Bios for New 2025-2026 Officers & Directors

President: Gorham (Rory) Clark: Rory Clark is the managing partner and founder of the Legacy Elder Law Center (Clark & Limjoco, P.C.), a four-attorney law firm that practices throughout Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia. The firm limits its practice to elder law, estate planning, special needs law, fiduciary litigation, guardianship and conservatorships, as well as probate and trust administration. Rory is also the president of GuideWISE, a care coordination and caregiver support company, and GuideWISE Realty, which helps families prepare for and handle housing transitions, that are affiliated with the Legacy Elder Law Center. He is accredited by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) for the preparation, presentation, and prosecution of claims for veterans’ benefits. He has earned an "AV Preeminent" Peer Review Rating by Martindale-Hubbell. In 2022, the Virginia Law Foundation/Virginia CLE designated Rory as one of first two Qualified Master Counselors in Trust and Estates Practice in the Commonwealth. Since 2021, Rory has been a member of the Board of Directors of the Virginia Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (VAELA) where he was a Co-Chairman of the Member Relations and Communications Committee and a member of the Strategic Planning Committee. He is a contributing author to the VAELA online public resources library responsible for Medicaid/Medicare/VA and long-term care planning content. He has most recently served as Vice President of VAELA and Chairman of the Strategic Planning Committee.

Vice President: Stephen E. Taylor: Stephen is a partner at Oast & Taylor PLC, a firm specializing in Estate Planning and Elder Law. Since graduating from the University of Richmond School of Law, Stephen has served on the Board of Directors for several non-profit organizations, including the Virginia Zoological Society and Tidewater Arts Outreach. He currently serves as Treasurer for the Board of Directors for the Virginia Academy of Elder Law Attorneys (VAELA), previously serving as Co-Chairman of the Communications & Member Relations Committee. Stephen is a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Accredited Attorney, and he is licensed to practice in both Virginia and North Carolina.

Treasurer: Joseph W. Thelin: Joe is a partner at von Keller Thelin where his practice focuses on Estate Planning, Estate Administration (Probate), Trust Administration, Estate and Trust Litigation, and Guardianship and Conservatorship. Joe has been an active practicing member of the Virginia State Bar in Northern Virginia since his graduation from Washington and Lee University School of Law in 2002. He previously served the Prince William County Bar Association as Treasurer and is currently serving as the Chairman of the Judicial Evaluation Committee and as Chairman of the Budget and Audit Committee. Joe also serves the Court as a court-appointed Guardian ad Litem in adult guardianship cases and has previously served as court appointed counsel for indigent defendants.

Joe serves on the VAELA Board of Directors and as Co-Chair of the VAELA Communications & Member Relations Committee

New Directors

Melissa A. Freakley: Melissa joined Logan & Logan in 2020. As a prior military spouse, Melissa has had the opportunity to practice law in multiple jurisdictions across the country. She previously worked for a boutique law firm specializing in estate planning and estate and gift taxation issues. Additionally, she worked for the County Administrator of Liberty County, Georgia, in the administration and probate of estates. After careful consultation with clients, she prepares wills, trusts, powers of attorney, health care directives and associated documents for her clients. Additionally, she advises fiduciaries and beneficiaries on the probate process from the filing of required probate forms to the collection and distribution of a deceased person’s estate. Melissa is licensed to practice in New York, Georgia, and Virginia.

Mario Pizzamiglio: Mario if a member of VAELA and owner of Ardent Guardian. He is an attorney, CPA, and a CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(r), leading a team of service professionals who honor the timeless values of personalized service and genuine relationships while embracing the convenience and efficiency of modern technology.

Aubrey Carew Sizer: Aubrey Carew Sizer is a member of the Virginia State Bar with a practice focused on estate planning and elder law, specifically, long-term care planning, special needs planning for the disabled, guardianship and conservatorship, and probate/estate and trust administration. She is qualified to serve as a Guardian ad Litem for incapacitated persons and enjoys serving that population throughout Northern Virginia. A graduate of Boston University (BA), The George Washington University (MA), and George Mason University School of Law (JD), Aubrey has lived and worked in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan area since 2007.