LEAP - Leaders for Ethics, Animals, and the Planet

11/05/2026

11/03/2026

☕🌿 Have you registered for November's Coffee & Connect yet?

Join us this Wednesday, November 4, at 10:00 AM PT / 1:00 PM ET for "Beyond the Classroom: Humane Education in the Wild," presented by Danielle Hanosh, Co-Founder of Blackberry Creek Farm Animal Sanctuary and Executive Director of LEAP (Leaders for Ethics, Animals, and the Planet)!

Discover how hands-on learning, outdoor experiences, and service projects can help young people build empathy, develop leadership skills, and strengthen their connection to the natural world. 🌎💚

Don't miss this opportunity to connect and get inspired!

📅 This Wednesday, 11/4 at 1pm ET / 10am PT

🐾 Free for APHE members, $5 for non-members

🔗 Register: aphe.org/Coffee-&-Connect

11/03/2026

Today we introduce you to LEAP Youth Advisor, Troy Stoffey from Missouri!

Troy is an incredibly kind, hardworking advocate who inspires people to learn about helping animals and choose healthy, plant-based meals. He loves music and being in nature and is currently helping to create new LEAP Club service projects and translate our current projects into Spanish!

Troy also serves as the Volunteer Coordinator for his local animal rights organization, Project Animal Freedom, and says he has “… loved gaining firsthand experience managing schedules, organizing community events, and motivating others.” His deep commitment to the cause was recognized in 2025 when he was named Volunteer of the Year, which he says was an incredible milestone for him.

Troy also recently graduated from the Center for Effective Vegan Advocacy’s online course and is an Ambassador for his city of St. Louis on HappyCow.

We are so delighted to work with Troy and grateful for all he does for animals, the environment, and his community!

Find Vegan Food Near You Project Animal Freedom - St. Louis, MO Troy Stoffey

11/01/2026

Happy World Vegan Day!

Veganism isn’t a diet, it’s an ethical stance where we seek to live in a way that does the least harm possible to others. Luckily, it’s also the lifestyle that happens to be the most beneficial for the planet and the healthiest for our bodies.

It’s never too late to align your values with your actions. Start by incorporating more animal-free food, fabrics, and products into your life and phase out the ones that do harm. Need help or have any questions? Dm them to us!

10/31/2026

🐮 Cows are the best!

Farm Animal Refuge

10/28/2026

Today we’d like to introduce you to LEAP
Youth Advisor, Reina Mercado!

Reina completed the LEAP program at Unity Farm Sanctuary in Massachusetts and is now interning there and helping to teach the LEAP curriculum to younger students. Her goal is to “create a warm and welcoming space for vistors to learn about the issues facing humans, non-human animals and the planet.”

A two-time Leukemia survivor, Reina also volunteers her time in healthcare advocacy as a member of Boston Children’s Hospital’s Teen Advisory Council, is a Pan Mass Challenge Volunteer, and also serves as an ambassador for Make A Wish MA & RI.

She is an environmental science and criminology student, a phenomenal artist, and enjoys baking, learning Japanese, and spending time with her beloved animals both at home and at the sanctuary.

We are so delighted to have Reina Mercado on our Youth Advisory Board this year and grateful for all of the kindness she so generously shares with others.

10/27/2026

Each of our LEAP Youth Advisors makes a profound impact for animals, but Gracie Hohn is the only one (so far!) who does so as a wildlife rehabber, fostering baby opossums who lost their mum.

You probably know Gracie from her time in LEAP at Iowa Farm Sanctuary or from the cool brand she started, BE THEIR VOICE! where you can order hoodies, stickers, and other fun items created by Gracie to help her save up for her future animal sanctuary.

And while we absolutely love her entrepreneurial spirit (she also runs her own pet sitting business on top of working at a veterinary clinic 🤯), her wildlife work is a very special part of her life we haven’t shared yet.

This summer, Gracie began fostering a group of orphaned newborn opossums and quickly became the beloved mom of Muffin, the runt of the litter, less than half the size of her siblings but making up for it in personality.

Muffin was born with some health complications however, and after four months of the very best care possible from Gracie, her little body couldn’t fight anymore, and she passed away.

Animal rescue and rehabilitation is one of the most emotionally challenging jobs there is, but it is the price we pay for giving each life, even the tiniest life like Muffin’s, the chance to thrive. While her time on Earth may not have been long, it sure was brimming over with love thanks to Gracie Hohn 🥹

We are so proud of Gracie for all she does for animals, and for who she is as a person. May Muffin rest easy beyond the rainbow bridge, and may Gracie always know how many people she inspires with her kindness. 🌈

10/26/2026

Today is Meatless Monday, and we have an awesome creator for you to follow… Carleigh Bodrug !🌱

You can check out her IG page for delicious meal ideas, order her cookbook online, or sign up for freebies including a beginner plant-based meal plan and shopping list for a whole week!

https://plant-you.kit.com/60341436bc

10/24/2026

Allow us to introduce you to LEAP Youth Advisor, Eliza Walker! Eliza is from Maryland and just started her collegiate career as a freshman at Bryn Mawr College

She will be majoring in psychology, and her goal this year is to help more animals by encouraging people to transition to veganism through a positive, inspiring approach, rather than one of guilt or shame. We love that approach (and it’s psychologically the most effective!) and look forward to supporting Eliza on her learning and leadership journey.

Please give her a warm welcome! 👏

10/23/2026

Sending so much gratitude to renowned artist, Amy Burkman, for donating her time to host a live, virtual painting class for our LEAP students and Youth Advisors last week!

Amy Burkman 🌱 led us through an acrylic painting of a cow and talked about how she uses art both for advocacy and to assist nonprofits in raising funds to support their missions of helping animals and people.

She shared part of her story as a cancer survivor, encouraged students to pursue a career that is deeply meaningful to them, and even did a live Q&A with everyone.

If you’re a LEAP student who missed it, not to worry! We recorded the session for you and it has been sent to your LEAP sanctuary teachers and posted on our Google Classroom board for YAC students. You can help your sanctuary plan a painting night or paint along from home using the recording link.

Thank you so much again Amy Burkman for generously sharing your time, talent, and kindness with us. 🎨💜🐮