Gina Gambino has served multiple communities as both a Municipal and Regional Animal Control Officer over the past 17 years. She currently holds the position as Head Animal Control Officer for the Monroe, CT Police Department’s Animal Control Unit in Monroe and has been an Assistant Park Ranger in Trumbull, CT for over 10 years. She is the 2019 recipient of the Jon Nowinski Community Champion Award and was the 2016 Wildlife in Crisis Animal Control Officer of the Year. She attributes her perseverance in her career to maintaining a sense of humor during tough times, always remembering where she came from and keeping the standards for her work and service high.

Chief Animal Control Officer Jennifer Merenda has been serving the city of Bridgeport, CT since March 2016. She started volunteering at an animal shelter in middle school, and has always pursued an interest in animal welfare. 
ACO Merenda studied at Becker College and received an Associate’s Degree Animal Care and Behavior and a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice. In her role at Bridgeport Animal Control, ACO Merenda aims to balance effective, humane law enforcement with progressive, community centered animal control and care policies.

Nan and I and other notable presenters are speaking in September at the Portal to Ascension Glastonbury UK Conference. Tickets:  https://ascensionglastonbury.com/ref/2/

A columnist for The Washington Post's local team, Petula Dvorak writes about homeless shelters, gun control, high heels, high school choirs, the politics of parenting, jails, abortion clinics, mayors, modern families, strip clubs, gas prices and DC statehood. Dvorak has been with The Post for more than 15 years.

Before joining The Post, Petula covered social issues, crime and courts in New Orleans, New Jersey and Los Angeles. She earned her BA in Journalism and International Relations at the University of Southern California.

HILARY LOFTUS - Healthcare Education Director of “Help our Wounded Foundation”, (HOW), & their Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy & Concussions.

Daughter of the first cardiovascular surgeon in Stamford, CT, Hilary grew up in a medical family. Before moving to south Florida, Hilary worked for a physical therapy service in Connecticut, coordinating their Parkinson’s Dance and Fall Prevention programs. Every day, she is excited about the opportunity to spread the word about hyperbaric oxygen therapy and how it helps people with neurological issues.

I am also a "Sports Mom" as my son played baseball and soccer throughout middle school and high school and I love both sports and dance, have a minor in Dance from State University of New York.  I also have raced sailboats competitively since age 12 and am currently learning to play golf and loving it!

Dr. Gary Sprouse, also known as The Less Stress Doc had been a primary care physician on the Eastern Shore of Maryland for over thirty years. He retired in 2024o. He is a member of the American Medical Association, president of Queen Anne's Medical Society, and MENSA. He is extremely passionate about bringing happiness into the lives of those he serves through humor, compassion, and understanding. He was a down to earth physician who was honored that patients would seek his advice. His goal as a physician was to help each patient feel better by the end of each encounter. He took his job seriously, but he also found room for having fun by wearing elaborate Halloween and karaoke costumes, such as Elton John or Pitbull. He has spent over three decades researching better ways to heal the mind and body, which has led him to writing this book. His book is titled “Highway to Your Happy Place: A Roadmap to Less Stress”. He hopes he can help you find a more peaceful state of mind with his new insights and tools!