Makena Yarbrough

Senior Director of Regional Programs

Makena Yarbrough is the Senior Director of Regional Programs for Best Friends. She oversees the regional teams and helps to prioritize lifesaving initiatives and strategies to reach the goal of no-kill nationwide in 2025. In her home state of Virginia, she is a board member for the Virginia Federation of Humane Societies and has been working to make Virginia no-kill for many years.

Before joining Best Friends, Makena was the executive director of Lynchburg Humane Society, the largest no-kill organization in the state of Virginia and was recognized by Maddie's Fund as a recipient of the 2018 Maddie Hero Award. When she joined Lynchburg Humane Society in July 2009 as its first executive director, the organization's save rate was 49 percent. She quickly worked with the organization's board to develop and implement a long-range plan to take the community to no-kill.

Under her leadership, the organization tripled the size of the board of directors; developed a more financially equitable relationship with the city of Lynchburg; began managing the regional spay/neuter clinic; created a citywide effort to provide free spay/neuter for community cats; and substantially increased community funding, awareness and involvement in the cause. The result was an increase in the save rate to 94 percent.

Makena began her animal welfare career in 2000 with the Richmond SPCA, first as the director of education and then as the director of operations. Before assuming her position at Lynchburg Humane Society, Makena was the associate director for the Charlottesville-Albemarle SPCA.