Important People
The Spay It Forward Conference
Key Note Speaker
Esther Mechler has been involved with the animal rights/animal welfare movement since the
1970s. An instrumental figure in several organizations, she was a founding member of both
the Fairfield County, Connecticut branch of Friends of the Animals, and the national Animal
Rights Network. Mechler worked to create and distribute animal protection related audio-visual
materials and has also been particularly active in the area of preventing pet overpopulation. In
1990 she founded SPAY/USA, a national referral service for low-cost spay/neutering. Mechler
is currently the co-editor of the magazine Paws to Think.
Esther Mechler is the founder and national director of SPAY/USA. Ms. Mechler's areas of
expertise include grassroots organizing, leadership development, information networking and
the implementation of projects and programs to end the cat and dog surplus.
A regular speaker at seminars and conferences in the U.S. and Eastern Europe, she also
helps edit Paws to Think magazine. She co-produced the video, Throwaways along with its
Spanish-language equivalent Rechazados, dealing with the overpopulation of cats and dogs.
The video, produced with funding from the ASPCA, comes with a teaching guide and poster.
Ms. Mechler assisted with the startup of hundreds of affordable spay programs and clinics,
both fixed-site and mobile throughout the United States and more recently has helped
organize study tours by vets from other countries who wish to learn more about methods and
techniques used in the U.S.
SPAY/USA, now a program of The Pet Savers Foundation, operates a toll-free hotline with two
full-time phone counselors to help callers find help in their areas. Conferences (local, state,
regional and national) are organized to empower local groups and individuals to maximize
their potential to end the pet surplus.
Ms. Mechler received her Bachelor's Degree from Bates College, spending her Junior year in
Geneva, Switzerland studying with psychologist Jean Piaget. Her
Med and Sixth Year degrees are from The University of Rochester in Education. She has co-
produced two award-winning videos promoting animal welfare and won the Geraldine R.
Dodge Award for Humane Ethics in Action in 1995. She has worked in animal protection for
twenty years.
Lynne Fridley - Field Representative Maddie’s Fund - (205) 668-7468
Lynne Fridley began her career in animal welfare 29 years ago at the Shelby County
Humane Society in central Alabama, and then moved on to serve as Executive Director of the
Humane Society of Chilton County remaining in that position for 18 years. Lynne has been
active for over 28 years in the Alabama Humane Federation and has served several stints as
president. The Alabama Humane Federation was instrumental in the passage of important
legislation under Lynne’s leadership, including a felony cruelty law which took effect in August
of 2000. She also currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Alabama Animal Control
Association, and was appointed by the Governor of Alabama to serve a two year term on the
Board of Directors of the Alabama State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.
As president of the Alabama Humane Federation, Lynne began investigating the possibility of
applying for a statewide Maddie’s Fund Spay/Neuter grant. The $2.4 million dollar grant was
awarded and the program began in 2001 resulting in 36,047 low income spay/neuter
surgeries statewide over the two year course of the grant.
Because of the great success of Maddie’s Big Fix for Alabama, Lynne was offered a position
on the staff of Maddie’s Fund, and began working as the first Field Representative for the Pet
Rescue Foundation in July 2002. Her work includes helping communities build collaborations,
technical support for applicants, overseeing the projects funded in the Southeast U.S., and
particularly in Alabama.
The ARC's Director of Conference Committees
Denice Heatherly is a Director and Board member of the SPCA of Tennessee. She has
always loved animals and has been a pet owner for many years but became involved in
animal welfare issues when she helped spearhead the successful initiative for dog parks in
Davidson County. Her work with the SPCA of Tennessee includes every aspect of it's current
operation and development including foster and adoption, cruelty and neglect as well as
special events. Seeing the desperate need for a change in the state of Tennessee
concerning spay and neuter laws and education and outreach she has volunteered to help
facilitate the Spay it Forward Conference for The Tennessee Animal Resource Center as the
Director of Conference Committees.
Key Note Speaker
Esther Mechler has been involved with the animal rights/animal welfare movement since the
1970s. An instrumental figure in several organizations, she was a founding member of both
the Fairfield County, Connecticut branch of Friends of the Animals, and the national Animal
Rights Network. Mechler worked to create and distribute animal protection related audio-visual
materials and has also been particularly active in the area of preventing pet overpopulation. In
1990 she founded SPAY/USA, a national referral service for low-cost spay/neutering. Mechler
is currently the co-editor of the magazine Paws to Think.
Esther Mechler is the founder and national director of SPAY/USA. Ms. Mechler's areas of
expertise include grassroots organizing, leadership development, information networking and
the implementation of projects and programs to end the cat and dog surplus.
A regular speaker at seminars and conferences in the U.S. and Eastern Europe, she also
helps edit Paws to Think magazine. She co-produced the video, Throwaways along with its
Spanish-language equivalent Rechazados, dealing with the overpopulation of cats and dogs.
The video, produced with funding from the ASPCA, comes with a teaching guide and poster.
Ms. Mechler assisted with the startup of hundreds of affordable spay programs and clinics,
both fixed-site and mobile throughout the United States and more recently has helped
organize study tours by vets from other countries who wish to learn more about methods and
techniques used in the U.S.
SPAY/USA, now a program of The Pet Savers Foundation, operates a toll-free hotline with two
full-time phone counselors to help callers find help in their areas. Conferences (local, state,
regional and national) are organized to empower local groups and individuals to maximize
their potential to end the pet surplus.
Ms. Mechler received her Bachelor's Degree from Bates College, spending her Junior year in
Geneva, Switzerland studying with psychologist Jean Piaget. Her
Med and Sixth Year degrees are from The University of Rochester in Education. She has co-
produced two award-winning videos promoting animal welfare and won the Geraldine R.
Dodge Award for Humane Ethics in Action in 1995. She has worked in animal protection for
twenty years.
Lynne Fridley - Field Representative Maddie’s Fund - (205) 668-7468
Lynne Fridley began her career in animal welfare 29 years ago at the Shelby County
Humane Society in central Alabama, and then moved on to serve as Executive Director of the
Humane Society of Chilton County remaining in that position for 18 years. Lynne has been
active for over 28 years in the Alabama Humane Federation and has served several stints as
president. The Alabama Humane Federation was instrumental in the passage of important
legislation under Lynne’s leadership, including a felony cruelty law which took effect in August
of 2000. She also currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Alabama Animal Control
Association, and was appointed by the Governor of Alabama to serve a two year term on the
Board of Directors of the Alabama State Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners.
As president of the Alabama Humane Federation, Lynne began investigating the possibility of
applying for a statewide Maddie’s Fund Spay/Neuter grant. The $2.4 million dollar grant was
awarded and the program began in 2001 resulting in 36,047 low income spay/neuter
surgeries statewide over the two year course of the grant.
Because of the great success of Maddie’s Big Fix for Alabama, Lynne was offered a position
on the staff of Maddie’s Fund, and began working as the first Field Representative for the Pet
Rescue Foundation in July 2002. Her work includes helping communities build collaborations,
technical support for applicants, overseeing the projects funded in the Southeast U.S., and
particularly in Alabama.
The ARC's Director of Conference Committees
Denice Heatherly is a Director and Board member of the SPCA of Tennessee. She has
always loved animals and has been a pet owner for many years but became involved in
animal welfare issues when she helped spearhead the successful initiative for dog parks in
Davidson County. Her work with the SPCA of Tennessee includes every aspect of it's current
operation and development including foster and adoption, cruelty and neglect as well as
special events. Seeing the desperate need for a change in the state of Tennessee
concerning spay and neuter laws and education and outreach she has volunteered to help
facilitate the Spay it Forward Conference for The Tennessee Animal Resource Center as the
Director of Conference Committees.
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