Feral Cat Project Leadership
AMY FERGUSON | Executive Director
Amy Ferguson (she/her) grew up in Eastern Washington and moved to the Seattle area in 1999. Before her career in animal welfare, she worked for a health insurance company in a variety of roles but felt something was missing. In 2009, she found her calling when she joined the board of directors for the ARF of Everett. Prior to coming to Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project, Amy was the executive director of ARF of Everett as well as Pawsitive Alliance. She graduated during that time with a BS in Social Sciences and minors in Nonprofit Management and Business Administration. Amy serves on the board of the Washington Federation of Animal Care and Control Agencies.
Amy, her husband, Jonathan, and two cats live in downtown Everett and occasionally share their home with foster kittens. In her free time, Amy enjoys swimming, hobby painting, exploring the PNW, and spending time with friends and family.
EUDORA HAWKES-ROACH | Clinic Manager
Eudora began her career in animal welfare at Farm Sanctuary, a non-profit organization providing shelter to neglected and abused farm animals in New York. As an Animal Caregiver she became familiar with working alongside both large and small farm animals.
When she returned to Washington, she started calling Seattle home. For several years she worked in a feline specialty veterinary practice on Capitol Hill. Eventually, she wanted to return to non-profit work, and after volunteering with FCSNP for four years, was hired as an employee at the end of 2016.
When not working, Eudora can be found hunting for treasures at thrift stores around the PNW, or at home with her cat Rizzo.
RITA LAFUZE | Clinic Services Coordinator
For many years, Rita LaFuze has rescued homeless cats, many with kittens that eventually were homed. Rita began her career in the veterinary medical world in the 1990’s at a private feline practice in Edmonds. Her keen perception of cat behavior and her deep compassion for all living things led her to become highly trained as a veterinary assistant.
Rita not only has experience with robust pet cats, but also worked many hours caring for intensively ill cats from all types of disease: cancer, renal failure, poisoning, infections. Her knowledge base is broad, yet her compassion never wanes. Each cat’s life is valuable and deserves the best care in her hands. FCSNP was lucky to add Rita to our team in 2006.
JOAN HOVIS | Clinic Technician
Joan’s passion for helping animals began at a young age. Having grown up in Alaska with a plethora of pets, she always knew her purpose was to work with animals. After moving to the Seattle area, she has worked tirelessly to make sure that the animals around her live long, happy, and healthy lives.
Her love of animals and her driving need to help them and the people who care for them are why she got involved in animal welfare. “I have always had such a strong connection with cats. Because of this, I wanted to improve the emotional experiences of animals and became fear-free certified. I have dedicated my life to making a difference for them.”
Prior to working at Feral Cat Spay & Neuter Project, Joan worked as the cat lead at Pasado’s Safe Haven, an animal welfare organization. Now, she is excited to bring her experience, passion, and empathy to FCSNP. With immense excitement for cat welfare, Joan is ready to continue bettering the lives of cats and helping the community understand the importance of spay and neuter.
When Joan is not working at the clinic, she runs a small, local pet sitting business that keeps her very busy. She has an open-door policy, and has always shared her home with a kitty or two!
KELSEY WEAVER | Licensed Veterinary Technician
A lifetime Washington resident, Kelsey grew up with deep love and passion for all animals big and small. She met her husband twelve years ago and moved across the water to start a new life. About eight years later she decided to go back to school to start the career she had always dreamed of. She went to Pima Medical and graduated with an Associate degree in applied science in July 2018 and passed her national exam just weeks later. After passing her exam and becoming a Licensed Veterinary Technician, she started her career working in the emergency department of Diamond Veterinary in August of 2018 and moving on to a new emergency department at SVS in Kirkland in 2021. She does relief work at many general practice clinics in the area to keep her skills sharp and help a wide variety of animals. Her passion for helping others has led her to working for high volume spay neuter clinics, such as Pasado’s Safe Haven and Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project. After working relief for Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project it became clear that she was meant to be a permanent part of the team and she made the leap to become part of the team for good.
She has a passion for rescue, rehabilitation for animals, and emergency medicine. During her time in school she led a group of students called SCNAVTA (Student Chapter National Association of Veterinary Technicians of America) in helping their community by cleaning up dog parks, volunteering at various animal rescues, and fundraising for local rescues. She also loves spending time with her husband, her pittie babies Jordyn and Johnny, two rescue cats Kenzie and Vinny, and one wild crow who thinks he is a part of the family too. In her free time, you can find her out on the lake enjoying the sun or catching a wave behind a boat. Her passion and love for animals shines in everything she does. She has dreams of becoming rehabilitation certified so she can be a great foster to the many animals out there who need the extra TLC she has to offer.
MARIEL SMALL | Renton Clinic Manager
Mariel Small (she/her) originally worked for Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project as a relief technician for more than six years, filling in at mentorship MASH clinics a few times a year in Lynnwood. In 2020, she was given the opportunity to help develop and grow the Renton clinic, leading to the position of managing that location's weekly (occasionally twice weekly) clinics. Being a part of widening FCSNP reach to be able to help our community with increased access to spay and neuter has been an amazing experience.
She loves traveling and enjoys combining her skill set through work with new animals and places, including helping with spay/neuter clinics in Ecuador, Jamaica, and Mexico, and helping spay/neuter a handful of exotic animals—a coatimundi, an African Sand Cat (as seen in the picture!), a kinkajou, and a cougar. In the Philippines, she found two tiny calico kittens hiding and crying outside her hotel in Manila and was able to find a local to adopt them. Whenever she travels, she does her best to meet up with the local spay/neuter clinic to volunteer and meet like-minded individuals all over the world.
Mariel lives in Seatac with her partner, her partner’s daughter, three rescue dogs, and two rambunctious young cats. They regularly have fosters as they wait to find their homes, with an extra soft spot for undersocialized kittens. As all good Pacific Northwesterners do, she loves camping, hiking, breweries, and sunshine. She feels lucky to call FCSNP her place of employment and cannot imagine doing anything else as a career.
SAGAN LAIN | Renton Clinic Services and Operations Coordinator
Sagan (they/she) grew up in Austin, TX and began working in animal welfare in 2012 as a surgical technician at a high-volume, high-quality spay/neuter (HVHQSN) clinic. The powerful impact of providing compassionate care to people and animals in need forever changed them! They moved to Seattle in 2018 and have been involved with FCSNP and the Western Washington animal welfare community ever since. Over their decade-long veterinary career, they have worked at numerous non-profit animal welfare organizations, held many roles, and developed special passions for increasing community access to services and improving the lives of feral cats. Sagan is delighted to work at the South County Spay & Neuter Clinic in Renton and support cats and their people in the South Sound. They also serve as Secretary on the Board of the Community Cat Coalition, which is a partner of FCSNP.
When not working with animals, Sagan is training as a full spectrum doula, cooking and eating vegan food, and enjoying the PNW's natural beauty with loved ones (furry and otherwise!).
WHITNEY WEAVER | Renton Clinic Administrative Assistant
Whitney Weaver was born and raised in Federal Way, WA. After high school, she moved to Nashville for college, then returned home and worked as a vet assistant for 3.5 years at Seattle Humane. Her goal had always been to go to vet school, and she left Seattle Humane to attend Colorado State University, pursuing her Masters in Toxicology and DVM. Due to health issues, she had to take time away from vet school, but did earn her MS in Toxicology.
Whitney got back in the animal welfare game by joining Feral Cat Project's Renton staff on a relief basis and is now working there full-time. She can be found supporting all areas of the clinic, but is most often fielding client communications, assisting with intake and discharge on busy clinic days, and helping ensure that all patient charts are written up appropriately. She has helped countless people and their animals in need, and is often the first to offer to drive a pet to and from their appointment if transportation is a barrier for a client.
Working in shelter medicine and high-volume spay/neuter leads to opportunities to fill a house with animals (both permanent and foster) and currently Whitney has 3 dogs and 5 cats, including her 3-legged heart dog, Lance, who she adopted shortly after starting at Seattle Humane and who has moved to Colorado and back with her. Outside of spay/neuter, Whitney enjoys time spent with her mom, movie and game nights with friends, and trying new gluten- and dairy-free foods. She’s also on the board of—and spends at least one week every summer at—an overnight camp that she has attended every summer since she was 8 years old.
ELLEN NICHOLSON | Development Manager
Ellen joined the staff of FCSNP in July 2022 as our Development Manager. She first came to FCSNP in 1999, volunteering at monthly clinics held at PIMA Institute. As a graduate student working on the final project needed to obtain her Master’s degree in Not-for-Profit Leadership from Seattle University in 2001, Ellen worked extensively with FCSNP’s board to author a comprehensive three-year strategic and business plan designed to move the organization forward to its next level of service and significantly increase the number of cats served.
Ellen has also volunteered in various roles at Seattle Humane, served on the board of directors for PAWS animal shelter and wildlife rehabilitation center in Lynnwood, taken volunteer vacations to Best Friends Animal Society in Utah, and traveled to New Orleans and Mississippi after Hurricane Katrina to care for displaced cats at emergency shelters. After a long career at The Boeing Company in employee training, global corporate citizenship, and business operations, Ellen began her much-anticipated second career in non-profit animal welfare in 2018 at PAWS, where she was the Executive Assistant to the CEO until coming to FCSNP.
In addition to a Master’s degree in Not-for-Profit Leadership, Ellen also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and is a certified Project Manager through the Project Management Institute. Ellen loves fundraising for kitties and says her greatest joy is the win-win of providing opportunities for fellow cat aficionados to feel a sense of purpose and fulfillment by supporting FCSNP’s mission to save cats through spay/neuter.
Ellen shares her home with her rescued feline daughters, Jacquetta and Catalina, who enjoy their senior years sunbathing in the kitchen window, napping, and being ever at the ready to accept any treats Mom may offer.
MILA WEBB | Communications and Engagement Coordinator
Mila joined FCSNP in 2009 as a clinic volunteer, and came on board as a staff member in 2022. Originally from El Paso, Texas, she adopted her first kitten as a grad student, quickly became a cat room volunteer with the SPCA of Texas/Dallas, and has stayed involved with feline care ever since. Mila moved to the Puget Sound area in 1998, where she has worked and volunteered with several non-profit and animal organizations, as well as running her own pet-sitting business and serving as a board member for Humane Society of Jefferson County WA. She loves that her position with FCSNP allows her to combine her journalism and social work degrees with her lifelong interest in animal welfare.
Mila lives in Edmonds with her husband and rescue cats, all of whom have found their way to her through groups that collaborate with FCSNP. She enjoys dance fitness, reading, and being part of the audience for live music events, the ballet, and Broadway musicals.
REMY TEAL | Volunteer Coordinator
Board of Directors
DR. SANDY WILLIS | President
Dr. Sandy Willis completed her veterinary degree at the University of California, Davis. She received additional training in small animal internal medicine at the University of Minnesota as an intern and at the University of Saskatchewan as a resident. She consults with veterinarians across the Pacific Northwest on all aspects of medicine in dogs and cats as a board certified small animal internist with Phoenix Central Lab in Mukilteo. Phoenix Central Lab is one of the few privately owned veterinary labs in the United States. Dr. Willis also gives seminars and wetlabs on diagnostic testing to veterinary staff and speaks at major veterinary meetings on how to communicate diagnostic testing and complicated medical problems to pet owners. She is passionate about supporting the bond that people have with their pets through a partnership with the family veterinarian and specialist when needed.
Dr. Willis is past president of the Washington State Veterinary Medical Association, current chair of their annual conference and serves as the Washington State representative to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). She recently joined the board of the Puget Sound Veterinary Medical Association to help sustain an association that works to bring veterinarians together for education and camaraderie and to provide a resource to the public.
Dr. Willis joined the Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project as Board President in 2009 at the invitation of founder Dr. Christine Wilford. The two have remained friends and colleagues over the years. Dr. Willis has been honored and delighted to serve an organization that focuses on the cats and the people who care for them. She is proud of the work both board and staff members—old and new—have accomplished and all of the dedicated work volunteers have contributed to grow the organization.
For Dr. Willis, leadership means empowering other people to rise to their potential and getting out of their way to let them shine. Dr. Willis has been owned by cats all of her life. Currently, she serves as staff for Lilly the Himalayan, Giselle the Oriental Longhair and Micki and Fii, recently adopted young kitties by way of MEOW Cat Rescue. They were both free roaming and altered by the FCNSP. Dr. Willis’ hobbies include swimming and cycling, the arts, wine appreciation and reading, the latter two hobbies preferably enjoyed with one of her aforementioned cats.
KATHERINE KUMMEROW | Secretary
Katherine has been a senior HR director for over 30 years with experience in several industries including healthcare and insurance. Her background includes significant experience in employee relations, worker’s compensation, strategic planning, recruitment and selection as well as wage and hour matters. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Home Economics from Oregon State University.
She and her husband Tom have two feral rescues named Figaro and Steely Dan as well as a Bernese Mountain dog named Smokey Bear. They have been supporters of the Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project for over 5 years, being enticed in to assisting with socializing kittens by her then colleague Vicki Faretta.
SALLY THOMPSON-IRITANI | Treasurer
Sally Thompson-Iritani, DVM/PhD, received her veterinary degree from Iowa State University and her PhD from the University of Washington. She has experience in both industry and academia and currently is the Assistant Vice Provost for Animal Care, Outreach and the 3Rs at the University of Washington (UW) and Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences in the School of Public Health. As the executive sponsor for the UW Dare to Care (D2C) program she advocates for Compassion Resiliency resources for personnel and is a member of the AVMA SCHAI Working Group on the Psychological Impact of Humane Endings.
Dr. Thompson-Iritani currently serves as the treasurer for the WSVMA and is the Vice President of the 3Rs Collaborative (3RsC). Her passion for felines extends back to her childhood and she is delighted to be able to support the important work of the Feral Cat Spay/Neuter Project.
KRYSTAL MILLER | Board Member At Large