Meet Our Co-Leaders
Kathy Spilos lives in Northridge with her husband Dean and their German Shepherd Dog, Votan, their fourth GSD – all certified therapy dogs. When not visiting, Kathy participates in dog performance sports, madrigal/choral singing and is an AKC CGC Evaluator. Though she loves many aspects of being a therapy dog/handler team such as spending time with Votan and meeting people, the best part of volunteering is giving back to the community one "pawstep" at a time - and sometimes seeing special little miracles happen because of it!
Monica Nolan grew up around animals and first became interested in therapy work while working at an animal shelter where she observed the strong bond between humans and dogs. Monica’s first therapy dog was Mikko, a quiet Australian Shepherd who loved people. Mikko's legacy continues with Augie and Rose. In addition to therapy work, Monica trains and competes in several dog sports and is an AKC Evaluator. She loves that pet therapy is a positive activity for dog and handler to engage in that gives back to the community.
Linda Brooks is a valley girl born and raised. She earned her master’s degree at CSUN in Family and Consumer Sciences. As a guest lecturer at CSUN, Linda enjoys this unique opportunity to share the benefits of pet therapy visits with students entering the healthcare industry in a hands-on presentation with LOAL teams. In addition to LOAL visits, Linda and her yellow Labrador Retriever Olive participate in dog performance sports of obedience and scent work. Linda is also an AKC CGC evaluator.
Monica Nolan grew up around animals and first became interested in therapy work while working at an animal shelter where she observed the strong bond between humans and dogs. Monica’s first therapy dog was Mikko, a quiet Australian Shepherd who loved people. Mikko's legacy continues with Augie and Rose. In addition to therapy work, Monica trains and competes in several dog sports and is an AKC Evaluator. She loves that pet therapy is a positive activity for dog and handler to engage in that gives back to the community.
Linda Brooks is a valley girl born and raised. She earned her master’s degree at CSUN in Family and Consumer Sciences. As a guest lecturer at CSUN, Linda enjoys this unique opportunity to share the benefits of pet therapy visits with students entering the healthcare industry in a hands-on presentation with LOAL teams. In addition to LOAL visits, Linda and her yellow Labrador Retriever Olive participate in dog performance sports of obedience and scent work. Linda is also an AKC CGC evaluator.
Kathy Spilos
Chapter Leader
Monica Nolan
Chapter Leader
Linda Brooks
Chapter Leader
