SPECIAL FEATURE

Love Note Wall sponsored by Emancipet.

Leave a love note or take a note. This year we are creating a wall made of anonymous notes of encouragement or inspiration. Each attendee can write whatever they like. It will be used at the backdrop during the conference.

Each speaker will be asked to take a note from the wall and read it before they begin.

If a note resonates with you, or you think someone would benefit from it, take it with you.

#strongertogether #loveisthereason #loveisaverb #caresgathering #gatheringlovenotes …

We can’t always make the travel but we are going to make sure they are seen!
@awanook and Diana… see you Monday!

#caresgathering #humanandanimalwellbeing …

Thank you to our sponsor Michelson Found Animals for supporting our Free Library at The Gathering. Each year we give books away for people to learn and pass along.

1. The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander
2. I’m Tired of Racism: True Stories of Existing While Black, by Sharon Hurley Hall @shurleyhall
3. Black in Latin America, by Henry Louis Gates
4. When Can We Go Back to America?, bySusan Kamei

#thankstomaddie #CAREgathering2026 #humanandanimalwellbeing …

FEATURED SPEAKER: Shafonda Davis Allen

Nonprofits are a Business. During this workshop Shafonda will pull from her vast experience running a nonprofit and touch on the necessities of business practices that are required to be successful.

Shafonda Davis Allen, CAWA, is a proud CARE affiliate and highly respected national voice in animal welfare whose lived experience, community roots, and nearly three decades in the field shape her equity‑centered approach to leadership. Born and raised in Durham, North Carolina, Shafonda’s understanding of animal welfare is grounded in the realities of the communities she comes from—communities where people and pets rely on one another for love, stability, and survival. She began her career as an adoption counselor and worked her way through every level of shelter operations, ultimately serving more than a decade as Executive Director of the Animal Protection Society of Durham.

As a Certified Animal Welfare Administrator, Shafonda brings both professional rigor and lived wisdom to her work. As one of the few BIPOC leaders in the field, she plays a vital role in national discussions about representation, shared power, and culturally responsive leadership.

Shafonda has previously served on the Board of The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and on the boards of the North Carolina Animal Federation and Companions and Animals for Reform and Equity (CARE). She also currently contributes her perspective to AAWA’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Council, helping guide the field toward more just and inclusive practices.

Today, Shafonda is the Founder and Principal Consultant of Back to Basics Animal Welfare Leadership Consulting, where she leads, mentors, and facilitates for organizations across the country. Her work focuses on helping leaders reconnect with foundational, community‑rooted practices that make animal welfare humane, sustainable, and people‑first. She is known for her clarity, compassion, and ability to translate complex, equity‑driven conversations into practical, actionable leadership growth.

#thankstomaddie #CAREgathering2026 #humanandanimalwellbeing …