Our Team
Dr. Estelle Ward
Practice Co-Owner/Medical Director
Dr. Estelle Ward joined WFAH in May 2014. She has practiced in Ithaca, NY and in Baltimore, MD prior to coming to West Friendship. Her interests in veterinary medicine include dentistry, internal medicine, dermatology, and preventative health care. Dr. Ward has devoted her career to the human-companion animal bond. She serves on the board of directors of the Maryland SPCA.
Dr. Ward graduated from the University of Virginia in 1984 with a BA in classics and from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1988 with a DVM.
Dr. Ward lives with her husband, Jeff, who is also a veterinarian, and her son Joshua at Starward Farms in Dayton, MD. Two miniature donkeys, six sheep, four dogs, two cats, four snakes, one gecko, seven tarantulas, and a very large Oscar cichlid all live at the farm as well. She enjoys both purebred and mixed breed dogs. Her two favorite breeds are Dobermans and Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs. Dr. Ward loves reading, fitness training, traveling, gardening, antiquing, walking her dogs and listening to classical music.
Dr. Thomas Sullivan
Practice Co-Owner
Dr. Thomas Sullivan began his career at Squire Veterinary Clinic in Upper Marlboro, MD where he met his future wife, Eileen Garvey. This was a mixed animal practice where he split his time taking care of farm animals as well as dogs and cats. After a short stint at Bay Country Animal Hospital in Crownsville, MD, Dr. Sullivan accepted the position of Medical Director and Veterinarian, where he oversaw the opening of the Animal Emergency Center in Timonium, MD. He spent six years there practicing emergency medicine and critical care, and directed the early years of the Center which has now evolved into the well-known PetER in Towson, MD.
Dr. Sullivan left emergency medicine for the Ellicott City Veterinary Clinic which he purchased in 1994. In 2002, the Ellicott City facility was moved to its current location as the West Friendship Animal Hospital. In the same year, he helped organize the group of doctors which opened the cooperative after hours emergency veterinary facility in Ellicott City known as the Emergency Animal Hospital. Today he continues to function as its Hospital Director and serves on the Board.
Dr. Ani Gibbons
Co-Owner
Dr. Ani Gibbons started with West Friendship Animal Hospital in 2015. She grew up in Silver Spring, MD with two younger sisters. At the age of 5 she knew she wanted to become a veterinarian. Dr. Gibbons worked in veterinary hospitals throughout high school and college. She attended University of Delaware and received a B.S. in Animal Science. For vet school, she chose St. Matthews University on beautiful Grand Cayman island. Travel, scuba diving, and snorkeling became huge passions of hers!
She currently lives in Ellicott city with her husband, three rescue pups, Marlin, Rafa and Willa, and cat Clarence. Future dreams include owning land and rescuing more critters, big and small. At work, she is extremely passionate about dentistry, preventative care and client education. The staff and clientele of West Friendship Animal Hospital have become a second family!
Dr. Linda Reinhardt
Associate Veterinarian
Dr. Linda Reinhardt knew from the age of 4 that she wanted to be a veterinarian. She has been practicing in the Baltimore area since her graduation from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1986. Her main areas of interest are internal medicine, internal medicine, behavior, and sports medicine. The most enjoyable part of being a veterinarian, to her, is fostering more rewarding relationships between people and their pets.
When not in the office, Dr. Reinhardt can be found at the barn riding her horse, Ella, training or competing in agility with her Standard Poodle, Grayson, or at the gym. Dr. Reinhardt lives with her husband Bill and Grayson in West Friendship.
Dr. Renee Risaliti
Associate Veterinarian
Dr. Renee Risaliti joined West Friendship Animal Hospital in February 2023. Originally from Ebensburg, PA, she graduated from Bloomsburg University with a B.S. in Biology. She then moved south to go to veterinary school at Auburn University. After graduating in 2018, she practiced for several years outside of Savannah, GA before moving to Maryland. Her interests in veterinary medicine include soft tissue surgery, preventative care, and internal medicine. She loves to spend her time outside the clinic baking, crocheting, playing volleyball, and traveling with her friends. Dr. Risaliti resides with her four rescue cats, Sherlock, Watson, Luna, and Marvin Crush. She is looking forward to living closer to family and experiencing seasons again.
Dr. Helen Luh
Associate Veterinarian
Dr. Helen Luh became a part of the team at West Friendship Animal Hospital in July 2024. She is a Howard County native, born and raised in Ellicott City. She obtained her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maryland, College Park in 2015. She then went on to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a veterinarian at the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine, receiving her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2019. After graduating, Dr. Luh relocated to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, where she spent the next several years working in small animal general practice before returning to the Ellicott City area in 2024 to continue her career close to family.
Dr. Luh is so thrilled to be back in her hometown and honored to be able to serve families and their beloved pets in this special community. While she enjoys all aspects of veterinary medicine, Dr. Luh's particular interests include dermatology, internal medicine, nutrition, and preventative care. In her free time, Dr. Luh loves staying active and spending time outdoors, especially running and hiking with her dog, Skylar, an Australian Shepherd mix.
Jessica
Office Manager/Lead Veterinary Caregiver
Jessica has been a part of the WFAH family since August 2013. She started as a kennel technician and now is the lead veterinary technician. She enjoys many aspects of veterinary medicine and hopes to become a veterinarian herself one day. The part of veterinary medicine she enjoys the most is patient care and support, and educating owners. She finds joy in being able to connect with patients and owners.
Outside of WFAH, she likes to read, going to the gym, and spending time with family and friends. She shares her home with her husband, Kenny, adopted daughter and several animals. She has four Nigerian dwarf goats, two geese, eighteen chickens and four dogs: Kai (Anatolian Shepherd mix), Blue Belle, Jase, both beagles and Hailey, a rescue pup.
Christine
Assistant Manager/ Receptionist
Christine came onboard WFAH in Sept 2022. She lives in Carroll County with her husband, Jaime, daughter Madison and 2 dogs, Riley and Zoe. In her free time she likes to read and build Legos with her daughter.
Kim
Senior Veterinary Caregiver
Kim has been a part of the WFAH team since May 2014. She comes from a 20-year background in Veterinary Medicine and an Associate’s Degree in Veterinary Science from Johnson College in Scranton Pa. She enjoys staying busy and multi-tasking and also has a love for client education. She shares her life with her husband Jamie of 16 years and her two beautiful daughters. She also has two crazy dogs Stella and Auggie.
Cierra
Senior Veterinary Caregiver
Cierra joined WFAH in Dec 2017. She is currently enrolled in Penn Foster College and is studying to become a veterinary technician. She loves working at WFAH and helping all of the animals. She currently has a 2 cats. Outside of work, she enjoys concerts, horseback riding, and traveling.
Nicole (Remy)
Senior Veterinary Caregiver
Remy started her career in veterinary medicine as a technician in 1994. She has worked in many different areas, general medicine, orthopedic, soft tissue surgery and emergency medicine; as well as at the National Institute of Health, Veterinary Research Division. She lives in Sykesville with her husband, Joe and their whippets, Jonesy and Gibbs.
Veterinary Caregiver
Haileigh joined WFAH in July 2016 as our Crazy Pug Lady. She is enrolled in a Veterinary Technician program in hopes of becoming an RVT in the future and is also Fear Free Certified. Her favorite part of being a Veterinary Technician is building trust and strong relationships with not only the pets to ensure they have the least stressful visits possible, but their families as well. She enjoys being able to comfort and educate families while treating each pet as if they were her very own. Outside of work, Haileigh enjoys being a dog mom to Pugsley the Pug and Fiona the Boxer, being with friends and family, going to the gym, and being at the beach.
Haileigh
Stephanie
Veterinary Caregiver
Stephanie joined WFAH in July 2019. She loves working and learning so many new things. She hopes to attend Community College of Baltimore County (CCBC), to become a veterinary technician. She's the proud mom of a German Short haired Pointer Dixie and a cat named Nugget.
Jake
Veterinary Caregiver
Jake has been with WFAH since March 2021. He is fond of all animals but he loves working with cats. He enjoys spending his free time with his one cat named Axel. He also likes to work on and build computers.
Sean
Veterinary Caregiver
Sean joined WFAH in 2021. He’s a junior in high school and loves his exotic pet animals, like Leeroy, the White’s tree frog, shown. He has 3 tree frogs, a Saharan sand boa, a 35 gallon fish tank and a giant pink footed millipede.
Kelli
Veterinary Caregiver/ Receptionist
Kelli joined WFAH in November 2022. She loves spending time with her Hound Mix, Maya and her German Shepherd, Ruger. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her niece Lennyn, spending time with her fiancé, watching volleyball, and going outside on walks around my neighborhood.
Kate
Assistant Veterinary Caregiver
Kate joined WFAH in December 2022, having recently graduated from McDaniel College as a Biology major. She has always loved animals and has been petsitting for many years. Outside of work, she enjoys volunteering at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore and the Baltimore Humane Society. She also enjoys music and theatre.
Jordan
Assistant Veterinary Caregiver
Jordan joined the team in August 2024. She enjoys taking care of, spending time with, and making the boarding animals feel at home. She also loves making the patients comfortable while being treated. I hope to one day be a veterinary technician. In her free time, She also loves spending time with her two cats Bruno and Griffin.
Abhi
Kennel Assistant
Abhi joined WFAH in 2023. She is a junior in high school and she hopes to attend veterinary school. She spends time with her family, friends, and her dog named Grumpy. Abhi also enjoys playing volleyball, and is on the varsity volleyball team at her high school and has played club volleyball in the past. She enjoys riding horses in her free time.
Sara Jane
Kennel Assistant
SaraJane joined WFAH in September of 2023. She lives on campus at UMBC where she is studying as a biology major, on the pre-vet track. She has always loved animals and plans on continuing school to become a vet tech and possibly a veterinarian. Outside of work and school, she enjoys spending time with friends, playing video games, doing various artsy activities, and taking care of her animals. She has a cat and a parrot of her own with two more cats, a dog, and three fish as family pets back home.
Zoey
Kennel Assistant
Zoey is a high school senior who is dual enrolled at the Community College of Baltimore County. She plans to apply to their veterinary technician program following graduation. Zoey has grown up in the midst of farm life currently sharing her home with 5 horses, 2 dogs, 3 cats and 2 chickens.
Colleen
Receptionist
Colleen joined WFAH in February 2021. She lives at home with her two poodles, Franklin and Teddy and a mixed breed, Quinnley and her cat, Harley. She is currently enrolled in the nursing program at Stevenson University and in her free time, she likes to play soccer, draw and spend time with her friends and family.
Valerie
Receptionist
Valerie started at WFAH as a second career after working many years as a librarian. She has a sweet kitty, Lily and 2 Bernese Mountain dogs, Ellie and Elsa. When she’s not working, she spends her free time painting cat and dog portaits.
Chrissy
Receptionist
Chrissy joined WFAH in March of 2024. She received her veterinary assistant certification in 1999, and has worked with cats and dogs ever since. She prefers the customer service side of veterinary medicine and enjoys making clients and their pets feel as welcome as possible. In her free time, she likes watching movies, hiking, running, camping, and spending time with her 2 German Shepherds, Bull Mastiff, cat, son, and husband.
Maggie
Receptionist
Maggie joined WFAH in July of 2024. She graduated from Carroll Community College back in 2023 where she received her Veterinary Assistant Certification. When she has free time, she likes playing with her dog, Copper. Her other interests outside of work include digital drawing, shopping for records, and playing PC games.
Sara
Receptionist
Sara joined WFAH in September 2024. A recent empty nester, she has 2 children, Sara Jane and Christian, who are in college. Sara lives in Ellicott City with her husband CJ and their pets Jovi, a poodle mix, and 2 calico cat sisters Hester and Harper. In her free time, she enjoys reading, gardening, various arts and crafts, and exercising.