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New Faces at WCC: Val Skinner

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The WCC pack is excited to welcome new service dog training instructor Valerie “Val” Skinner to its team! 

Val came on board in April and is working at WCC’s Healing Quarters in Boyds, where she is responsible for the evaluation and skill refinement of on-site service dogs in training and advanced training dogs. She will also support puppy parents and puppy development. 

“I joined WCC because I really love working with Veterans,” said Val. “They’re relatable, down-to-earth and aren’t here for any other reason than to help make their lives and others’ better. I really appreciate all the time and efforts they put into the training the dogs for these important placements.” 

An experienced dog trainer, Val has spent several decades training dogs, beginning with a rescue and placement organization for Rottweilers, followed by several years working with another ADI-accredited service dog organization. Val received her education and training at Bergin University.  

When not working, Val enjoys going to the beach, spending time outdoors and cooking up some BBQ with her family. 

Please join us in welcoming Val to the WCC team! 

New Faces at WCC: Leilani Shore and Riley Spickler

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Please join us in welcoming two new members to the WCC pack! Both Leilani Shore, puppy program outreach coordinator, and Riley Spickler, puppy development assistant, joined WCC in December helping to fulfill important roles — learn more about out new team members!

Leilani Shore, Puppy Program Outreach Coordinator

An animal lover at heart, Leilani has always gravitated to dogs and horses. While attending Ohio University, she also worked for an equine program that supported Veterans through therapeutic horsemanship.

After graduating with a dual bachelor’s in psychology and animal science, she went on to work for an equine program that provided support for kids in foster care. She then worked for an animal biotech company that provided at-home cat DNA tests; the results are used to give owners a comprehensive report on their cats.

When she saw the opening at WCC for a Puppy Program Outreach Coordinator, it was one she knew she couldn’t pass up.

“I love my job,” said Leilani. “It’s not very often people can say that.”

Although still new to the role, Leilani works directly with WCC’s Puppy Parent program to help recruit new volunteers and support those already providing crucial aid and care for its service dogs in training.

“The Puppy Parents are awesome … it’s amazing that people are willing to volunteer their time and do what it takes to raise these dogs for us; we couldn’t do what we do without our Puppy Parents,” said Leilani. “I’m always in awe of them with how they sacrifice their time for us and help us out.”

When not working, Leilani enjoys spending time with her two dogs, Luna and Rosco, and her two horses, Ramsey and Maverick.

 

Riley Spickler, Puppy Development Assistant

Also joining WCC in December is Riley Spickler, our new Puppy Development Assistant. In her role, Riley works in WCC’s puppy department and helps with the socialization and care of WCC’s older pups and eventually be taking on the position of boots rank instructor.

A Maryland native, Riley graduated from the University of Maryland, College Park, with a bachelor’s in animal and avian sciences. During her sophomore year, she helped co-raise and sit service dogs for the Guide Dog Foundation and has spent countless hours walking and pet sitting dogs since then. She was also very involved in her campus ministry during college and loves connecting with new people.

“I have had a long-time dream of working with Veterans and service dogs, so this job is a perfect combination of both,” said Riley.

Riley’s supervisor says she has made an immediate impact in her new role.

Outside of work, Riley can often be found attending University of Maryland basketball games, spending time with friends and she also hosts trivia at a local brewery.

New Faces at WCC

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We are excited to welcome a new member to the WCC pack! Cathlene Kirkpatrick joined our team last month as a service dog training instructor based at our Healing Quarters in Boyds, Maryland.

Cathlene brings several years of service dog training experience with her; she worked at another nonprofit for five years before joining WCC, noting that she wanted to support Veterans and WCC’s No-Fail Mission.

Cathlene grew up in Atlanta, Georgia, and earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of North Georgia. She says she set out to be a veterinarian but changed her major to focus on animal-assisted therapy. However, during her studies, she concentrated her degree on canine-assisted therapy, focusing on canine cognition and assisting people with disabilities.

Military service runs in Cathlene’s family; both of her grandfathers served, one in the Army, the other in the Navy; her brother is a Navy Chief, and her brother-in-law is in the Marine Corps.

In fact, it was while Cathlene was in high school that her brother, Michael, deployed to Afghanistan, that she says she fully understood the sacrifices and service our members of the military make. As a result, she became very passionate about finding ways to support our Veterans and their care and is thrilled to have joined the WCC team in May.

“It’s been a lot to take in, but I already love all the dogs, they’re incredibly well-bred, and I love the dedication all the Puppy Parents have — it’s really nice to see that,” said Cathlene. “Even though we’re ultimately training the dogs to serve a Veteran, they’re already having an impact through MBTR during the process. That’s very much what drew me in.”

Besides being new to WCC and the state of Maryland, Cathlene was also recently married (March) to her husband, Kevin. So Cathlene will be “Cathlene Holloran” in a couple of months after all the paperwork is finalized. They’re both dog lovers and have a Lab-Golden cross named Pax, 6.

When not working, Cathlene enjoys cooking (Italian is her favorite), gardening, and photography (especially taking photos of dogs).

Welcome, Cathlene!

New Faces at WCC

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Please join us in welcoming two new members to our team!


Kristina Frick
Kristina is the latest service dog training instructor to join our pack. She is based at the National Intrepid Center of Excellence (NICoE0) in Bethesda, where she meets with Service Members and Veterans and help run our Mission Based Trauma Recovery (MBTR) training program.

“Although I’m still settling in, I know this work is going to be absolutely rewarding and phenomenal,” said Kristina. “As a member of a military family and community, I’m excited to combine my passion for animals by providing support for Veterans.”

No stranger to the military, Kristina met and married a U.S. Army Foreign Area Officer, John, who gave her the opportunity to literally see the world. She moved 14 times in 24 years, but she was fortunate to enough earn her teaching certification in high school biology and taught off and on while stationed stateside.

Kristina graduated from Southern Illinois University with a bachelor’s in zoology. Her first job after graduation was as a zookeeper at the Houston Zoo. There, she led public animal shows with the birds of prey and educational demonstrations with Texas wildlife, exotic small mammals, nonvenomous reptiles and psittacine birds, and the general husbandry for the animals under her care.

She and her husband have two children, Isabella, 17, and Joshua, 14, and two Boasian street dogs that were rescued while their family was living in Sarajevo during one of John’s deployments.

Stacey Rogers
A Maryland native, Stacey joins WCC as a service dog training instructor from the Baltimore area. She started raising puppies for another organization (she is now raising her 10th puppy) and that’s what led to her interest in a career training dogs. Her experience as a puppy raiser gives her a unique perspective in her work with WCC and its amazing puppy parent volunteers.

“I completely understand what puppy parents go through when they pass the leash for advanced dog training,” said Stacey. “I was always the person bawling my eyes out before, and now I see it from the perspective of being the person taking the leash from the person crying on the other end. It’s helped me in my job to give advice and really relate to what they’re going through.”

Outside of puppy raising, Stacey worked at a dog daycare training facility in Columbia, Md., where she learned about dog behavior, body language and different play styles. Several years later, she began shadowing trainers and began leading group classes and doing 1:1 puppy training — experience that plays an instrumental role in her work teaching WCC’s “Boots” classes for puppies six months and under.

When not working, Stacey enjoys hiking with a combination of her four dogs, three of which are pets, and the puppy in training, which she is caring for until February 2023. She also enjoys participating in nose work with her Golden Retriever, Vito.

New Faces at WCC

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Warrior Canine Connection’s pack has grown! We are excited to introduce you to two new members of our team.

Michele Tate
Michele joined WCC in mid-November 2021 as a service dog training instructor at WCC’s program in Asheville, North Carolina. She has vast experience working with a wide variety of breeds and temperaments, as well as service and rescue organizations. In her role, she will oversee the puppy program and work closely with WCC’s highly valued puppy parents.

Michele graduated from the University of North Dakota with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. She then received her training at Starmark Dog Training Academy, where she specialized in task training and behavior modification.

Prior to coming to WCC, Michele spent four years working with service dogs and Veterans, so this is not new territory to her. She says the military population is one she’s always been interested in supporting, as she has a partner who is a Veteran and family members who are Veterans and active-duty Service Members.

“It’s been amazing to see how quickly WCC’s purpose-bred dogs pick up on skills, how calm and easy going they are,” said Michele. “Of course, they have well-rounded lives with puppy parents, exposure to people, sounds, and other stimuli from the time they’re only a few weeks old and then formalized training … but it’s been magical to watch that come together.”

Michele has two dogs, Brin and Red, and when not at WCC, she enjoys swimming, riding her bike, cooking, and reading.

 

Suzanne Brown
In late November, we also welcomed Suzanne Brown as a service dog training instructor who will work in a part-time capacity at our Healing Quarters in Boyds, Maryland. Suzanne graduated from the Coast Guard Academy with a bachelor’s in Naval Architecture & Marine Engineering, and she earned advanced engineering degrees at the University of Michigan. She served over 25 years active duty in the U.S. Coast Guard before retiring as a Captain in 2020.

Suzanne has volunteered at WCC for the past few years and served in almost every volunteer role from whelping/puppy watcher to puppy parent and she helped coordinate WCC’s Inaugural Ruff Mutter event.

She has extensive experience with the MBTR program, where she discovered her passion for training service dogs, both as a participant and running WCC’s Extended Veteran Program for fellow Veterans who complete the MBTR program and want to continue training service dogs for fellow Veterans.

“I came to know WCC at a really rough time in my life and they really helped me through that,” says Suzanne. “I have seen firsthand the impact that working with the dogs has as well as the difference a service dog can make on a Veteran’s life. WCC’s programs, both the placement of service dogs and utilizing military members and Veterans to help train the service dogs in training, have not only helped me but so many military members and Veterans in their recovery process. Those invisible wounds are real and it’s hard to explain but the dogs have such a tremendously positive impact. I came in at the right time, and now I want to actively help others through WCC’s mission.”

Outside of work, Suzanne enjoys spending time with Baxter, her 14-year-old pet Golden Retriever. Suzanne also used to compete in triathlons and says she is focusing on becoming more active. Suzanne is also a volunteer coach for adaptive/para-swimming and triathlons.

New Faces at WCC

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Please join Warrior Canine Connection in welcoming the newest member of its pack—Freddy Galea!

Pictured here with his beautiful family, Freddy joined WCC as its new part-time Digital Communications Specialist in April. In his role, Freddy will use his photo and video journalism expertise to help WCC share its powerful stories of using the human-animal bond to assist Service Members and Veterans with visible and invisible wounds.

Freddy is a member of the U.S. Air Force Reserves at Joint Base Andrews, where he focuses on air transportation and logistics. He also runs his own media company that specializes in video production work and is currently pursuing a degree in graphic communications at the University of Maryland.

He says he came to WCC for an opportunity to marry his professional media skills with a personal passion to help fellow Service Members and Veterans.

“I definitely feel like I am on the right team and on the right side of history here at WCC,” said Freddy. “It’s a great place to be and all the people are so educated, friendly, and doing great things. I get to not only see the impact these dogs have but also the people supporting and training them … it’s just great, I love it here.”

Freddy lives nearby in Frederick, Maryland, with his wife, Eliana, their two adorable children, Emma, 5, and Nolan, 2, and their dog, Toby.

New Faces at WCC

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Please join WCC in welcoming its newest pack member, Sarah DelCore! 

Sarah joined WCC’s team in July as the Veterans and Military Family Service Manager. As a licensed mental health professional, in this role she will interview Veteran applicants to help determine their needs and how a service dog can help improve their daily living, provide support to Veterans throughout the service dog application and training process, and on-going follow-up support to graduates of the program.

Having served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps, Sarah is a Veteran herself and brings her experience and unique perspective to WCC’s team.  

“I was working in cybersecurity — a completely unrelated field while in the Marine Corps but it was during that time that I became interested in social work and helping Veterans,” said Sarah. “It was there through the people I met and their experiences with trauma and PTSD that I knew I wanted to work in a capacity to help Veterans.”

Prior to coming to WCC, Sarah worked at a skilled nursing home facility and previously interned at the Veterans Health Administration. Sarah graduated from the Simmons School of Social Work in Boston, Mass. with her master’s degree in 2018, and she completed her undergraduate degree in psychology at the University of Maryland, University College. 

An avid animal lover since childhood, Sarah says she believes strongly that service animals can play a key role in the rehabilitation of service members and Veterans and is excited to be a part of the WCC community.  

“Everyone is very open and friendly, you can tell that they all want what’s best for the Veterans and the dogs and that they’re really rooting for the best for all of them,” said Sarah. “It’s been such a positive experience to watch the Veterans work with the dogs and how they interact” 

Sarah has a cat named Kit-Kat the Kitty Cat. When not working, she enjoys gardening and being outdoors. 

New Faces at WCC

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Warrior Canine Connection has two new team members who we would like to introduce to you. Please join us in welcoming both Cate Law and MaryAngela Leifeld to our pack! 

Cate Law 
Cate Law joined the WCC team in March in a brand-new role — Canine Care and Enrichment Coordinator. In this newly designed position, Cate will support the service dog training program by providing daily mental and physical exercises to the dogs who are being housed at the training center. This will ensure that the pups are well-rounded and cared for, allowing the training staff to focus their time and energy on each dog’s behavioral training plans. 

“I’m thrilled to be taking this next step and to be working with WCC,” said Cate. “WCC has the most unique mission by not only placing dogs with Veterans but involving them in the mission, and I am so excited to be a part of that.”  
 
Cate comes to WCC as a recent graduate from the University of Maryland, where she received her bachelor’s in Persian Studies. She discovered her passion for service dogs as a volunteer puppy raiser for a guide dog organization while still in college, and she even helped to get a puppy–raising club off the ground at the University. 
 
In the past three years, she has taught numerous classes for puppy raisers and started a financial support program for puppy raisers of service dog training programs that do not cover all costs of the puppy. She is currently raising her third puppy for another organization, Sage, a female Lab/golden cross, who you may see making friends around WCC! Cate says she hopes to raise a WCC puppy in the future. 

When not working, Cate enjoys spending time hiking, exploring Maryland, trying new restaurants and spending time with friends. 

 
MaryAngela Leifeld 
MaryAngela recently joined WCC as a service dog training instructor and will be based out the Boyds, Md. headquarters. She joined the team in early May during the pandemic, so her acclimation has been anything but “normal” since all trainings are taking place 100% virtually. However, MaryAngela says she’s settling in well, learning the ropes and that she’s happy to be part of the team nonetheless. 
 
“It’s a unique time to have started a new position but everyone has been truly welcoming and great in terms of making sure I’ve got what I need, know what I need to do and get settled in,” said MaryAngela. “I’m really excited to be part of such a cool program that has such a focused mission in support of our Veterans.” 
 
MaryAngela has been working with assistance and service dogs for years. She got her start by volunteering to raise and train assistance dogs years ago while in middle school and has been hooked ever since.  

In fact, in college, she majored in radio-television-film but dogs ultimately won her over, and she became a full-time service dog training instructor, specializing in training dogs to provide greater independence for individuals with disabilities. 

Most recently, she worked in the private dog training sector, where she developed a broader knowledge of puppy development and the modification of complex behavioral issues by aiding pet dog owners to achieve their training goals. 
 
When not working, MaryAngela and her wife, who have two dogs and a cat, enjoying hobbies that revolve around their pets such as training and hiking. 
 
Please join us in welcoming both Cate and MaryAngela to our pack!

New Faces at WCC

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 The Warrior Canine Connection team is growing! We are pleased to welcome some new faces to our pack both at our Healing Quarters in Boyds and at the Menlo Park VA in California. We are very excited about the wealth of knowledge, experience and expertise that these new team members bring to our team, please join us in welcoming them on board!

Katherine Kane joined the WCC team in September in a special 11-month role as a volunteer coordinator through AmeriCorps and Volunteer Maryland. In her position, she assists with all things related to volunteer recruitment, including retention and creating and refining systems. 

Katherine got involved in the AmeriCorps program because her passion is tied to serving our Veterans. Her plans post-WCC include attending graduate school so she can achieve her career goal to become a military psychologist. 
 
“I really like the mission and the people — it’s been a great experience so far,” said Katherine. “My goal is to be a military psychologist, so this opportunity is an invaluable step in that process. Not to mention being around these puppies every day – that’s definitely an added bonus.”  
 
Katherine grew up in Greensboro, N.C. and attended Guilford College, where she completed a double-major in psychology and criminal justice. She also competed on the school’s tennis and swimming teams.   
 
When not working, Katherine enjoys reading, yoga and she recently started kickboxing. 

Jody Neal also joined WCC in September as a dog program administrative assistant.  
 
“What I love about working for WCC is that everyone is working for the same end result and mission,” said Jody. “I love that everyone here loves their job and that each day at WCC is different. Having the dogs and puppies around is truly therapeutic and healing. I have always wanted to give back to Veterans because of what they do for our country, and this is such a rewarding way to do that.”  
 
Jody’s role is part-time, and when she’s not at the WCC Healing Quarters, she can often be found working as a crossing guard for the Montgomery County Police Department. 
 
Jody grew up in the Maryland suburbs and completed her education there; she earned her advertising design degree from Montgomery County Community College and her one-year certification in business administration from the Katharine Gibbs School. She put her experience and degrees to good use by serving in various administrative capacities in the private sector prior to joining WCC.  
 
When not working, Jody enjoys caring for her two horses, Beetle and Galley, and her two Jack Russell Terries, Grizzly and Maizie. 

Also joining WCC in September is Service Dog Training Instructor Shelley Smith, who is based out of WCC’s location at the Menlo Park VA. 
 
Shelley has worked in animal welfare her entire professional career; she has vast experience in animal sheltering with dogs and cats, animal intake, behavior, fostering and adoptions and animal-assisted interactions. 
 
She earned her degree in literature from California State University Bakersfield and later continued her education at the San Francisco Academy for Dog Trainers. She says she’s excited to be putting her skills to work with WCC.  

“I love it, it’s fantastic,” it actually combines two of my most passionate topics, which are dog training and the welfare and well-being of Veterans,” said Shelley. “I feel incredibly lucky every day to have the chance to do this — to work with Veterans and to use my skills as a dog trainer to help them is a humbling experience, I love it.” 

A true animal-lover, Shelley has a 13-year-old Lab from the Oakland Shelter named Enzo and three cats (and, yes, she says they all get along): Caterpillar, Pinot and Elroy.

Contact Us

14934 Schaeffer Road
Boyds, MD 20841

(T) 301.260.1111
info@warriorcanineconnection.org

Warrior Canine Connection
is a 501(c)(3)
Nonprofit Organization
# 45-2981579