Andi
About
Anyone who goes through life unastounded by everything he sees is not alive...be grateful for having been born into such a world. - Gerald Durrell
• Writing unforgettable stories and books about our world and its inhabitants
• Teaching the wonder and value of all animals and our responsibility to them
• Helping animals, one at a time, and empowering others to do the same
Andi Lehman freelances in diverse market genres. She writes articles, devotions, grants, and frequent nonfiction stories for multiple publishers including Revell (a division of Baker House), Chicken Soup for the Soul, and Grace Publishing. Topics often feature one of her many education animal partners or critters from her past. Her recently published children's book, Saving Schmiddy, recounts (in the voice of her young son) a life-changing adventure with an injured speckled kingsnake.
Andi is a popular public speaker for her company, Life with Animals, and she actively promotes the value, conservation, and care of all creatures. She has written 36 original entertaining programs and presents them with her education animals at public libraries, schools, birthday parties, and festivals in MS and TN. Over the years, she has appeared on local television shows and been interviewed on regional podcasts.
Andi is a regular educational speaker at Repticon shows and an occasional speaker at Strawberry Plains Audubon Center, Rotary clubs, and many other service organizations. Her young rescued dog, Poco, is in training to replace her beloved 14-year-old canine partner, Bitsy, as a volunteer with the Alliance of Therapy Dogs.
Andi wrote the land-lease grant proposal which established 154 acres as the ARK, Arkabutla Lake Wildlife and Nature Center, in north Mississippi and was awarded a Community Volunteer of the Year award for her work with local libraries and with MS Wildlife Rehabilitation. For over thirty years, she has volunteered for wildlife or domestic rescue organizations and currently rescues and re-homes indigenous snakes and exotic reptiles.
Over the years, Andi has written grants or provided editing services to both corporate and non-profit organizations and has contributed to regional and international magazines. She authored two holiday family devotional guides for local churches and donates her work and time to several non-profits including the Society of St. Andrew, Samaritan's Purse, Strawberry Plains Audubon, the Hernando Farmers Market, and the James F. Anderson Public Library, where she serves as Vice President of the Friends of the Hernando Library.
With fellow author, Tracy Crump, owner of Write Life Workshops, Andi also co-hosts local presentations of “Stirring the Pot: How to Write for Chicken Soup for the Soul.” For more information please visit WriteLifeWorkshops.com.
Andi belongs to the Editorial Freelancers Association, the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, and the MS Writer’s Guild. She graduated from the University of Memphis with a bachelor degree in Communications, and she is a certified MS Audubon Naturalist.
Contact Andi directly for speaking engagements (featuring all of her education programs) or through the MS Humanities Council (offering The Queen's Critters: How the Victorian Era Shaped Your Life with Animals.)
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Andi Lehman is a proud Navy brat whose father served as an aviator for 28 years. She has lived on the Atlantic and Pacific coasts and the Gulf of Mexico and she has loved the ocean and all kinds of animals for as long as she can remember. Some of her earliest photos are taken with critters at the San Diego Zoo, where she met her first tortoise and a friendly deer. To keep her from bringing home every stray cat in Ankara, Turkey, her parents helped her adopt a rescued kitten named Grungy when she was six, and so began a lifelong adventure with a variety of amazing animals. Grungy’s adventures have been featured in Second-Chance Cats and The Cat in the Christmas Tree, both available on Amazon.
Andi has been married to her husband since 1983, and they are blessed with two children. As a newlywed, she worked for OFF DUTY magazine in Germany and traveled extensively in Europe. She volunteers for a number of regional organizations and plays the piano for her church in Mississippi. She enjoys sharing her love of animals and serving in her community.
Associations & Honors
Friends of the Hernando Library Vice President
Editorial Freelancers Association, member
Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators, member
MS Writer’s Guild, member
Byhalia Christian Writers Group, past secretary/treasurer
MidSouth Christian Writer’s Conference, past Hospitality Chairman
Volunteer of the Year Award, 2008, Community Foundation of North MS
Multiple awards for work in local community theaters in North MS and Memphis
Repticon Memphis Show, dedicated speaker
Meet The Team
Tammy Nash
Guest Educator
Tammy Nash is ALWA’s most regular volunteer, a reformed snake-fearer with a heart of gold and a servant spirit that won’t quit. A longtime friend, we met at the Olive Branch Library over twenty years ago and have shared a love of animals and books ever since!
Lindsi Wilson
Guest Educator
Lindsi Wilson’s love for and dedication to reptiles made us fast friends when we first met at Petco in Southaven. Over the years, she has volunteered for every aspect of ALWA, even as the Rat Catcher with Queen Victoria for A Dickens of a Christmas!
Korey Wilson
Guest Educator
Dragged good-naturedly into service by his wife, Korey Wilson is great with all animals and particularly loves ALWA’s large snakes. His sense of humor and his willingness to lend a hand in any capacity make him a valued member of the team!
Emily Hayes
Videographer & Branding Specialist
Photographer/Videographer extraordinaire and the driving force behind ALWA’s enhanced presence online, Emily is legendary for her patience with my lack of technical savvy. She has single-handedly dragged ALWA into the 21st century to showcase my animals and books!
Meet Andi’s Animals
Animals are such agreeable friends - they ask no questions, they pass no criticisms. - George Elliot
Click on each image to learn more about Andi's educational animals!
In Memoriam
The hardest thing about loving animals is losing them. - Andi Lehman
The best way to honor an animal you've loved and lost is to love another. - Captain Jim Yates, USN
