Meet Team RWAR
Kim A.
FOUNDER​
Violet V.
CO-FOUNDER​
Lisa S.
DOG TEAM
Medical Coordinator
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Motivated by her love of dogs and her desire to help her friend Kim, Lisa joined the rescue in 2021. With her experience in insurance, her organizational and customer service skills have been essential for keeping up with the daily medical needs of RWAR's dogs. Lisa oversees new dog intake, coordinating vet visits and vaccine clinics, and tracking medical requirements of each dog. She also helps Kathy with Petfinder as needed.
Kathy H.
DOG TEAM
Medical Assistant
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Kathy began fostering and helping out at adoption events for RWAR in 2021. Her involvement with the rescue really took off when she teamed up with Lisa to assist with dog medical needs. With her background as a radiographer, Kathy brought valuable skills to the team, such as: dosing medications, record keeping, general medical knowledge, and keeping the medical room stocked with supplies at all times. She also manages dog profiles on Petfinder.
Melissa R.
CAT TEAM
Fosters/Adoptions/Events
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Melissa is a Pediatric Occupational Therapy Assistant and brings a gentle, patient, and compassionate hand to the homeless cats at RWAR. She became a member of the team in February of 2023 after initially offering to unload a truck full of supplies. She believes that no volunteer role is too small! Melissa assumes a number of roles for RWAR, including helping out fosters with anything they may need, approving adoptions, and coordinating events.
Bree S.
CAT TEAM
Public Relations
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Bree has been a RWAR volunteer since its formation in 2021. She has a Bachelors degree in professional writing and uses these skills to answer cat inquiries from the community, edit RWAR’s website, and assist the founder with a variety of other tasks. She also specializes in fostering orphaned neonate kittens and operates her own pet sitting business. While Bree’s role in RWAR is currently more behind the scenes, she’s still not afraid to get her hands dirty. She often accompanies Kim to Kentucky to help out the shelter RWAR partners with, and humanely traps the occasional stray cat. Bree has had a fierce passion for animals since she was just a baby and that fierce passion remains to this day.
Gianna F.
CAT TEAM
Medical Assistant/Cat Care
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Gianna is attending school full-time to become a veterinarian. Even with a full schedule of classes, she still squeezes in time to help out at RWAR, showcasing her enormous passion for animals! Gianna brings many vital skills she learns from her classes to help RWAR with cat medical needs. She administers vaccines, prepares medications, gives IV fluids to sick cats, diligently fills out medical records, and so much more.
Kameryn F.
CAT TEAM
Social Media/Record Keeping
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Kam balances her work as an HR Coordinator in hotel management with her dedication to RWAR.​​ She plays a vital role in advocating for cats, overseeing their health while on their adoption journey. With a strong focus on data organization and reporting, Kam helps streamline processes to ensure the rescue's success. She also leverages social media and networking to expand RWAR’s impact. Passionate about animal welfare, Kam is deeply involved in the rescue’s mission: from fostering and coordinating adoption events to supporting day-to-day rescue operations.
Jessie W.
CAT TEAM
Medical Assistant
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With a passion for animal welfare, Jessie has been proudly volunteering for RWAR for over a year. Her rescue journey has involved a variety of roles, from helping out at events to providing medical care to RWAR's cats. As a lifelong animal lover, Jessie's mission is to help as many animals as possible find loving homes. She believes that every animal is deserving of this right, and dedicates her life to making this happen every day.
Grace R.
CAT TEAM
Medical Assistant/Cat Care
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Grace has been part of Team RWAR for almost a year now. She is currently studying biomedical science in the hopes of one day becoming a veterinarian. The knowledge she learns in the classroom is a valuable asset to RWAR since she often assists with cat medical and care, as well as dog care. Grace is thankful to RWAR for giving her the opportunity to work closely with their animals (and receive lots of snuggles).
Melody K.
VOLUNTEER
Volunteer Coordinator
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Melody has been fostering and working in the rescue world for over 10 years. Using her skills as a local teacher has made Melody an excellent Volunteer Coordinator for RWAR. She matches new volunteers with roles they love, as well as staffs extra volunteer help for events and animal care. Melody also fosters dogs and cats for RWAR and is now a two-time "foster fail," as she has kept one cat and one dog she fostered!
Cindy G.
VOLUNTEER
Grant Writer
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Cindy joined Team RWAR in April 2024 after helping fellow volunteers with a supply run. She has always been an animal advocate and thought the next logical step was to become a RWAR volunteer. Cindy works in operations and finance and utilizes her professional experience to assist RWAR with grant writing. She also continues to provide support for the general needs of the rescue
Kim M.
VOLUNTEER
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Kim joined RWAR right in the beginning, in 2021. By day Kim is a Project Manager, but her true passion lies in helping animals in need. Over the years, Kim has stepped in wherever she is needed: from fostering, calling references, prepping for transport, organizing and attending events, to helping out with cat and dog care. What keeps her going is seeing an animal go home with its furever family.​​
Jane H.
VOLUNTEER
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Jane discovered RWAR while searching for volunteer opportunities in the Lemont community. Her passion has always been to help the underdogs. So when she saw how many homeless animals there are in her community alone, she fiercely sought out how to make a difference, no matter how small. With her background in telecommunications, Jane is a force to be reckoned with, driving positive morale within the team while assisting with Kentucky transports and RWAR events.​​​​​​​​​​​​​
Amy P.
VOLUNTEER
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Amy has been with RWAR since the very beginning. She is an Office Administrator as well as a member of the Lemont Junior Woman's Club. With her excellent people skills, Amy assists with connecting volunteers, resources, and organizations. She enjoys helping out at adoption events, picking up donations from local residents, and assisting with cat care.​​​​​​​​​​​​
Carol Z.
VOLUNTEER
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Carol has been with RWAR for over 2 years.
there 2 years. Retired special education teacher 19 yrs. Small business owner started 5 years ago. Yes Bee Clutterfree. Professional organizer. Great problem solver. Super compassionate. Animal lover my whole life. Thrive on helping others. People person.love a challenge. Always had a deep desire to support the struggling humans, animals, and things other people don't want to. Favorite quotes: "Gratitude is not only the greatest of virtues, but the parent of all others". Cicero Also, I have done mostly dog/cat care. Transport. Organizing. Cleaning or whatever needs to get done. Foster and do events.​​​​​​​​​​​​​