About

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The Pets for Vets Non-Profit Organization is excited to establish a mutually beneficial recovery program for American Veterans who suffer from PTSD, or other forms of hardship, by encouraging them to build emotional relationships with rescue animals throughout their duration of therapy. By teaming up with the Young-Williams Animal Shelter, we are able to provide each veteran in need with a dog of their choice to accompany them while they receive weekly group therapy and one-on-one sessions. The option to eventually adopt the dog that has aided in the road to recovery is encouraged to maintain the bond that two have made. We are looking forward to bringing this non-traditional therapy approach to any veteran in Knox County who is in need.

 

Our Team       

 

The executive board of Pets for Vets is comprised of the University of Tennessee, Knoxville students from multiple disciplines in hopes of creating a diverse and skilled team. Our CEO is Allana Funderburk, and her role includes managing the overall operations and resources of the organization while also acting as the main point of contact. Allana is a senior majoring in Forestry and she has experience in working with the community to achieve desired outcomes as well as a background in leadership and project planning. Our CFO is John Wade, and he is responsible for managing the financial actions of our organization, tracking our cash flow, and financial planning. John is majoring in finance and has experience in this field after internships and work. Ryan Jernigan is the staff attorney, and his responsibilities include legal research, maintaining insurance coverage, and drafting legal documents for our organization. Ryan is in the 3+3 pre law program. He has experience in crafting policy and possesses a general understanding of the law. Because of this, our organization is able to run smoothly and in accordance with local, state, and federal regulations. Our corporate communication specialist is Jackson Strack and he is responsible for media relations, social media content, and organizing outreach programs. Jackson is majoring in communication and he has experience in building relationships with many different types of people. He has lived internationally before and is good at communicating with all different types of people, even individuals who do not speak the same language.