meet our team

justin taft

Board President

Justin is the Executive Director at the Brain Injury Alliance of Washington, where his primary focus is on strategic oversight and the implementation of initiatives that reinforce the organization’s mission. His team collaborates to enhance support systems for individuals with brain injuries, leveraging his expertise in strategic planning, financial management, and human resources.

Justin is committed to fostering a culture of continuous improvement and innovation. The strategies he has developed through effective social networking and communication have been crucial in ensuring the organization’s adaptability and sustainability in the ever-evolving landscape of nonprofit healthcare services.

In addition to his role at the Brain Injury Alliance of Washington, he serves as an adjunct professor at Bellevue College, teaching courses in health equity, epidemiology and practicum preparation. His passion for health equity and social justice drives his commitment to shaping the next generation of health leaders. He strives to inspire and equip his students with the knowledge and skills necessary to tackle today’s health challenges effectively.

Justin has lived in the Central District neighborhood of Seattle for 21 years with his husband, Padraic. They adopted their first dog, Cody, in 2008 and their second dog, Sugar, in 2017, both of whom are rescues from Texas. Justin also has two sons who live in Bristol, RI.

JJ Lee

Vice President | Marketing Committee

JJ Lee is a corporate affairs specialist with more than a decade of experience leading PR offices in the U.S. and overseas. She has worked with clients in the tech, philanthropies, and healthcare sectors in communicating their mission and bringing communities together through partnerships.

She is excited to join the Board as a member of the Marketing Committee. JJ has a passion for animal rehabilitation and training. She spends all of her free time gardening, crocheting (mostly likenesses of her dogos!) and discovering new places to eat.

meghan madden

board member | grants committee

Meghan Madden is a nonprofit fundraising and operations professional, mostly in the environment and wildlife conservation sectors. She leads the committee that oversees grants to for Seattle Animal Foundation and is a critter foster for Seattle Animal Shelter. Meghan a dog, 2 rabbits adopted from SAS, and a rotating roster of foster guinea pigs, rabbits, and the occasional rat. Outside of trying to save all the wild and domesticated animals, Meghan loves reading, hiking, traveling, horror movies, and snuggling with her furbabies.

jim cox

Director | Development Committee

Jim worked in finance for over 25 years with the last 17 at JP Morgan. Most recently he spent twelve years in their London office covering some of the bank’s largest hedge fund clients. Growing up in the Seattle area, Jim graduated from the University of Washington before moving to the Bay Area.

Jim met his wife in San Francisco where they began fostering kittens for the SFSPCA, Laura was a longtime volunteer at the Mayhew Animal Home in North London where they also adopted two rescue kittens before bringing them back to Seattle. Jim has been a volunteer dog walker at the Seattle Animal Shelter (SAS) since he returned to Seattle in 2023. He also conducted check in calls following SAS canine adoptions. Beyond rescue animals, his passions include purpose-driven companies, soccer, travel, cooking, bouldering and Liverpool Football Club.

“I ultimately left banking to make a change in my life and work on something more purposeful. The Foundation is the perfect intersection between helping animals and building relationships in the community and I couldn’t be happier to be part of the team.” If you have an idea for an event or want to speak further about how the Foundation can be of assistance, Jim would love to speak with you. Please reach out to him at [email protected].

avery fukeda

board member | development committee

Avery Fukeda is a seasoned fundraising professional with over a decade of experience in fundraising and events across a diverse range of organizations. His career has spanned sectors including affordable housing, children’s museums, historic performing arts venues, higher education, and social services. He has also had a love for animals and remembers his first interaction was with his grandparent’s corgi in Hawaii.

An active community member, Avery is dedicated to making a positive impact through his volunteer work and philanthropic efforts. He is involved with several organizations here in Seattle and was heavily involved in Hawaii holding various leadership positions. Avery’s commitment to service and community engagement continues to drive his work and passion for helping others.

julia lefler

Board Member | Marketing Committee Chair

Julia Leffler is a marketing professional with over a decade of experience in the entertainment industry. She has spent the last three years in Seattle and is honored to be able to help the animals of this city. She holds a BA from New York University and recently completed her MBA at University of Washington’s Foster School of Business. In her free time, she enjoys playing board games with friends and spending time in the park with her boys – her husband, son, and rescue pup.

mindy fitzgerald

Board Secretary | Community Events Committee

Mindy is a marketing and communications professional and has worked with numerous clients in public, private and non-profit sectors. From road safety and food waste to educating Washingtonians about the new REAL ID law – Mindy has spent the past 12 years working on public awareness campaigns.

She’s been volunteering with the Seattle Animal Shelter on and off for several years and was on the auction committee in 2022. She was impressed by the generosity of Seattle’s animal-loving community with record funds raised! She is excited to be an official member of the SASF Board this year – serving as auction co-chair.

Mindy and her family adopted their dog Charlie Spot Fitzgerald from the SAS in 2017. He is the sweetest most lovable 100+ pound lap dog they could have ever imagined. His daycare describes him as the big black dog that goes boof, boof.

Mindy is passionate about animals and fundraising for their welfare. She loves spending time in her garden planting, weeding and just enjoying the dirt. Her husband is a transplant from Boston, so she’s learned to love the Boston Celtics (go C’s) and really enjoys a good lobster roll. She’s still working on her golf game.

Mindy is a true PNW’er having grown up in Edmonds and graduated from the University of Washington with a BA in communications. Go Dawgs! She’s previously been a volunteer and board member at NAMI Seattle and enjoys volunteering with Ballard Food Bank.

Pamela Wuest

community events chair

Pamela has been in the meetings and hospitality industry for over 20 years having worked in corporate events, fundraising and non-profit event management, as well as third-party meeting planning.

Pamela enjoys watching and playing sports and is a former running coach. Having moved to Seattle from Toledo, Ohio, she still loves the Detroit Lions and the Ohio State Buckeyes, but still roots for all Seattle sports teams (when they aren’t playing the Lions or Buckeyes).

Pamela is passionate about all dogs and pets, especially her dog, Lou, a German Shorthaired Pointer, who also goes by Lou-Lou, Louis Edward, Bubbers, or Bubs. Lou & Pamela live in Maple Leaf with their partner in crime, Mike, who keeps them both well fed.

audrey jennings

Board Member | Governance Committee

Audrey is a recruiting professional with over a decade of experience. She has recruited in tech, healthcare, manufacturing, aerospace and is very excited to be helping the SAF!

She moved to Seattle 15 years ago from Chicago immediately becoming a dog walker and sitter for rescues and fosters. She was most recently working with Chewy where she developed a love for pet puns and had the opportunity to volunteer with the Seattle Animal Shelter.

In her free time, she is an avid cyclist, loves cooking and is hoping to travel more. She lives in the Green Lake area where you will often find her asking if she can pet all the dogs.

devon ukrainec

Board Member | Governance Committee

Devon is stepping into governance and board administration with her role as our Governance Chair, having previously worked at Meta and in the US government as an analyst. She is a Seattle native and lives here with her husband and two dogs – Ruth Border Ginsburg (Ruthie) and Sandra Day O’Collie (Sandy) – both border collie derivatives.

She is a lifelong animal lover; her and her husband previously had an anatolian shepherd, and family dogs including another border collie and several mutts. If her husband wasn’t allergic they would probably have a zoo of domestic pets. She previously volunteered for several years with the Animal Welfare League of Arlington (Virginia) and Seattle Humane when it was still the Humane Society for Seattle/King County.