Sam is a fitness instructor and certified personal trainer, and she owns and operates a cleaning business. Since joining the YWS board in 2014, she has worked on fundraising and assisted with building remodeling, habitat construction, and cleaning. In addition to presiding over YWS board activities, she is very active in promoting the Sanctuary on social media. Before joining the board, she was an active and passionate YWS volunteer.

Victoria retired after working for 37 years at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, MD. She moved to Red Lodge in the summer of 2017 and joined the YWS board in 2020. She has extensive technology experience with research equipment, network design and management, and database systems. She worked as a teaching assistant before receiving her PhD in chemistry with a concentration in biochemistry. Her areas of interest on the YWS board include volunteering, education, and community outreach to support fundraising efforts.

Sue is originally from Chicago and has fulfilled a lifelong dream of living near the mountains and wildlife that she has always loved. She manages a lawn care company in Red Lodge and co-owns a contracting company with her husband, bringing to the YWS board a varied background in management and accounting. Educating people about responsible land ownership and learning to appreciate and coexist peacefully within our local ecosystem is very important to her. She joined the YWS board in 2022.

Sue and her husband lived and worked as writers for client organizations in Washington DC from 1976 to 1998, when they moved to Red Lodge, retiring in 2011. Her experience includes serving as president of the Washington (DC) Humane Society, writer on projects for wildlife advocate groups and government wildlife agencies, and founding board member of Beartooth Humane Alliance. She joined the YWS board in 2021.

Alyson was raised in Billings and visited our campus often in her youth. A National Board Certified middle school teacher, she taught middle- and high-school science for more than 20 years, and she was Montana’s Teacher of the Year in 2004. In 2007, Alyson left the classroom to work with nonprofits, designing and implementing online learning. She then served as senior manager of sustainability education at Salesforce, which provides technology to nonprofits, where she led climate change education. She has also been an independent consultant for several years. Alyson joined the YWS board in 2022.

Dave’s professional life covers nearly 45 years in wildlife rehabilitation, including 5 years in animal control, 4 years in humane society work, and the last 30 years as field responder for the Humane Society of the U.S., conducting disaster response and wildlife conflict management missions. Today, his field work focuses on management of feral animals, contraception programs for deer, hobby turtle/reptile rescue, and other efforts. Dave serves on several Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks committees, and he is board chair of the Billings-based Science and Conservation Center. As a facilities inspector for HSUS and the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, he has visited hundreds of shelters, zoos, and sanctuaries around the globe. Recently, he became a certified Montana Master Naturalist.

Susan has an elementary education degree from the University of Kansas, and she also studied library science and the Cecchetti method of ballet. Following her interest in teaching dance, she founded the Academy of Dance in Dickinson, ND, and taught all levels of ballet, tap, and jazz. Susan joined the YWS board in 2022. She volunteered at YWS from 2001-2017, working in our gardens with her friend Clare Witcomb, long-time and well-known supporter of our campus.

As someone who was born and raised in Montana, Aimee has always had a healthy appreciation for the mountains and a love for wildlife.  She spent the bulk of her teaching career in rural Alaska as a teacher, counselor, and administrator.  Although Aimee is new to the board, she is looking forward to supporting the mission of the YWS and participating in fundraising efforts.