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Executive Director & Animal Care Director
Lenore Braford (she/her) is the Founder, Executive Director, and Animal Care Director at the Refuge. Her drive to advocate for populations in need started in middle school when she began working with children with disabilities.
Her circle of compassion widened to include farmed animals when she began to question how our society views and treats them during her studies at Oberlin College. Since that time she has worked steadily to advocate for farmed animals while educating the general public about both the truths behind their treatment and their inherent worth as individuals.
Lenore has been vegan since 2007 and enjoys cooking, playing music and being outdoors.
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Animal Caregiver
ruth@piedmontrefuge.org
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Facilities Director
Wes (he/him) was born and raised in Garner, North Carolina and currently resides in Chatham County. He grew up in a family full of nature and animal lovers, and he’s had different farm animals for as long as he can remember.
His love for animals and nature has led him to building, designing, and restoring animal homes and more. He enjoys taking things apart, putting them back together, and finding ways to improve whatever he’s working on. In his free time, he enjoys being with his wife of 33 years, his daughter, and his grandson. He also enjoys riding motorcycles when the weather is beautiful. He’s excited to be part of a growing animal refuge!
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Design Director
Gwen (she/her) is a creative director who believes that attention is a form of care. Her work centers on storytelling and design that help us slow down and notice human and non-human lives more fully.
Gwen’s graduate studies focused on how beliefs and experiences shape what people notice, value, and tend to. She previously worked to resource people navigating illness and uncertainty, which continues to shape how she thinks about care: how it is practiced and who it includes. She is grateful to be part of a place where farmed animals are cared for, and where people gather to learn, spend time, and take part in a community rooted in care.
Gwen is also a yoga instructor. She lives in Durham with her husband, beloved cats (Henri Meowuen, George, Remy, and Boots), and a passionately vocal pup named Mia. She is a beginner but deeply committed birder, loves poetry, hockey (but is a pacifist, she swears!), live music, and considers a good sunset a non-negotiable event.
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Administrative Director
Raised by pescatarian parents near Columbus, Ohio, Henry (he/him) grew up on plant-based cooking for much of his childhood. After seeing the movie Happy Feet as kids, he and his brother decided to cut fish out of their diets, and their whole family followed suit. Soon, they were eating vegan dishes and learning more about the cruelty of the meat and dairy industries.
In those days, it wasn’t common to be vegetarian in the public schools he attended, and Henry kept mostly quiet about his beliefs in order to fit in. As the years went on and he became more vocal about his other political views, he saw the importance of making yourself heard and actively opposing exploitation of all kinds. It soon became clear that he could no longer stay silent about his lifelong belief in animal rights. Now, working with the Refuge allows him to spread the word about veganism and the stories of the amazing animals who have found a home here.
In his free time, he enjoys writing and watching movies with his loved ones (not all of them are as good as Happy Feet).
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Animal Caregiver
After receiving her degree in Marine Biology at Southampton College on Long Island, Annik (she/her) taught marine environmental science to students all over the island. However, her real desire was to work with and care for animals. Annik moved to Florida in 2003 and started volunteering, ultimately obtaining a temporary position for the Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park; caring for rehabilitated native wildlife who could not be released back into their natural habitats. This experience led to her 17 year career at Busch Gardens, Tampa, as an animal caregiver for a variety of animals, mainly multiple African ungulate species.
In 2021, Annik relocated to North Carolina with her husband, Matt, son, Brodie, daughter, Astrid, dog, Jack Jack, tortoise, Click Click, and bearded dragon, Didgeridoo. She has since welcomed two more members to the family, dog, Daisy and guinea pig, Frosty. Annik really missed a life that had included caring for animals and started volunteering at the Piedmont Farm Animal Refuge in April 2022. She has really enjoyed sharing her passion and experience in caring for the residents of the refuge.
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Education Director
Kate (she/her) became passionate about humane education and animal welfare while conducting her graduate research on music and farmed animals at Upland’s PEAK Sanctuary in Indiana, where she fell in love with the animal residents and with sanctuaries as places of hope and community. Kate is enthusiastic about helping people and animals connect as individuals, countering dominant narratives about animal agriculture, and engaging art that enhances our senses of wonder, care, and responsibility. Some of her favorite authors on human-animal relationships are Vinciane Despret, Aph Ko, Syl Ko, pattrice jones, Carol J. Adams, Laura Wright, and Elan Abrell. After many years in higher education, Kate is excited to join the Refuge team to welcome and learn with individuals of all ages at any stage in their commitment to a more compassionate world for humans and nonhumans alike.
Kate is also a professional pianist, and in her spare time she enjoys watching movies and comedy with her husband, painting watercolor miniatures of animals, snuggling with Rita (pittie mix), Artie (tuxedo cat), and Al (orange tabby), and going for walks with her young daughter.