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MEET OUR TEAM

Board of Trustees

Roger Haagenson

Bryan Haagenson

Facundo Bacardi

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staff brian

BRIAN POPE

Director

Brian is from Pittsburgh, PA, and has a BSc in Biology from Penn State University. Brian is a dedicated and passionate professional who specializes in non-profit leadership, zoological management, conservation, and education. After being an animal care specialist at the Pittsburgh Zoo and Disney's Animal Kingdom for 11 years, Brian joined Lubee in 2007 as Curator and became Director in 2011. During this time the organization has significantly expanded local and global conservation/education efforts, fundraising, marketing, capital improvements, native bat projects, and bat welfare and enrichment programs. Brian led Lubee to its 5th consecutive AZA accreditation in 2020 and ensures that the organization is consistently compliant with all federal, state, and local requirements. Brian has nearly 30 years of bat experience with numerous published articles on animal husbandry, enrichment, and medical management. He is extremely passionate about his role in the zoological/conservation field and is working to further Lubee’s status as a global leader in bat welfare, conservation, and education.

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TRACY POPE

Operations & Programs Manager

You guano know something about Tracy? She LOVES bats and a great pun!  She is from Pittsburgh, PA and has an AS in Zoo Animal Technology from Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo. Prior to joining the Lubee team in 2015, Tracy acquired 11 years of animal care experience in the veterinary field and 5 years at Disney's Animal Kingdom as an Animal Food Specialist. Tracy is a creative person with a mind for details and enjoys putting her passions towards Lubee's conservation and education endeavors. Since her start, Tracy has lead Lubee through multiple successful events. Don't let her title fool you. She wears many hats here at Lubee and makes everyone of them look marvelous.  😉  From managing all of Lubee's Programs, to creating graphics for social media, to caring for our microbats, to scheduling your tours or filling online orders, Tracy has her finger on the pulse of what makes Lubee run smoothly. She hopes that you'll come visit or attend one of Lubee's many events! Come for the tour, stay to explore!

And that's a-bat it. 😁🦇💕

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ANNALYSE WILLIAMS

Animal Care Manager

Annalyse is from Middleburg, FL and has a Bachelor of Science in Wildlife Ecology and Conservation from the University of Florida, with a minor in Business Administration. While in school at UF she joined Lubee as a volunteer in June of 2017 and in September of 2017 she joined the team as a Call-In Keeper. Annalyse's experience also includes working with rhinos and other large hoof stock at White Oak Conservation in Yulee, FL as a Wildlife Conservation Intern in 2018. She joined the Lubee team full-time in March of 2020 as a keeper and the records coordinator. Since then she has risen to her current position of Animal Care Manager which she has held since October of 2021. 

Annalyse is also the winner of the Tim Myrick Award of Excellence for 2022 & 2023!

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BRITTANY PERRY

Senior Keeper / Records Coordinator

Brittany grew up in Peachtree City, Georgia and followed a winding path that led to Zookeeping. She graduated from Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo with an AS in Zoo Animal Technology. Though Brittany has always wanted to work with animals, she didn't know exactly how. Zookeeping was a turning point for her and extremely eye opening, proving that there are many paths to working with animals. It also drove home how important conservation, education, and awareness is to animals, people, and the habitats that we all share. She is ecstatic to have found a place to not only share the first-hand experience of caring for these incredibly important species, but also to know that she is lending a hand to their wild counterparts. As the Records Coordinator she makes sure that all our 200+ bats information is getting stored properly to assist in providing quality animal welfare. When you visit you might just find Brittany with her nose buried in animal records, or happily working alongside her co-workers to enrich the lives of these magnificent creatures.

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Anna Archer

Animal Keeper / Intern & Volunteer Coordinator

Anna is from Jupiter, FL and is a graduate from the Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo where she received her AS in Zoo Animal Technology. She has always wanted to work with animals and found her calling in the zoo field. Anna started interning at Lubee after graduating from SFCTZ, and became a member of the team shortly then after. She has great empathy towards others, human and non-human, and is very grateful to be involved in bat conservation as part of a wonderful team. Come join Anna, and the Lubee team as a Intern or Volunteer. She's ready to lead you on a wild adventure of animal care and more!

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Maddie McLaughlin

Animal Keeper / Merchandise Coordinator  

Maddie is from Tampa, FL and is a graduate from the Santa Fe College Teaching Zoo where she received her AA in Zoo Animal Technology. She continue to further her carreer and is working towards getting a Bachelor's degree in Organizational Management. As a child, Maddie attended the Jacksonville Zoo Summer Camps where she discovered her love for animal care. From there, Maddie worked at Zoo Tampa throughout her high school career. Maddie joined our Animal Care team in January of 2023. She's excited to be part of such a hard working and wonderful team and has grown a deep love for all the animals here at Lubee.  Maddie looks forward to talking about our beautiful bats with our guests! 

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Paige Kidwell

Animal Keeper / Social Media Coordinator

Paige is from Indiana, where she received her BS in Wildlife from Purdue University. She discovered her passion for bats while learning wildlife research techniques in college, and went on to assist with bat research projects in South Carolina and Georgia after graduating. While she loved the research side of her profession, she found that she was even more passionate about sharing that information with people. She has helped connect people to a variety of animals at nature centers, zoos, and schools around the US, but it has always been Paige’s dream to connect people with her favorite animal, bats! We are really excited to have Paige as a part of the Lubee Bat Conservancy team! Be sure to check out Lubee's social media platforms to discover Paige's passion for bats!

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Hannah Rollins

Animal Keeper / Education Coordinator

Hannah is from Gainesville, FL and graduated with a B.S in Biology with a focus on Zoology from the University of Central Florida. She has always been passionate about animal welfare and husbandry and knew she wanted to work with animals growing up. In college she interned at Back to Nature Wildlife Refuge and the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey where she also found her love for educating people about conservation. She worked at Winter Park Veterinary Hospital as the Kennel Supervisor in the interim until she joined our animal care team in 2024. Hannah is ecstatic to work with bats and to teach people about their importance in our environment. Hannah looks forward to seeing our guests at an event or outreach soon! Make sure to stop by our many events and say HI!

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TIM MYRICK

Maintenance Lead

Tim is our Bat House builder extraordinaire and Winner of the Tim Myrick Award of Excellence in 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, & 2023. He came so close in 2022. 

Lubee inside joke folks! 🤩😂🦇💖

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TBD

Maintenance Tech

Fun information to fly in soon!

STAFF

We are a non-profit organization dedicated to saving bats and their habitats through conservation, education, and awareness, with a focus on children and community engagement.

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1309 NW 192nd Ave Gainesville, FL 32609   352-485-1250  info@lubee.org

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