’s experience includes a very long stint in advertising and marketing for brands such as IBM, Intel, Pepsi and Bali. Jessica then founded BrightZoo, a well-recognized mom marketplace where moms buy and sell secondhand kids' items. BrightZoo was innovative in that it also introduced weekly timed sales of new kids' items specifically targeting moms. A few years later, she launched CareGround, a resource for caregivers struggling to care for ailing elders. Today, Jessica is focused on her three children, taking a very brief and deliberate break from her entrepreneurial pursuits. She enjoys her dedicated role as a Born Free Board member, giving her the liberty to indulge in her passion of "saving animals", and raising awareness for animal rights. For Born Free, Jessica contributes marketing and press ideas that aide in brand development, and she also contributes towards New York City based fundraising events.

Christine Perry

Christine Perry

Board Treasurer

Christine joined the Born Free USA Board of Directors in October 2020. She brings with her an extensive background in animal welfare policy, lobbying, and advocacy as well as non-profit finance, operations, and governance. She currently works with The Humane League and also serves on the Wild Animal Initiative Board of Directors. She has fostered orphaned kittens since 2018, and is the proud guardian of two rescued cats, Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Vincent Atticus.

Will Travers

Co-Founder and Board Member

Will Travers is an internationally-renowned wildlife expert who has dedicated his life to wildlife issues, since he lived in Kenya with his parents, Virginia McKenna and the late Bill Travers, who starred in the film Born Free (1966). In 1984, he and his parents co-founded the wildlife charitable organisation now known as The Born Free Foundation, which works to stop individual wild animal suffering, protect threatened species worldwide, and keep wildlife in the wild.

Will has been involved in rescuing elephants, tigers, lions, and dolphins, and is always willing to share his experience and knowledge to further Born Free's vision for a more compassionate future.

Will is also a Board Member of Born Free, which he co-founded, and is President of the Species Survival Network (SSN), an international coalition of more than 100 organizations committed to the promotion, enhancement, and strict enforcement of CITES (Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora). Will has participated in every CITES meeting since 1989 and advises on the precautionary application of Convention. He also advises the United Kingdom Government on matters relating to zoos, the use of wild animals in circuses, and international wildlife trade.

Will has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows, speaking out against canned hunting of lions highlighted in the documentary, Blood Lions, the international ivory trade and the trade in chimps as exotic pets.

Jane Lodato

Board Member

Jane joined our Board of Directors in December 2017. She brings a wealth of experience in building organizations and teams with a focus on marketing and branding. Jane is the owner/principal of Studio Lodato, an organizational brand, marketing, and advertising consultancy firm in the San Francisco Bay Area. She has worked with networks, celebrities, and companies such as Adidas, ABC, and Silicon Valley Bank. Jane enjoys partnering with smart, creative thinkers, and companies and organizations that are committed to making a difference. Born Free is pleased to have her innovative approaches, strategic and entrepreneurial thinking, wisdom and humor on our Board to help advance Born Free's vision and mission.

Michael Reyner

Michael Reyner

Board Member

Michael Reyner is the Senior Partner of MWM Consulting, the leading Board-level search and advisory firm based in London, where he has worked since 2007. He previously spent 15 years at McKinsey, the global consulting firm, where he was one of the partners leading the Global Consumer Goods practice. He started his career in marketing, sales and general management roles in the consumer goods industry.

A graduate in Modern History from Oxford University, Michael has long been an active member of various animal welfare and conservation charities. In 2009, he became the Chairman of The Born Free Foundation, a post that he continues to fill today, and in 2018 also became Chairman of The Pangea Trust, a new organisation dedicated to establishing the first major elephant sanctuary in Europe.

Outside of these interests, Michael is Chairman of Beaconsfield Town FC, his local youth soccer club, and Deputy Chairman of the governors at a local school.

Rebecca Torrey

Rebecca Torrey

Board Member

A frequent speaker and writer on key developments and cutting-edge legal issues, Rebecca is known for pragmatic, out-of-the-box solutions that support strategic growth. She is the Founding Partner at The Torrey Firm, PC. Prior to her law firm practice, Rebecca served as a Law Clerk for Chief Judge Deanell Reece Tacha for the Tenth Circuit, U.S. Court of Appeals.

Staff

Angela Grimes, Born Free USA CEO. Photo by Erielle Bakkum.

Angela Grimes

Chief Executive Officer

Angela Grimes is Born Free USA’s Chief Executive Officer. She has more than 25 years of experience in the nonprofit sector. Inspired by observing wildlife living freely in their jungle homes while volunteering for a sea turtle project in Costa Rica, Angela moved from arts administration to wildlife protection, where she has served in senior and executive level positions since 2004. She has a degree from Drake University. She has served on the boards of directors of several arts and animal welfare organizations and is currently on the board of EarthShare.

Photo by Erielle Bakkum.

Noelle Almrud

Noelle Almrud

Associate Primate Sanctuary Director

Noelle joined Born Free USA in 2023 as the Primate Sanctuary Associate Director. With more than 20 years of experience managing animal sanctuaries, she is thrilled to have the chance to work with Born Free USA! Noelle has extensive experience developing and implementing long-range plans, creating and providing oversight of strategic development, and enhanced outreach and programming for several sanctuaries in Texas.

In addition, Noelle served on various committees and associations to help strengthen the animal sanctuary community including on the steering committee of the North American Primate Sanctuary Alliance (NAPSA) and as President of the Board of Directors for the Oklahoma Primate Sanctuary. She co-created the Big Cat Sanctuary Alliance (BCSA), serving as Steering Committee Chair and Vice Chairperson for several years, and was part of the recently formed BEAR Alliance.

Noelle left a career in commercial mortgage banking and insurance to dedicate her life to serve the animal welfare community and has never looked back. She holds degrees in history from the University of Houston and wildlife and fisheries sciences from Texas A&M University.

Dr. Katie Jennings

Katie Jennings, DVM

Primate Sanctuary Staff Veterinarian

Katie Jennings, known as “Dr J” to the team, is the Born Free Primate Sanctuary veterinarian. She studied French, music, and biology at undergrad before going on to vet school at Texas A & M. After qualifying as a veterinarian, Katie worked for a short time with Wildlife Rescue, then joined the Born Free team in 2015. Katie, supported by our dedicated animal care team, delivers all veterinary care for the 500+ monkeys at our Sanctuary.

When asked what she enjoys most about her work with the sanctuary, she said it was the ongoing challenge of adapting traditional veterinary medicines and treatments to the specialized needs of the monkeys. Her vital work for the monkeys and necessarily innovative approach has led to her being called upon to share her expertise with other facilities around the country.

Karen Lauria

Communications Director

Karen has more than 14 years of experience in digital communications, website development and technology project management, copy writing, and content management. Before starting at Born Free in 2014, she worked as an independent consultant for a number of small academic and cultural nonprofits and as the Gallery Manager at an art gallery in New York City. She has an MA in Middle Eastern Studies from the CUNY Graduate Center and a BA in Art History from Marymount Manhattan College. She enjoys spending time with her dog, Penny, traveling, and watching obscure documentaries on YouTube.
Gita Matlock

Gita Matlock

Chief Development Officer

Gita is a dedicated advocate for animals and a catalyst for nonprofit growth. As the first Chief Development Officer of Born Free USA, she brings invaluable fundraising and leadership expertise to propel us forward. With a master's degree in nonprofit administration from USF and a bachelor's degree in international studies and political science from Pepperdine University, Gita has held esteemed leadership positions with organizations such as CARE USA, March of Dimes, and United Way of the Bay Area. Additionally, she is a certified equine assisted educator, imparting the transformative Diamond Model of Shared Leadership by TeachingHorse — a methodology rooted in the behavioral wisdom of wild horses. Gita's passion and experience fuel our journey toward continuous growth and impact.

Alice Stroud

Alice Stroud

Africa Policy & Capacity Building Director

Alice is a French lawyer specialized in international, environmental, and natural resources law. She has 16 years of experience leading Africa-based capacity building programs. Her current focus is developing the ability of African governments to fight wildlife crime and building consensus between African countries to conserve shared resources and implement international agreements.

Prior to joining Born Free in 2015, Alice served as the coordinator of the Francophone Africa Bureau of the Species Survival Network (2006 – 2015), an international coalition of more than 100 non-governmental organizations committed to the promotion, enhancement, and strict enforcement of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES). Alice also served as acting Secretariat and advisor to the African Elephant Coalition (25 African countries) between 2008 and 2015.

Before working for the Species Survival Network, Alice worked as a policy advocate for the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society (2004-2006), focusing her expertise on the conservation of marine mammals within a broad array of international fora, including the International Whaling Commission, the Protocol Concerning Specially Protected Areas and Wildlife (SPAW Protocol), CITES, and the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS).

Alice obtained a LL.M in natural and environmental resources law from Lewis and Clark Law School in 2001; a French D.E.A. (Diploma in Advanced Studies) from the University of Paris XI in 1999, and a Master’s Degree in International and European Law from the University of Amiens, France in 1998. She is bilingual in English and French.

After living in the United States for 15 years, Alice recently relocated to French Gascony (South West of France) with her husband and daughter. In addition to enjoying good wine and a life in the countryside, Alice uses her time to travel, sharing her passion for West Africa and the importance of conserving its natural resources with the world whenever the opportunity arises.

Dr. Liz Tyson, Programs Director

Liz Tyson-Griffin, PhD

Programs Director

Liz did not begin her career working with animals. but found her way to her life's passion all the same! Early in her career, Liz earned a degree in law, while also working full-time at a financial PR firm in London. Realizing that the corporate world was not for her, she began to look around for opportunities that would allow her to fulfill her true life’s ambition – to work with animals. Liz was offered the role of Education Officer and Primate Keeper at a monkey sanctuary on the south coast of England. She jumped at the chance and never looked back!

Since that time, Liz has worked in the UK, Colombia, Spain, the Middle East, Bolivia, Ethiopia, and Peru. She helped to establish the very first locally-run sterilization program for street dogs in the Middle East, worked with local indigenous communities in the Colombian Amazon to bring an end to the hunting of wild primates, ran a UK charity campaigning to end the exploitation of animals in circuses and zoos and, more recently, helped to design and plan a new rehabilitation complex for rescued monkeys at Born Free's Ethiopian Sanctuary, Ensessa Kotteh. She also continued to study while working and earned her doctorate in Animal Welfare Law in 2018.

Over the years, Liz has had the privilege to work with and learn from incredible animal advocates, rehabilitators, and conservationists around the world. About Born Free, she says, "Having seen the dedication of the team at Born Free's Primate Sanctuary, and their commitment to the animals under their care, I feel nothing but pride and excitement to have the opportunity to join their ranks as Sanctuary Director."

In August 2020, Liz published her book, Licensing Laws and Animal Welfare: The Legal Protection of Wild Animals, with Palgrave MacMillan/Springer Nature. The book outlines the findings of her doctoral research, which is the most comprehensive study of the legal protection of wild animals in English zoos carried out to date.

Nour Al-Hussayni

Nour Al-Hussayni

Primate Caregiver

Nour earned an undergraduate degree in psychology at Flagler College in St. Augustine, Florida. Before coming to the Born Free Primate Sanctuary, she completed several ethogram studies on behavior of captive Komodo dragons and time budget analysis in hyacinth macaws. She has experience caring for a wide variety of species, but found her passion after working with a very special lemur who suffered neurological and behavioral problems from being in the exotic pet trade. From there, Nour completed a primate husbandry internship, which involved working with five species of lemurs, before accepting a role as a Primate Caregiver at Born Free. Her favorite group to work with are the vervets and baboons.

Shelley Brend

Shelley Brend

Wildlife Enforcement Capacity-Building Consultant

Shelley works as a consultant for Born Free USA. With more than 19 years of experience in wildlife conservation, she is a skilled diplomatic liaison with African governments and specializes in environmental policy development and implementation. Shelley has led illegal wildlife trade reviews and provided governments with support in the development of national and regional wildlife policies. She has specialist knowledge of CITES and issues relating to illegal wildlife trade and wildlife law enforcement in Africa. She served as acting Secretariat and advisor to the African Elephant Coalition group of 25 countries between 2008 and 2014. Shelley was also one of the key experts supporting ECOWAS countries with the development of the West Africa Strategy on Combatting Wildlife Crime.

Manisha Chaudhari

Accounting Clerk

Manisha joined the Born Free USA Operations/Finance team in October 2017. Manisha started off on a different career path, focusing on medical research. After the birth of her two lovely daughters, Manisha decided to be a stay at home mom for about 12 years. During that time, Manisha volunteered as the PTA Treasurer for 4 years and ran a Youth Sports Business, i9 Sports, with her husband for 5 years. Outside of Born Free, she enjoys puzzles, crochet, walks, and bike rides with her family.

Katie Conway

Katie Conway

Sanctuary Manager

Katie started working at the Born Free Primate Sanctuary as a primate caregiver in 2014 and was promoted to Sanctuary Manager in 2020. Katie has dedicated herself to working for animals for many years and, prior to joining Born Free, worked for a number of animal welfare, rescue, and rehabilitation organizations around the country and abroad. This included working for four months at a monkey sanctuary in Ireland and two years working caring for dogs, among other placements.

When asked what she loves most about working at the sanctuary, Katie said it was having the opportunity to play a part in supporting monkeys like Taz, a pigtail macaque who was previously kept as a pet, in their rehabilitation. Taz arrived at the Sanctuary not knowing what it was to be a monkey and demonstrating many abnormal behaviors. Thanks to the dedication, patience and care of the Sanctuary team, Taz now lives with others of his own kind and is a happy and well-adjusted monkey.

Wendy Coonrod, Advancement Officer

Wendy Coonrod

Advancement Officer

Wendy Coonrod is Born Free USA’s Advancement Officer and a member of the Development team. Wendy has dedicated her career towards helping nonprofits in a variety of capacities. She’s passionate about protecting wildlife and connecting supporters to Born Free USA’s mission and programs.

Wendy has a BS in Radio-TV-Film from the University of Texas at Austin and a MPA from Park University. When she’s not working, Wendy loves gardening and spending time outdoors.

Suzanne Emerson

Suzanne Emerson

Individual Giving Manager

Suzanne has several years of experience working for non-profits in various positions, with a strong background in event planning. She has a BA from Franklin and Marshall College and is a lifelong resident of the DC metro area. Aside from protecting wildlife her interests include theater, visual arts, and playing with her cat.

Sydney Hearst

Digital Marketing Manager

Sydney joined Born Free in 2024, bringing with her several years of experience in nonprofit communications and advocacy within the environmental and animal protection sector. She holds a BA from George Mason University, where she studied integrated marketing and nonprofit management. Sydney is passionate about wildlife conservation and is dedicated to leveraging strategic marketing strategies to connect individuals with causes that align with their interests and values.

She resides in the picturesque Appalachian mountains of Virginia. Beyond her professional pursuits at Born Free, Sydney enjoys live music, spending time outside, and spoiling her three adopted pets.

Holly Roberts

Holly Roberts

Primate Caregiver

Holly is a graduate of Central Washington University’s Primate Behavior and Ecology program. She graduated in 2017 with a double major in Biology and Primate Behavior. After graduating, she accepted a year-long internship at Pacific Primate Sanctuary of Maui, Hawaii. Once she completed her internship, she was hired as a caregiver at Born Free USA Primate Sanctuary in 2019.

When asked what she likes most about working at Born Free USA, she stated it was the camaraderie the team has for one another, sharing interests, and the overall goal of caring for the monkeys at the sanctuary. This amity allows all members of the team to speak up when considering what’s in the best interest of the monkeys, meaning everyone’s viewpoints and experiences are taken into deliberation, sometimes producing solutions others never would have thought of.

Larissa Saenz-Mason

Larissa Saenz-Mason

Sanctuary Clinic Assistant

Larissa is Born Free USA's clinic assistant. In this role, she assists our veterinarian with anything from day-to-day checkups, surgeries, and medical paperwork to even sometimes assisting caregivers in their daily tasks. She is from the Jackson Metro Area of Mississippi, where she completed a Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Sciences with minors in Biochemistry and French at Mississippi College. Larissa began her career working with greater apes as an intern at Center for Great Apes in Wauchula, Florida, where she discovered that primate care was her deepest passion. Her favorite thing to do with our monkeys is have "conversations" by vocalizing back and forth with them.

Devan Schowe, Campaigns Associate

Devan Schowe

Campaigns Associate

Devan began working with Born Free USA as a Primate Caregiver and Veterinary Assistant in 2015. Before Born Free USA, she graduated from Franklin & Marshall college with a degree in Animal Behavior with a captive exotic animal welfare focus. While at F&M, Devan had her first experience working with primates (including two colonies of capuchins and one colony of squirrel monkeys) as one of the enrichment team volunteers. She quickly realized her passion for these amazing individuals. During her junior year, she took her first wildlife conservation course and decided that merging the fields of animal welfare and wildlife conservation would become her ultimate career goal.

In the fall of 2018, Devan ventured to Oxford, England, to pursue her graduate degree in Primate Conservation at Oxford Brookes University. She conducted her thesis on the trade and welfare status of the pig-tailed macaques used to harvest coconuts in southern Thailand. After achieving the MSc and traveling around parts of Southeast Asia and Europe, she returned to Born Free USA as the Lead Primate Caregiver from 2020 to 2021, where she was fondly reminded of how special witnessing the incredible transition of a monkey from a traumatic past, e.g. an ex-pet or ex-lab individual, from behaving fearfully and uncertainly to engaging in normal species-specific behaviors and thriving in a natural environment truly was. In May of 2021, Devan was offered a Campaigns Associate position with Born Free, and has been acting in this role ever since!

Todd Soyck

Todd Soyck

Primate Caregiver

Todd arrived at his position at the Born Free USA Primate Sanctuar through a less direct route than most. He is originally from Janesville, Wisconsin but had spent the last 25 plus years teaching English in South Korea, mostly at the university level. Prior to that, he worked in the hospitality industry in Washington, DC for five years while trying to find work in the legal field.

Todd graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater with a BBA in Accounting in 1985. Following a few years of employment in public accounting in a small firm in his hometown, he attended California Western School of Law and received his JD in January of 1991. He passed the New York Bar Exam in the spring of 1991.

While he has had a lifelong interest in animals, he did not get started working with them until late in life as a volunteer. Starting in July of 2016 and continuing every six months, he volunteered at different animal sanctuaries for a few weeks at a time in Africa and Asia during my vacations from my university jobs until the COVID-19 pandemic began. He has worked with big cats, primates, elephants, sun bears, and numerous smaller species on different projects. He hopes to continue with his work with animals now that he is employed full-time at Born Free USA.

Rebecca Strunc

Rebecca Strunc

Development Coordinator

Rebecca joined Born Free USA’s development team in 2019. She is passionate about the behind-the-scenes work that goes into effectively running a charitable organization and loves working for an organization with such an important mission

While studying at the University of Virginia, Rebecca received both her BA and an MS in Commerce. As a student, she volunteered for three years with a student-run crisis hotline, eventually helping to direct it. This experience prompted her to pursue a career in the nonprofit sector.

Rebecca likes to spend time outside of Born Free singing and playing Dungeons and Dragons and she loves spending time with her three dogs May, Whidbey, and Luray. She grew up in Southern Virginia and enjoys calling the DC metro area home.

Kyliegh Viano

Kyliegh Viano

Lead Primate Caregiver

Kyliegh graduated from Eckerd College with a degree in Biology and Psychology, driven by a lifelong passion for animals. After traveling to the United Kingdom and Honduras to study the differences in animal care between countries, she knew that animal care was the right career path for her. She started her career in Florida and Georgia working with big cats, ungulates, and primates, which led her to Born Free USA in early 2021. So far, her favorite part about working at Born Free is being able to connect with the primates and create enrichment based on the needs of each monkey. Her goal is to eventually travel to Africa and be able to study these wonderful creatures in the wild. Kyliegh was promoted to Lead Primate Caregiver at the sanctuary in June 2023.

Jennifer Place

Jennifer Place

Director at Tai Ginsberg & Associates, LLC

Jennifer Place is a Director at Tai Ginsberg & Associates, LLC, a government relations firm located in Washington, DC. In this role, she works with and assists Born Free USA with legislative and regulatory matters before Congress and the Administration. Throughout her more than ten years of professional experience in the private sector, Jennifer has worked toward the conservation of endangered species, the protection of marine and terrestrial wildlife from cruel practices both in the U.S. and abroad, and has defended bedrock conservation laws like the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act. In 2022, she worked with Born Free USA on the successful passage and enactment of the Big Cat Public Safety Act. She works closely with congressional offices, federal agencies, corporations, small businesses, domestic and international fisheries, and non-governmental organizations. She received a Masters of Public Policy and a Masters of Science in conservation biology at the University of Maryland.