Interestingly enough, it was my parents who first introduced me to the Hallmark show Home & Family, and I have to admit I was a bit reticent at first. Why would I sit for two hours and watch a talk show? Other networks had those. But it wasn’t too long before I succumbed to the charm this show invariably effuses; it was their “Christmas in July” shows that first hooked me. And before long, I began to choose my favorite hosts (which is essentially all of them for one reason or another) and segments. Larissa Wohl was one whom I only more recently “discovered.” I knew that a featured pet segment aired on the show once in a while, and usually, I wasn’t terribly interested. But one day, I noticed this bubbly brunette, and I could sense her passion for these amazingly diverse but desperately needy pets. Here was a woman I was convinced I needed to seek out for a chat, and I am quite honored to share our recent conversation with you today.

Credit: © 2018 Crown Media United States, LLC | Photo: Alexx Henry Studios, LLC / jeremy lee

RH: Larissa, I am so glad we got connected.

LW: Ruth, I am honored that you reached out. Thank you.

So I understand that you were a journalist before you came to Home & Family.

Yes, I went to San Francisco State University, and after graduation from their television and radio department, I knew I really wanted to go into reporting and journalism. I moved back home to LA for a while after school, and I soon realized how crazy the LA world is. It suddenly clicked that I was gonna have to leave LA in order to get my career started as a journalist. So I went to Arizona for a couple of years, and I worked for the local NBC (KVOA) in Tucson. That was kinda cool. But then I wanted to become an anchor. So I went to a smaller market, Bakersfield, California and then onto San Diego. And then I ended up here, so I did bounce around quite a bit, doing reporting and anchoring and producing news. I always worked hard to make my focus an animal focus as much as possible. Whenever there was any animal news, that was always my thing.

Have you always had a love for animals?

Yes. My mom, who has now passed away, but was around for most of my life, she was a big animal lover and rescuer. I swear they always found us! No matter if we were driving or we were on a walk or if we were on the way to a concert, we would come across some kind of animal that needed help. So that’s where it first came from; it was definitely my mom’s influence. And my poor dad would come home and count how many animals we had. {laughs} She was always bringing in new animals. Of course, my dad loved animals, but he wasn’t an animal lover like she was.

I can somewhat relate because we live in the country, and we at one time had either seventeen or nineteen cats. It took us two years to catch that feral mother cat and have her fixed. But my dad would cringe every time she brought us a new litter.

My mom was the cat lady, and my dad was allergic. But that didn’t stop her. She kept bringing them home. {laughs} He grew to live with them. In fact, my mom had rabbits too. They were always having more babies.

How long have you been with Home & Family?

Well, my situation was a little interesting. I was working as a reporter on a television show in San Diego, and the show itself decided to switch things up with their format. So the San Diego bureau closed. I came back to LA and immediately landed a job as a producer here at Home & Family. That was never my plan, but I figured I’d do it and try something new. After all, I know how to produce. I was curious to see where I would go next. I wasn’t really planning to stay here all that long.

Once I started with the show, I really liked the format. I liked not dealing with death and gore and shootings. You know, all that negative stuff that comes with news. I also liked that I had a normal schedule because the news world, as much as I love it and miss it to a certain degree, I usually worked the morning shows, so I was up at the crack of dawn. I kind of liked having a normal life for a little bit. And I ended up being here for a little over two years as a producer.

When they decided that they wanted to do more animal rescue segments, I said, “Let me help. Whatever you need. I have the contacts and I know a lot of rescues, and this is what I do in my real life.” And so it worked out. So now, all in all, it’s been about three years of kind of split roles on the show.

When I get a chance to watch the show, I saw that they would bring you on, but recently, I noticed they are bringing you on almost daily. And I like that. It’s a nice, positive way to kick everything off.

It used to be that we always had an adoption once a week. And I would do those very occasionally if for some reason the woman who usually did them couldn’t be there. But then they pushed it to one a day, which was awesome! Obviously, for me, that’s an amazing opportunity to help animals. And it’s been really wonderful. By last count, I think we’ve helped about five hundred forty dogs and cats that we’ve showcased here who have found homes. I try to keep up to date with all the animals. And I’m always hounding all the rescues with, “Did so-and-so find a home yet?” I love being able to see the progress that we’re doing. I can’t think of another show that does a daily adoption and also tries to follow-up and bring those happy success stories down the road. We can’t get to all of them, obviously, but we try to get to as many as we can.

It sounds like that takes a lot of your time. I was wondering what your other responsibilities were, but you’ve laid that out pretty well.

You know, it’s so funny. There were a couple of weeks when I first started in this role that I had a lot of free time. And it felt weird because I don’t usually ever have free time. But now that we’ve gotten into the groove, I do not have any free time! And I love it that way! But yes, I’m the one who sets up the schedule for what animals are coming in. We usually try to have a mixture of big dogs, small dogs, cats, Facetimes, on-set–so it’s kind of a jigsaw puzzle. So I put that together. And I get all the video of the animals when they come to set, or I have to coordinate with them for Facetime. Then I’m always checking in to find the latest updates on the animals. I do produce my own segments. So all the segments that you see me doing–the longer segments, not just the Facetimes or the on-set adoptions..that’s all me too. So it definitely takes up every waking minute, but again, because it’s a genre that I’m so passionate about, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

And your passion definitely comes through.

Oh good. I’m glad. Thank you.

When I realized that you were doing these daily segments, I thought, “Wow, she really has a heart for these animals.”

Thank you, and yes, I so do. I’ve worked in and around shelters my whole life, so I almost forget because to me, that’s second nature. I forget that so many people have never been aware or around that type or group of people that know the ins and outs of these shelters. So any education that I can spread is so wonderful.

I did have the opportunity to watch the American Dog Rescue Show. I have to tell you that I thought it was so well done. Yes, I’ve seen some of the other dog shows, and they’re fine, but it was neat to see these rescue dogs, and some were mixed breeds. And I loved that. And the categories were so much fun.

Yes, it really was embracing the imperfections that make rescues perfect. It was taking the silly, funny, quirky, weird things they do and putting it on a pedestal. And that’s what I think is so wonderful about it. We used to live in a world where you wanted the purebreds and the bloodlines that went back to gosh knows when. And now to see people falling in love with the ones that are the underdogs…the ones that have missing limbs or missing teeth or whatever. It’s so nice to see the switch in people’s consciousness. So being able to be a part of that show was just “wow!” What an experience. It was a dream come true. I can only hope that we have ten more at least.

Oh yeah! I’m hoping it becomes a yearly event.

Me too! Especially because now that there has been one, there’s so many things we learned about doing it. It was a phenomenal show in every sense of the word, but if we get a chance to do it again, it’s only going to get better and better.

Exactly. Just like with the Kitten Bowl. I’ve been watching it all this time, and I thought this year’s was the best so far.

Right. Everyone involved in these shows has vast experience in a wide variety of shows and now we have another format to add to our repertoire. We’re always learning along the way, and getting all the feedback is always so amazing and helpful. And as wonderful as this year was, I’m gonna put it out there that we have a million more. We can just keep going and tweaking things and make it shine even more.

And it was so great to read the story behind the senior dog who won. I mean, I loved that senior dog, but after reading the story…I cannot conceive of abandoning a dog in the first place, but when they drop them off at a shelter because they wanted a puppy…I mean the dog is eleven years old and more than likely doesn’t have a whole lot of time left.

It’s unbelievable. I’ve always said in this industry or in the rescue community, you see the worst of people and you see the best of people. You see these horrific things that people do to these innocent creatures. And no human would stand for this kind of treatment, but because they’re animals and they’re voiceless, people get away with it. And then you also see so many wonderful people that step up and come together and go to such extreme lengths, whether it’s financially or geographically, and they sacrifice so much for these animals. You really get the best and the worst.

It’s wonderful that Hallmark promotes this whole “adopt, don’t shop” concept. I know it’s always been out there, but it seems like it’s become such a part of their network. It bleeds over into all their other programming.

I know! I say this to everybody, but I’m still pinching myself that not only is this my job, this specific role, but I work for a network that has this passion. I know it’s trendy to be into animals and rescue. But there are different extremes, and Hallmark is so dedicated, so much more so than I’ve encountered with any other station I’ve worked with. I mean all the news stations I’ve worked with want to give back, and I’m heavily involved in community events and charities. That’s part of it what you do when you sign up to be in news. But never before have I seen a group of people behind a channel or a network that are so deep into this and really want to make a difference whatever it takes. They find the money or whatever to make it happen. Their motto now is “Adoption Ever After.” We’re trying to spread that ’cause it’s true that every animal deserves their happy ending. And not only that. We bring on these people and these stories which prove time and again that the animals truly do rescue the people. It goes both ways.

I am in full agreement. I think of the elderly or those who have no children. I think of people who are isolated. And even in my situation, there are times that my cat gets me out of bed and gives me a reason to get up. I may want to stay in bed and let the world pass me by, but that cat won’t let me.

That is so true. And all the milestones you reach as a human, your animals usually go along those milestones with you, so there’s this bond. One of my cats–and this was my first real cat, other than my mom bringing in cats–this cat passed away a few years ago. I remember being so much more heartbroken than I expected to be because all of a sudden I thought of all the different things we had gone through together. They do hold such an important piece of you.

Now, I’m curious. Were you a Hallmark fan before you started working for the network?

Yes, I always loved the movies because my mom, when she was sick, would watch the Hallmark movies all the time. She just loved the happy endings. They were always easy to watch and relatable, but they were always predictable. But you still get caught up in them and they take you out of life for a couple of hours. So yes, I did like Hallmark before.

That’s great. So, I know that Mark Steines was put in a Hallmark movie a couple Christmases ago, but would you ever be interested in being in a Hallmark movie sometime?

Oh my gosh, I would love it! Can you imagine? I rescue a dog and find my prince?

That would be awesome! I think they should do it.

I would love to have a cameo in a Hallmark movie. I’m ready and willing.

Well, let’s hope it happens soon. I mean after all, look at Happy the Dog. He’s a big celebrity now.

It’s so fun. When Happy comes in, I’m like his voice. I always say that around him, I become a dog. {laughs} After all, I’m speaking for Happy!

Then they could easily put you and Happy together in a Hallmark movie.

I would love it. And I tell you, they always end up finding the love of their life, so I think we could really get something going here.

Well, I will make sure that Michelle Vicary and Bill Abbott see this interview so that they know you have that desire. They are so wonderful about reading my interviews and commenting on them.

That’s great! I’ve got Ruth on my side. I like it. And Michelle and Bill are amazing. I thank Bill all the time via email. None of this would have happened without the both of them. They have such a love for this and they both push for it. And as I said, I pinch myself every day. I just can’t believe I get to work for such an amazing network and do something right in line with my passions.

Larissa, I cannot thank you enough for taking some time to chat with me today.

Ruth, it is my pleasure. I appreciate you reaching out. This is the first time anyone has ever interviewed me. It’s always been the other way around. Thanks to you and the whole Hallmark family for all of your support.

I’ve heard it said that you can tell a lot about someone by the way that person treats animals. And in the case of Larissa, that is true to the utmost measure. The fact that she has such an ardent passion for animals and is devoted to ensuring that every one of the animals featured on Home & Family earns the right and privilege of finding a “forever home” is enough of a reason to support this energetic and vivacious woman. She rarely thinks of herself, as I would venture to say that the animals and the other people in her life always come first; and as she stated…she couldn’t be happier. She thrives on that genuine work which fuels her passion, and I doubt she will ever “get over” the fact that she gets to wake up every morning and work for this incomparable network while sharing those labors with the most extraordinary people on the planet. Her life is one miracle of gratitude that continues to overwhelm and inspire her to keep striving for the impending milestones in rescue pet care while never ignoring the neglected animal that needs a hug, a kiss, a tender word, and a forever home.
If you are so inclined, I invite you to tune in (or set your DVR) for Home & Family every weekday morning on the Hallmark Channel and watch out for those darling pets that are up for adoption who are accompanied by the lively and compassionate Larissa. Furthermore, if you’re interested, please check out her links below and consider following her on social media. While I have yet to meet this angelic woman, I know for a fact that Hallmark is just as fortunate to have a woman of her commitment, giftedness, and vision as she is to work for such a phenomenal network!

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