Board of Directors

Yvette H. Ayala, Founder & President

Yvette is an intellectual property attorney, wildlife advocate and conservationist. She was born and raised in Miami and for most of her adult life, spent any free time she had, working with local agencies to rescue domesticated animals from kill shelters. In 2018, her lifelong passion for animals led her to to expand her impact to endangered wildlife, thus founding Reclaimed Earth. Each year she strives to exponentially grow REW's projects and encourage others to join the fight to preserve our remaining wildlife.

Gustavo A. Ramirez, Co-Founder & Vice President

Gus is the owner and operator of No Name Shop, where he restores vintage Volkswagens and Porsches. He is a proud Miamian and has a passion for his local community, with a particular interest in the local car enthusiast community. After visiting South Africa in 2018 and seeing these animals first hand, he was inspired to take action and leverage his community connections to do just that.

Cary Valdes-Perez, Treasurer

Cary is an enthusiastic Certified Public Accountant practicing for over 12 years at Kaufman Rossin in Coconut Grove. She serves clients across a wide array of industries: broker-dealers, manufacturing and distribution, food and beverage, healthcare, real-estate development, not-for-profit, aviation, software/tech development and 401K Plans. She is a Miami native with a Bachelor’s degree in Accounting from the University of Miami. She loves working with people to solve complex issues, all with a cheerful disposition. Cary is passionate about giving back to the community in a multitude of ways, including her work with Reclaimed Earth, Inc.

Natalie Marie Rico, Secretary

Natalie, an Senior Counsel at Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman. She graduated from the University of Miami where she majored in English and Political Science with a minor in Religious Studies. She received her Juris Doctor from the American University Washington College of Law. Currently, she serves as Secretary for Reclaimed Earth, in service of her passion for animals and conservation.

Anna Diaz-Cruz, Director

Born and raised in Miami, Anna had a passion for animals as a child that led her to become a veterinarian. Even though she works with only small animals now, her participation in a conservation medicine course in South Africa for 2 weeks as a veterinary student remains to this day one of the best experiences in her career and life. So much so that she was inspired to attend Reclaimed Earth's inaugural volunteer trip in September of 2019. Anna hopes to have more experiences like that in helping endangered animals.