Our Pack
Our Founder, Molly Goldston
Molly Goldston is a native of the Wake Forest/Raleigh area. Always driven by a strong love and respect for animals, she began working in the Animal Welfare realm in North Carolina after graduating college in 2000.
Through shelter work, Molly observed the seemingly never-ending number of unwanted pets, countless euthanasia, and the critical urgency for deserving animals to be saved. She also recognized there were loving homes in the area that were looking for a family pet and interested in adopting. Molly sought to create a space where both dogs and humans alike felt more comfortable and at home, minimizing the stress of meetings in a standard shelter setting. Molly understood the need to bring unwanted animals together with these families in such a place, however, it would require setting up housing, vetting (as these animals came with no prior care), and establishing an adoption program. From this vision, Saving Grace Animals for Adoption (Saving Grace) was founded in 2004.
Saving Grace began on a long-time, family-owned farm, located in Wake County. While Molly wears many hats within her program, one of her main roles is working with over 20 counties in the Carolinas, bringing dogs weekly from rural area shelters. Once here, the dogs receive much needed care in order to find a forever home. Molly personally visits these shelters and works one on one with the shelter staff to address their needs and interacts with the animals to determine who will make the best family pets.
More About Molly
Throughout her career, Molly has invested a significant amount of time training in animal care, both medical and behavioral, to help best assess dogs’ needs in these areas. This is imperative to choosing dogs and make lasting forever matches.
Many dogs come to Saving Grace with severe neglect and trauma. Molly has fostered partnerships with many clinics, shelters, and teaching hospitals to assist SG in caring for these animals. She has built and maintains an incredible group of volunteers that make day to day care possible, a growing team of foster homes, as well as an amazing group of followers and sponsors that make adoption possible for many that would otherwise not have these options.
Molly has tremendous pride in the organization she’s built from the ground up. For her it’s more than a job, it’s a lifestyle. Anyone who knows her, knows she works from the time the rooster crows (quite literally here on the farm) to sundown because the work is never done. Molly’s hard work and dedication can be seen in her recent accomplishments. She has expanded Saving Grace’s reach through the establishment of our Saving Grace Supply Company store and online shop. All the proceeds from the stores go back into the Saving Grace rescue program. She has also fulfilled a long-time dream of having an onsite spay/neuter clinic here at Saving Grace. This provides one more resource for the animals to receive necessary veterinary care once in the program. Most recently, Molly has started a sister location, Saving Grace Dog Rescue Robeson County, and hopes it will help to reduce the incredibly high euthanasia rates in that area.
With her passion and tireless dedication to animal welfare and focus on underserved communities and outreach programs throughout the Carolinas, Saving Grace will continue to be a haven to dogs for many years to come.
Jess Agee
Vet Tech
Jess joined the Saving Grace Clinic Team in 2024. She has been in veterinary medicine since 2014 and loves the area of surgery and anesthesia. She graduated from Miller Motte of Raleigh and after taking her license exams went to work for Triangle Veterinary Referral Hospital surgery department. She taught veterinary science to 11/12th graders, and earth science to 7/8th graders for a few years and then took a break to stay home and care for her son who has a rare blood disorder that makes him immunocompromised. She has returned to her calling, landing here at Saving Grace and enjoys helping our community.
At home she has 2 cats Lunatik and Milo, an American Staffordshire terrier Violet, and some chickens. In her free time, she enjoys glamping, hiking, and gardening and looks forward to meeting the community and helping our Saving Grace animals.
Janine Bruno Halvas
Saving Grace Supply Company Staff
Janine is the newest member to join the Saving Grace Supply Co and has been here since February 2024.
She loves working at Saving Grace Supply Co. and interacting with all the wonderful people that come into the store. What she loves most is interacting with all the dogs. She enjoys helping the customers find what they need for their dogs/cats or even for themselves. Super special is all the newly adopted dogs that come in for a treat or snack straight from their adoption to the rescue. These families are so excited as they come through our door and it really shows what am impact we make in our community.
Her extremely spoiled rescue, Bruce, enjoys all the treats he gets from the Supply Co. Janine has been happily married for 26 yrs. and has two boys, one who is a teacher and another graduating college this year. They take yearly family cruises together and she enjoys spending time with her family.
Lee Collins
Adoptions Team Lead and SG Supply Company Staff
Lee was born and raised in Raleigh and graduated from NC State in 2010. After adopting his first dog from Saving Grace in 2014, Lee was so impressed with Saving Grace that he began volunteering in 2015 and has served in a plethora of roles over the years including leading shift, fostering, leading fostering orientation, and helping with adoptions. When COVID hit, Lee led the transition to virtual foster orientations to maintain our robust foster program to ensure we were able to recruit and maintain foster homes – training hundreds of new fosters over the following years.
More about Lee
Now Lee will be working with the adoption team at the farm as well as helping at Saving Grace Supply Company. Lee is thrilled to have this opportunity to support his community and the cause of animal welfare in North Carolina, that he cares so greatly about. When he isn’t at Saving Grace Lee can be found spoiling his 2 Saving Grace Alum, cheering on his favorite sports teams, or woodworking in his garage.
Dr. Eric Etheridge
DVM
Dr. Eric graduated from University of Florida with a degree in Zoology in 1996. In 2002, Eric received his degree in Veterinary Medicine from University of Tennessee. He has special interests in spay and neuter and international spay and neuter.
He moved to North Carolina in 2019 and lives with his wife Lydia and daughter Zoey, Socks the cat, Monty the Pomeranian and Knox a grease ball terrier.
Eric loves to surf, play guitar, read, snowboards and hang out with his family.
Meghan Flaherty
Adoptions Manager
If we had a dollar for every dog Meghan has seen through our program, we’d be rich! To be honest, we are rich having this talented and dedicated woman lead our Adoption Team.
Meghan came to Saving Grace in 2005. She had previously been working in the corporate sector but gave into her passion for a more creative outlet.
More about Meghan
In the beginning, Meghan was volunteering on shift and providing dog training. Molly recognized her talent and put her to work helping with adoptions several afternoons a week.
As she took on more and more responsibilities and Saving Grace continued to grow, one thing led to another and Meghan went full-time.
It is pretty impossible to list everything Meghan does but overseeing medical care for the Saving Grace Pack, managing heartworm treatments, ensuring all our dogs are ready for adoption, communicating with adopters, taking home fosters, just scratches the surface.
Meghan works countless hours and spends a lot of time observing the dogs. She sets up Saving Grace dogs for success! If a dog is not a good fit for a person or family, she tells them. Her goal is to ensure a forever match. Sometimes that takes time and more than one appointment but that’s the way she rolls.
With Meghan’s consult many adopters leave with the dog they need and not the one they came for. She is a strong advocate for Saving Grace dogs and is a true champion for the rescue world. We are so thankful she followed her heart many moons ago and look forward to many more happily endings for deserving dogs with Meghan leading the way.
Brie Hile-Hoffer
Adoption Team Lead, Marketing and Fundraising
Brie has taken her 20 years of educational experience (the last 9 in administration) and shifted it to another type of non-profit. She volunteered for 3 years in almost every capacity of Saving Grace and started with part-time in January 2021.
More about Brie
Brie oversees the Adoption’s Team with her fellow team leads along with being a part of Marketing and Fundraising and can often be found working with Molly to update processes and systems throughout the organization.
A true team player, Brie is a friendly face on site and is another valuable resourse to any volunteer or potential adopter. She manages and partners with the team for every part the adoption process from start to finish; oversees and creates marketing materials for the organization; and manages donor data and communications as well as fundraising efforts with the team.
Brie has 3 Saving Grace alums of her own and has also fostered many dogs and puppies for Saving Grace. She enjoys spending time with her family, traveling to the beaches and mountains of NC, cooking and reading.
Kristin Matthews
Saving Grace Supply Company Staff
Kristin joined the SG family in 2016 as a volunteer, and joined our Supply Co. store in 2021.
She enjoys gardening, thrifting, and decorating when she’s not smothering her 10- cat kids with love.
She graduated from NC State with a Zoology degree!
With her unwavering dedication, expertise and passion, she plays an integral part in just about everything we do and is a driving force behind our store success!
Robin Myers
Lead Vet Tech
Robin joined the Saving Grace Clinic team in Jan 2024. She has been a veterinary assistant for over 30 years! She has worked small practices and wildlife rehab in the past and was at a mobile spay/neuter practice up until they closed. She has a passion for helping dogs!
Previously from Arkansas, Robin has lived in NC for 15 years. When not working, she enjoys bird watching, hiking and finding her happy place!! She has 2 labs at home, one of which is a Saving Grace alum! She is happy to be surrounded by good people and lots of dogs every day while she works!!
Sarah Ryan
Saving Grace Supply Company Staff
Sarah and her family discovered Saving Grace in 2012 when they adopted their wonderful dog Riley. About a year later, they begin fostering and as Sarah’s three kids got older, she continued to take on more and more volunteer duties at Saving Grace. Over the years, Sarah has had a variety of roles including fostering puppies, leading the foster orientation at the farm, coordinating heartworm treatments for the many SG dogs that are heartworm positive, and working multiple shifts each week at the farm helping to care for the dogs.
More about Sarah
Sarah and her family continue to foster when time allows and she can be found at the farm two mornings a week leading shift.
Sarah began working at SG Supply Co in January, 2024 and has fallen in love with this new role as part of the SG Team. Her favorite part of working at the store is getting to see SG alum that she remembers from years ago come in to shop with their families and seeing how happy , loved and spoiled they are.
Sarah and her husband Kevin have lived in Raleigh since 2005 and have 3 children- 2 away at college and one in high school. They stay busy at home with their 3 Saving Grace Alum, Riley, Bailey, and Snickers.
Crystal Tippett
Administrator
Crystal is relatively new to Saving Grace, having joined our pack in 2020. Her primary role is keeping the books, managing accounts payable, the finances, insurance and more.
While these are very important responsibilities, and a lot of work, Crystal will dive head-first into adoptions, transports or any critical needed role at Saving Grace. Without any hesitation she helps however she can. She also steps in to work at the Saving Grace Supply Co. as needed.
More about Crystal
While Crystal is “new” to SG she and Molly have been friends for a very long time, so she had a deep understanding of the work and mission. While Crystal had a longstanding career in finance with other companies, she was looking for something more.
She made a deliberate decision to work for a company or organization making a difference in this world. Saving Grace seemed like the perfect fit. Crystal brings a wonderful balance to SG and we are so fortunate to have her in place to keep our finances, and us, in order.
Heather Wanczyk
Jill of All Trades
Heather is truly a Saving Grace “Jill of all Trades”. She began in 2017 working shift and quickly moved to a part-timer helping to oversee maintenance and general upkeep on the farm and the resident animals.
When the pandemic hit Heather moved to full-time and stepped up her game filling in for those unable to continue volunteering or working at Saving Grace.
More about Heather
She is a self-starting creative overseeing the creation of the Saving Grace online store and filling the orders. A long-time vision of Molly’s came to fruition under her careful supervision and now people all over the country can order Saving Grace merchandise to represent and support the mission.
Heather serves as Molly’s right-hand person, keeping her on track and assisting with the countless things that pop-up each day, not uncommon in the world of rescue. If that’s not enough she helps with organizing merchandise at the Saving Grace Supply Co. and offsite retail. She is a little bit of everything to everyone and we’d be pretty lost without her.