Meet our Team
MICHELLE DRANFIELD
Founder - Board of Directors
Michelle wants to live in a world where kindness is common, animals are valued as sentient beings, and good vegan chocolate is much cheaper!
Growing up surrounded by animals, and with a background in vet nursing, Michelle has the knowledge and experience to oversee the exceptional care of our residents. The face of Happily Heifer After Social Media, Michelle shares the heart-breaking, inspiring and beautiful stories of our animals with compassion, humour and the stark reality of what human intervention does to these exceptional creatures.
KARLI FURMAGE
Board of Directors
As the self-appointed list maker and task allocator on the Happily Heifer After board, Karli’s focus is making the strategic plan for the Sanctuary a reality.
With experience in senior management roles across a broad base of industries, companies and countries, Karli has sat on a number of advisory and executive boards. Combing that experience with a passion for animal welfare and advocacy, Karli is a great fit for our board.
When she is not trying to unlock the mysteries of Rogelio, her favourite sanctuary rooster, Karli is 13 years into running Go Global, a consulting business providing holistic operations and training solutions.
JANE BELLABY
Board of Directors
Jane joined a tour of our sanctuary in 2021 and after falling in love with the gang, immediately made the switch from vegetarian to vegan. Inspired by the work we do and wanting to help, Jane applied to volunteer with us that same day, and joined our board in 2022. In addition to being a wiz on a poop scoop and excellent cow cuddler, Jane is a qualified accountant and has held a number of senior management and finance roles across various sectors in the UK and Australia. As comfortable wrangling our naughty goats as a spreadsheet, Jane’s diverse skills keep our finances in order.
ANNIE SUTTON
Volunteer Co-ordinator
Annie was raised on property in western NSW surrounded by animals. As a youngster Annie was always the first person to take on an orphaned lamb or poddy calf. That love of animals stayed with Annie through a colourful career and when she moved to the Sunshine Coast in 2020 Annie returned to her roots, and joined our team.
Lucky for us, Annie is as good with humans as she is with animals and runs our volunteer program. Annie is responsible for the weekly volunteer roster, coordinating and recruiting new volunteers for the Sanctuary, and providing information to our volunteers. By her own admission the best part of Annie’s week is putting on her gumboots and hanging out with our beautiful animals.
JASMINE TEUMA
Assistant Sanctuary Manager
Jas has always loved animals. As a teenager her family rescued a scared and angry horse, Nation. By working closely with Nation, Jas learnt how to rebuild trust and understanding, and the healing power of kindness in animal rehabilitation.
Jas went on to work in administration, HR and finance roles, but the lure of working with animals was too great and Jas joined our team as Assistant Sanctuary Manager, over-seeing the care of our animal family.
Jas reminds us all that while animals can’t speak the way we do, they communicate just as clearly when we’re willing to listen.