Trade Association Directory

I am an ex Veterinary technician who found Joyce Leake and learning how to communicate with animals through Naropa University.  A round table discussion there led me to buy her book and I immediately signed up for classes.  I have completed 4 levels and communicate regularly for friends and family.  (Always suggesting that a "professional" might also be warranted!)  I have moved my interest in writing to AU and hope to keep the website current, exciting, interesting, and touching all at once.

BETTE HELLER is in private practice with offices in both Centennial and Englewood.  Her practice is limited to Estate Planning, Probate, and Medicaid Planning.

 Ms. Heller received her B.A. from the University of Rochester in 1972, and her Juris Doctor Degree from the University of Denver College of Law in 1979.

 As a member of the Colorado Bar Association, Ms. Heller has been a voting Member of the Trust and Estate Section Council, and a member of the Elder Law Section.

 She has also been an active member of the Statutory Revisions Committee of the Trusts and Estates Section of the Colorado Bar Association since 1984, and has served as its Co-Chair, then its Chair, and then its Legislative Liaison.  As part of her work on that Committee, she was involved in the drafting and passage of the Colorado Probate Code II, which became effective on July 1, 1995; and is the author of the Colorado Pets Trust Statute.

 Ms. Heller is also a current member of the Aurora Bar Association, and the Arapahoe County Bar Association; and a past member of the Denver Bar Association, the Douglas/Elbert County Bar Association, the Centennial Estate Planning Council, and the Douglas County Seniors Council.

 Ms. Heller has authored several articles on legal issues for both the legal community and for the general public.  She also lectures from time to time on these subjects, including having been a lecturer for the Senior Law Day, an educational program for Senior Citizens addressing their special legal needs and sponsored by the Elder Law Section of the Colorado Bar Association.

 On a more personal note, Ms. Heller is an animal lover and owns a dog, a cat and two horses.  She has a second business brokering horses (putting buyers and sellers together); and competes with her horses in “Team Penning” and “Team Sorting”, events which involve herding cattle.

 In connection with her interest in the Horse Industry, she has been an active member of the Colorado Horse Council (CHC) since 1985, having served as a Director for eighteen years, and also as Secretary, Treasurer, Vice President and President, in turn.  The Colorado Horse Council monitors and proposes legislation affecting the Colorado horse industry.  CHC was responsible for the drafting and passage of the Colorado Equine Limited Liability Act and Ms. Heller was an integral part of that effort.

 Ms. Heller has been an Animal Communicator for many years, having studied under Joyce Leake in 1998.  She is now combining the social work aspect of her Law Practice, which involves counseling her clients in dealing with their own death and/or the death of their family members, with her animal communication skills, to counsel animal owners in dealing with the legal and emotional issues that arise when we are faced with the death of our animal friends.