ABOUT
Our Ohana
Dr. Jessica Jang
Chief Veterinarian
Dr. Jang was born on the mainland but raised in Korea for most of her childhood. She received her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine at Michigan State University in 2012. After vet school, she went into practice in Michigan and Arizona before finally moving to Hawaii. Her talents lie in performing advanced soft tissue surgeries and dentistry. Dr. Jang finds a sense of purpose in life by helping pets and their family members! When not working, she enjoys finding a new local restaurant to try. She has four beloved 4-legged children — two with her now, and two on the other side of the rainbow bridge. They all inspire Dr. Jang to continue to show her love and passion for animals.
Dr. Tiffany Hummel
Veterinarian
Dr. Hummel was born and raised in Colorado. She received her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University in 2010. After vet school she followed her Navy husband to multiple states and practiced in South Carolina and California before landing in Hawaii and calling it home. She enjoys internal medicine and educating clients on preventative care for their pets. She has 2 dogs, 3 chickens and fish, and fosters kittens through Poi Dogs and Popoki. When not working she enjoys running, hiking, paddle boarding, and spending time with her husband and 2 daughters.
Dr. Charlyne Soucy
Veterinarian
Dr. Soucy was born and raised in Montreal, Canada and graduated from Université de Montréal in 2022. Escaping the cold Canadian winters, she came straight to Hawaii to start her career. She is motivated by surgical and medical cases and has a particular interest in shelter medicine. On her days off, she spends most of her time hiking in nature. She also enjoys being in the ocean, running on the beach, exploring the island and staying active.
Sharon Williams
Administrative Manager/ Reception Lead
Sharon grew up in Mililani and is married with two grown children. She has always loved all animals and has several rescues at home. She has spent many years rescuing and fostering animals and helping Poi Dogs & Popoki with Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) efforts across the island.
Maria Curley
Veterinary Assistant
Maria has been working with HI Pets Vet. since the very beginning. Her furbabies have always been a part of her families. She appreciates their companionship, antics and loyalty. She considers it a blessing to be able help owners and fosters keep their furbabies healthy. She will love yours like she loves her own.
Taja Wells
Lead Technician /
Back Manager
Taja recently moved to the island in 2022. She has always had a passion for animals as well as medicine which brought her into the veterinary field. She worked as a technician in Florida for 5 years before her move. She is currently enrolled in a CVT program and plans to continue expanding her knowledge of veterinary medicine. She hopes to one day work in an emergency or specialty clinic where she can care for all different species. In her free time she likes to hike, watch sports and go to the beach with friends. Taja has 3 dogs and a kitten and is the resident German shepherd wrangler at Hi Pets.
Katlynn Lyman
Veterinary Assistant
Katlynn Lyman just recently moved to Hawaii with her husband who is stationed here for the Army. She is from Pitman, New Jersey (pretty far away). She has always had a passion and love for animals. Ever since she was little, she knew she wanted to work in a Vet environment! Back in New Jersey, she loved working at her previous job at a Dog Day Care. She always loves to pet sit! She also loves to spend her free time with her husband going on adventures or just staying at home with their kitten Pearl.
Mary Natividad
Administrative Assistant
Mary-Elizabeth Natividad is originally from the West Side of Kauai but moved
to Oahu over 20 years ago and has resided in Maili since 2002. She loves to
spend her free time with her family, both 2 and 4 footed. She also loves to
go to the beach and watch the sunset.
Breanne Baker
Veterinary Technician
Breanne was born and raised right on the border of Iowa and Illinois. She graduated from Eastern Iowa Community College in May of 2022 with her Associates as a Veterinary Technician. Breanne has four furbabies of her own, Tsuki, Yami, Nichi, and Ito. Since her early childhood, Breanne has had an interest in caring for animals. Someday in the future she hopes to further her career and education by specializing in veterinary dentistry and exotics. Working with animals has always been rewarding and Breanne feels that it is her purpose in life to do so, nothing has brought her more joy. When she is not in the clinic she can be found gaming online, working out, and spending time with her husband and friends.
Gwen Yamanaka
Veterinary Assistant
Growing up, Gwen Yamanaka always had animals and a keen interest in their behavior and biology. As an adult, after moving into a house with around 30 feral chickens already living underneath it, they were inspired to volunteer at Oahu’s only farm animal sanctuary, where they learned how to perform the disabled animal residents’ routine medical care. Wanting to learn more about animal medicine, they joined HI Pets Vet Clinic in January 2022 as a Veterinary Assistant after working elsewhere in animal care. They are especially fond of cats, mice and chickens, but believe all animal life has equal value.
Lindsey Nordtvedt
Veterinary Technician
Lindsey is originally from California and has lived on island for 7 years with her family. She has worked in veterinary medicine for more than 4 years. Her long-term goals include running a hospice care facility for shelter animals.
Kelly Hirashima
Veterinary Technician
Kelly was born and raised on O’ahu. When she’s not at HI Pets she’s hanging out with her furry, feathered, creepy crawling creature family. She has spent many years working in small animal practices and looks forward to helping pet owners keep their pets happy and healthy.
Chanel Paris
Veterinary Assistant
Ever since she was a kid, she wanted to work with animals. Her grandparents owned horses and even grew up around dogs and a farm. She has a dog of her own now, whom she loves dearly. Her interest in animals grew within her adult years of life. Working with animals is a passion, and her goal is to provide care. Her desire to help animals lead her to this career path.
In her spare time, she likes to be in nature, around the birds, plants, flowers, and the ocean. She also loves spending family days with her kids and her other half.
Marissa Valencia
Administrative Assistant
Marissa was born and raised on O’ahu. She has 2 beautiful girls & a household full of fur babies 🙂 She has worked in Veterinary administration for 10+ years and enjoys connecting with clients and their pets. In her free time she enjoys spending quality time with her family.
Heather Topcik
Veterinary Technician / Administrative Assistant
Heather earned her degree as a Veterinary Technician in 1996 and worked as a technician for almost twenty years. She then had the opportunity to live and work in various parts of the world before coming to Hawaii with her family in 2022 and joining our HI Pets team in 2023. She loves living on Oahu- beach days are the best days!