Taft estate planning partner Missia H. Vaselaney serves as president of the Pets for the Elderly Foundation, a public charity whose mission is to provide companionship to senior individuals through pet ownership, while saving the lives of companion animals in shelters.

The Foundation’s success and appeal was profiled in the Dec. 29, 2017 Cleveland.com article, “Thousands of seniors have adopted four-legged friends through the Pets for the Elderly Foundation.”

In the article, Vaselaney cited several studies revealing the benefits and the struggles of senior pet ownership. She remarked that pets can lower blood pressure, lead to fewer doctor visits, fight loneliness, encourage more exercise, reduce stress and ease the loss of a loved one. Nationally, Pets for the Elderly Foundation reached 5,061 adoptions in 2017, Vaselaney said. Since it began 25 years ago, there have been more than 76,000 adoptions through the Foundation.

Vaselaney focuses her practice on estate planning for business owners and individuals. She works with clients to both plan and administer estates that range from the very modest to the large and sophisticated. She also represents clients in probate litigation matters and before federal and state taxing authorities.