Meet our executive director

---

Tracy Ryan joined First Responder Therapy Dogs in August 2021 with her dog Sparkie in an effort to spread therapy dog love to First Responders on the East Coast.  She also serves as our Director of Operations in New England.  She is a High School Guidance Counselor, mom to 2 boys, wife of a firefighter, and small business owner.  Training a therapy dog was always something she wanted to do, and finding First Responder Therapy Dogs was the perfect fit for both Sparkie and her family.

Meet Lena Strickling and her therapy dog, Birdie! Lena and Birdie were the second team certified with First Responder Therapy Dogs. Lena has a background in nonprofit management and is currently getting her Master's in Social Work. She loves working for a greater purpose in causes she believes in, which drew her to FRTD. Lena hopes to be able to use her MSW to better support and serve the first responder community. When she is not studying, you can find Lena hiking, and snuggling with Birdie. 

Meet Emily Janowsky, who lives in Corte Madera, CA with her husband Steve and their yellow lab Rocket. She enjoys working as a dog therapy team at the local high school and with FRTD.  When she’s not volunteering with Rocket, Emily works with the Still Collective, a boutique staging and design firm in Marin. She is the mom of two college-aged sons and has been an active community volunteer for many years. She also has over twenty years of experience in financial services. 
 

Meet Charlotte Winters, who is fortunate enough to be the proud recipient of her current yellow Lab Makana. Makana is a donation to FRTD from Guide Dogs of America in Southern California. Makana is their family pet as well as a wonderful addition to the First Responder Therapy Dog program. Charlotte is married with 2 sons and her  interests include rowing, a love of water sports, live music and of course dogs!