SAFARI PROFESSIONALS - Key Persons
James is a professional photographer with his favorite places to visit being South Luangwa in Zambia; Mana Pools in Zimbabwe; Amboseli in Kenya and Bwindi in Uganda. He is looking forward to sharing his passion for these wild spaces with others.
Growing up in the Zoo and Aquarium field, James has been around wildlife his entire life. Since being introduced to Africa at the age of 15, he has traveled extensively throughout the continent visiting some of the most beautiful and wildest national parks in Africa. Combined with his experience in traveling in Asia and Central and South America, James is able to bring a unique perspective as he designs customized safaris for our partners.
Katelyn is a transitioning Graphic Design student with a strong interest in, well… you guessed it- design. Joining the team in January 2022, she brings her unique eye for style and composition to the Safari Professional's Family.
Lake Clark National Park, with its vast expanse of over 4 million acres, offers a remote and pristine wilderness experience. Traverse through its rugged terrain, characterized by glaciers, snow-capped peaks, and crystal-clear lakes. Encounter brown bears, caribou, wolves, and eagles as you explore the park's backcountry by foot, kayak, or even by floatplane. This is the perfect destination for those seeking solitude and an authentic Alaskan wilderness encounter.
Job Titles:
- Private Safaris Consultant
Laura's extensive travel experience includes her 14 years as Meeting and Travel Manager for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, a professional, scientific and credentialing association with over 228,000 members and affiliates.
After living for a year as an exchange student in Chile, she earned her Bachelor's degree in Spanish from East Carolina University. Laura has enjoyed traveling to other countries in Europe and Central/South America and has a passion for other cultures and nature. Having traveled with her husband, Steve and Safari Professionals' CEO Tom LaRock on safari in Kenya, Laura joins Safari Professionals as Private Safari Consultant and will assist our AZA partners in developing their private safari programs as well as other private safari initiatives.
Leann is a North Carolina native, growing up in the area surrounding Pilot Mountain. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte with a degree in Education. After realizing her passion was more in an administrative capacity, she began her career in office administration.
After joining the Safari professionals' team in 2020, Leann brings over 25 years of experience in office management, marketing, and finance to her current role. Though most of her work is spent behind the scenes her love for nature and awareness of conversation is at the forefront of her mind.
When she's not in the office, Leann spends most of her free time with her husband, Brandon and her cat Raina. On most afternoons, you can find Leann repurposing materials for creating journals, reading a good book or hanging out with her friends.
Job Titles:
- Chief Opportunities Officer
Joining the Safari Professionals team in 2019, Sam brings over 30 years of business acumen including knowledge in IT, marketing, and operations to the Safari Professionals family. Born in Hawaii, raised in the mountains of West Virginia and living now in the Piedmont of North Carolina, Sam has always enjoyed spending time exploring nature and has developed a keen interest in conservation.
Before joining Safari Professionals as COO, Sam spent the last 25 years cultivating a digital marketing agency and software development house, Netwave Solutions, based in Greensboro, NC. It's the combination of business and management experience, along with strong analytical and technical knowledge, that allowed him to provide clients with leading edge marketing and web-based solutions. Over the last 10 years, Netwave Solutions has grown steadily helping both domestic and international clients maximize ROI in all phases of marketing, including social media, search engine optimization, video marketing, and more.
Sam has already made a significant impact on Safari Professionals in just a short time, starting with the launch of our new website in March of 2020. He followed that with a comprehensive digital marketing campaign featuring SEO and social media marketing. He's also been heavily involved in streamlining day-to-day operations through the development and implementation of Safari Logic, our custom, in-house traveler management program. His goals for 2022 are to continue to infuse much needed technology advances to further improve our operational infrastructure as well as expand and optimize marketing campaigns.
Job Titles:
- Conservation Safari Consultant
Steve's 23 years as AZA's Senior Vice President of Government Affairs has given him unique opportunities to help AZA member institutions expand their effectiveness in zoo and aquarium-based wildlife conservation efforts throughout the world. His personal commitment to national and international endangered species protection is evidenced by his work at AZA, his prior role as the Program Manager for the development and operations of the Hawaiian Islands Humpback Whale National Marine Sanctuary and his active role in coral and sea turtle rescue, oiled wildlife response, and taxon/species-specific conservation work for polar bears, black-footed ferrets, American red wolves, penguins, whooping cranes, bald and golden eagles, cheetahs, giant pandas, rhinos, tigers, African and Asian elephants and sharks/rays.
Having worked closely with zoos and aquariums throughout the world, as well as with some of the largest and most influential wildlife conservation organizations, Steve is uniquely qualified to help AZA institutions develop and expand their travel programs in support of each zoo and aquarium's conservation goals.
Steve received his Bachelor's and Master's degrees in wildlife management and policy from Colorado State University. He has travelled throughout the world but the highlight of his travels was a recent trip with Laura and Tom LaRock of Safari Professionals to Kenya. Truly an incredible and life changing experience.
Job Titles:
- Chief Exploration Officer
As the former Executive Director of the Friends of the National Zoo, Tom's commitment to conservation comes from his life-long passion for wildlife and the challenges faced by those dedicated to preserving and restoring our natural world. As the CEO (Chief Exploration Officer) of Safari Professionals, he continues to develop and maintain our partnerships with successful wildlife conservation teams throughout the world.