Free All Captive Elephants, Inc.

FACE (www.freeallcaptiveelephants.org) is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization committed to rescuing captive elephants in North America and getting them to sanctuaries accredited by the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries (GFAS). GFAS is the gold standard for sanctuaries around the world. The work FACE does is vital in the process of getting captive elephants to the sanctuaries waiting and ready to receive them.

Our mission is to provide education, intervention, and litigation that will lead to sanctuary for ALL elephants inhumanly held in captivity in in North America. We will achieve this through our organizational programs that address the abuse that elephants in North America are forced to endure.

Our vision is to ultimately see that ALL elephants in North America currently living in inhumane conditions are released and sent to GFAS sanctuaries to live out the rest of their lives. We are also committed to expanding our work to support and facilitate the opening of more GFAS accredited sanctuaries for rescued elephants once the two GFAS sanctuaries currently operating in the U.S. near their capacity

We will achieve our goals though education, advocacy, legislation and litigation:

We will educate the public, law makers and law enforcement agencies by raising awareness of the suffering of captive elephants. Through our website, social media, fundraising campaigns, speaking engagements and distribution of our documentary film to increase awareness of our mission and vision and bring more supporters in to increase the impact of our work and raise the funds needed to achieve our goals.

Through grassroots advocacy, FACE will continue to conduct undercover investigations to document violations of the Animal Welfare Act as well as state laws and local ordinances to lay the groundwork for future litigation when appropriate.

FACE and our partners are responsible for most of the lobbying, new legislation and education that occurs in the U.S. on behalf of elephants in roadside zoos and circuses. We continue to lobby in support of needed legislative change on behalf of captive elephants. We work to influence lawmakers to support legislative changes needed to alleviate the suffering of animals in circuses and roadside zoos including the passage of the federal Traveling Exotic Animal and Public Safety Protection Act (TEAPSPA) which, when passed, will prohibit traveling circuses that use exotic animals nationwide.

The leadership of FACE is working to ensure long-term sustainability by continually identifying and soliciting funders with the greatest likelihood for long-term support. Our fundraising team is working to identify a comprehensive assessment of existing funding sources and their reliability will guide us in refining our financial sustainability strategy for the long-term. This strategy includes a plan to secure long-term support for our operating expenses which will support our actions in the field, social media outreach, maintenance of our website, collaboration with elephant experts, litigation, and other instances that present themselves in our field of work.

• FACE Vice President, Dee Gaug, worked tirelessly for three years (2017-2019) to have the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) strengthen and enforce their elephant ride regulations. As a direct result of these efforts, the old rules were repealed and new rules were adopted requiring increased training and protections for operators and the public, bans on the use of elephants that have caused serious injuries or deaths, and fixed fencing that is at least 44 inches high around the ride area.
• FACE was instrumental in the Passage of Nosey’s Law in New Jersey, December 14, 2018.
• Working with Senator David Marsden on more stringent regulations and enforcement for zoo animals in Virginia with the goal of ensuring that the Commonwealth of Virginia will, at a bare minimum, adopt the AZA (American Zoological Association) standards for zoos.
• Utilizing social media to build a strong network of supporters, many of whom are conducting their own campaigns in support of captive elephants and other animals. Posting Actions for members to take in their areas where circuses are setting up shows, and supporting those members in any actions that they take.
• Formed partnerships with: Humane Society of the United States, Animal Defense International, In Defense of Animals, the Animal Defense Partnership.
• In collaboration with The Humane Society of the United States, The Animal Defense Partnership and others, FACE submitted a detailed letter to the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries (DGIF) urging, among other things, that DGIF not renew the Natural Bridge Zoo's (NBZ) Permit to Exhibit Wild Animals in Virginia and seize the animals at the zoo including Asha the Elephant.
• Face Vice President, Dee Gaug was asked to be on a panel at both the Free the Oregon Zoo Elephants Conference and The Performing Animal Welfare Society’s International Captive Welfare Conference.
• FACE Board of Directors, President, Robin Vitulle, Michelle Weirich and Adrienne Possenti were presented with the Lesniak Institute 2019 Advocacy Excellence Award at their annual Fall Gala on November 19, 2019. This award recognized our: success in our work to FREE NOSEY the elephant; work on Nosey's Law in New Jersey; boots on the ground work for elephants including protests, rallies, working together with former Senator Raymond Lesniak and the Lesniak Institute to make legislative changes; social media outreach; support for TEAPSPA bill for a national law to ban wild and exotic animals in traveling animal acts across the NATION; production of our documentary film; ASHA Billboard campaign and litigation to bring awareness to ASHA the elephant suffering in a roadside zoo; giving back to the community and for the hard work of spreading awareness and education about the real suffering of captive elephants in circuses and zoos across the nation.