The Team

Who We Are

Yi Cheng

President & CEO

Yi Cheng serves as the President and CEO of Able Family. He founded "Able Family" with the intention of assisting both animals and people by facilitating meaningful connections between them, enabling mutual benefits. His primary focus is on connecting animals in shelters with safe homes and individuals who are struggling with mental health issues. His inspiration stemmed from the experience of donating art to shelters, which fueled his eagerness to extend help to more animals. Additionally, witnessing the profound impact of mental health challenges on numerous individuals, including his own mother, has motivated him to create positive change within the community. His goal is to raise awareness and offer support to those in need.

Ashley Dowdy

Chief Humane Officer

Ashley Dowdy holds the esteemed position of Chief Humane Officer, bringing with her extensive years of experience working closely with animals. She firmly believes in the transformative and healing power that animals possess when it comes to mental health.

Cindy Rubin

Chief Financial Officer

Cindy Rubin is a native of Los Angeles, with a passion for cultivating an essence of whole-person and multi-generational family wellness through interactions and bonding with animals. Her perspective of personal wellness encompasses both physical and emotional aspects. In particular, wellness is impacted more affirmatively with the introduction, relationship-bonding, and affection of animals when dealing with layers of trauma, grief, and loss. She currently works for Los Angeles County, serving over 22 years in the public sector, and holds both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science Degrees in the field of Forensics. Cindy has rescued cats throughout the streets of Los Angeles for over thirty years, adopting many herself, or identifying “forever homes” for numerous others. In addition to being an animal lover and advocate, Cindy’s foremost priority includes her family; her husband, young son, and tender daughter Darby Jean who passed away untimely as a toddler. Additionally, she recently finalized a California Early Start statewide document entitled “Darby’s Legacy: Best Practices When Serving Families With Infants and Toddlers Who Are Medically Fragile.” When Cindy is not busy rescuing animals, serving as a parent advocate for medically-fragile children, writing and cultivating program implementation for Los Angeles County, and balancing family life, she enjoys dabbling in her culinary hobby, reading, meditating, and researching all things scientific true-crime.