Meet OUR HUMAN PACK

Jennifer received her B.A. in Psychology in 1989 from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a concentration in Animal Behavior. After working for many years in the communications industry, she decided to follow her passion to work with dogs. In 2013, she become a dog trainer and formed Wolf PAWS Inc. Jennifer lives with her husband Jeff, their 2 dogs Red and Xena and their cat Felix.

Helen moved to Dandridge from Chicago in 2017 and immediately contacted Wolf PAWS to volunteer. After volunteering for 2 years, Helen was invited to serve on the Board of Directors and subsequently elected as the Treasurer. Helen works in Knoxville as a customer service manager in the manufacture can industry and currently in the distribution industry.

“ I absolutely love all things animals. One of my favorite rescues (besides Wolf PAWS) is Best Friends in Utah, their mission statement is 'To Save Them All'. ​Anything I can do to give back to these animals is the most rewarding thing in my life”

Michael helps Helen (His wife) every Sunday, lovingly preparing food bowls for the wolf-dogs and serving them up with a smile!

Even at a young age, Aria had an affinity for all animals. Growing up in Arizona, she volunteered at local shelters throughout high school whenever she could. Both personally and professionally she has had the pleasure of working with numerous species ranging from dogs and domestic household pets to reptiles and exotics as well as farm livestock. Canines truly are a huge passion for her which ultimately lead her towards becoming a Petco certified dog trainer. In spring of 2022, she and her partner, Thomas, started volunteering at Wolf PAWS, and they have both been an integral part of daily sanctuary operations ever since. 

Thomas grew up on a small farm where he gained experience in taking care of many different kinds of animals. In his free time, he really enjoys being outdoors, everything from camping, photography, fishing and cave exploring, ultimately seeing what the world has to offer. He is super thrilled to be a part of Wolf PAWS, and feels incredibly lucky to get to help care for such incredible animals. Thomas maintains the property to keep it in top condition, and he feeds and takes care of the wolf-dogs on a daily basis. Thomas enjoys creating and dishing out Yappy-Hour treats to our lucky pack every day!

Kierstin Edwards (pictured left) is a graduate of Carson Newman. She has always had a love for wildlife and anything nature related which is why she majored in biology. Kierstin discovered Wolf Paws at the beginning of this year and fell in love with the animals here while she was on a tour.  As she was exposed to each of the wolf-dogs and their histories, she became fascinated by their different behaviors and personalities especially when finding out their pasts. She is excited to help share with the public the differences in wolf-dogs and dogs, but also how these animals are worth so much more than the life people have previously given them. "I hope I do them justice and that in the future, I make some small impact on the community and the lives of the pack."

Diana and her husband Werner have been wolf-dog sponsors for many years. In 2023, Diana decided cut back on her work life and have more time to donate to local groups. She applied to become a volunteer at Wolf PAWS.  Her first assignment was to help us at our booth at June Jubilee in downtown Dandridge. She instantly took to it and began talking with everyone who walked by, letting them know about our organization and our mission. Since then, she has become an integral part of our sanctuary. She helps with the feedings and also helps us out with office work.

Jessican has been volunteering at Wolf PAWS since October, 2023. Jessica spent 21 years and 3 months in the Navy as an Information Systems Technician and later became a counselor. After retiring from the Navy, she got a van and traveled full-time as a nomad for 3 ½ years, living the “vanlife” and also working on her masters in Industrial Organizational Psychology while freelancing as a content creator. She currently works part-time as a Registered Behavior Technician that delivers behavior therapy plans to autistic children or children with challenging behaviors. She loves to be outdoors, whether it involves hiking, climbing, mountaineering, snowshoeing, kayaking, paddleboarding, biking, nature photography, backpacking or camping. Of course, one of her favorite things to do is volunteer at Wolf PAWS to help with animal care!

Ashley (back row) has always been around animals. She and her partner have 2 dogs, Bandit and Leoch. Just like our wolf-dogs, Leoch has had to work past different trauma issues. Ashley took it upon herself to understand her dog's behavior and worked to help him become confident. When Ashley and one of her friends began talking about dog behaviors, her friend mentioned Wolf PAWS. When Ashley booked her tour, she was expecting to learn about wolf-dogs and interact with them. She didn't expect to come out of the tour applying as a volunteer! Once she saw the work the volunteers and staff put in, she knew she wanted to be part of Wolf PAWS. Ashley wanted to see the wolf-dogs thrive, and she wanted to be part of the reason they did so. We are so glad she joined our human pack!