ANIMAL ADVOCACY
I first became involved with the Humane Society of the North Bay after moving from San Francisco to Vallejo, CA. I had been accustomed to the generosity of the supporters of the homeless dogs and cats in The City and the pristine facilities in which they were housed.
I was not prepared for the reality of an animal shelter in a less affluent area. I cried the first time I visited the HSNB. Not because the animals were not well cared for (they were) but because of the bootstrapped conditions under which the HSNB was operating.
I quickly realized I needed to get involved and leverage my marketing expertise to help the abandoned pets at the shelter find loving and caring forever homes.
My first big program was to chair the shelter's annual Mardi Paws fundraising event in June 2019, where we raised over $28,000, a 48% increase in net proceeds over the previous year.
I am grateful I can have a positive impact on these amazing animals, each of whom is deserving of their own loving family.
During my time as a volunteer and later as a Board Member for the HSNB, I led the organization's marketing, communications, and fundraising efforts. My journey began with writing compelling dog profiles to boost adoptions. Below are some key highlights of my contributions and impact:
Marketing & Communications
Animal Profiles
One of my most fulfilling roles at the shelter was writing the individual dog profiles*.
An animal's online profile is the first exposure a potential adopter has to the pet.
By sharing each pet's story and personality, and conveying why each deserved a loving family and home, we increased the chance that a pet would be adopted exponentially.
I created the guidelines for writing the profiles and selected and trained a small group of volunteers to ensure each pet was given a voice and a better chance of a forever home.
*Cats are adopted very quickly at the HSNB, therefore, they did not require detailed online profiles.
Social Media
I led the expansion of our social media presence beyond Facebook to appeal to a broader demographic of potential adopters. We created Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube channels for the shelter.
I managed a team of social and video volunteers to help keep these channels fresh and engaging.
We embedded the videos into the pet profiles to better share their energy and personalities.
Under my guidance, we also began actively responding to reviews on Yelp! and Google.
Website Redesign
I led the complete redesign of the Humane Society of the North Bay's website in 2021.
This included vendor selection, information architecture development, website design, and content creation for each page.
The goals of the new site were to 1) showcase our adoptable pets, 2) share information on our services and resources, and 3) convey the multitude of ways for the community to get involved and support us.
I also felt it important to share 'success stories' by featuring many of our adopted pets throughout the website (including our LuLu, Trixie, GiGi, & Tessa).
Visit hsnb.org
Fundraising & Donor Management
In February 2020, COVID-19 forced everything to shut down, including the HSNB.
Recognizing the situation was not short-term, I took the initiative to self-teach the Network for Good donor management software and assumed responsibility for the shelter's online fundraising efforts. While I was initially nervous, I was thrilled to see donations start coming in, knowing it was making a direct and positive impact on supporting the animals in our care.
Our first emails in late March and early April each saw strong performance.
We launched a "thank you" email campaign to stay connected with our human adopters.
We refined messaging and tested visuals, subject lines, and body copy throughout the year in preparation for our year-end fundraising.
Covid-19 Campaign Adopter Emails Year-end Fundraising - Coming Soon
Meet Our Super Pack
During my time volunteering at the HSNB, my husband and I adopted four girls, each of whom were found wandering the streets of Vallejo.
Our first rescue, LuLu (aka LucyLu), was a rat terrier who fancied dried worms despite my best efforts to break her of this habit. She was our Zoomie queen who loved squeaky toys. She's now zooming around heaven with more toys than she ever dreamed possible.
Trixie, our golden senior doxie mix with the 'chill', tie dye personality. She liked to dart out the front door and tested us daily with her finicky appetite. She's now in a better place, eating whatever she wants...whenever she wants.
GiGi is our teacup chihuahua with the fleur de lis markings and a serious attitude. Despite her small size, her nickname is "Scary Spice". She is fearless, demanding, and a little bit frightening. She despises walks, but loves to shred paper and steal socks.
And Tessa, the little girl whom I doubted would survive the weekend when I first brought her home. She embraced her second chance, picked me as 'her person', and enjoyed 2 years, 2 months, & 18 days together until she peacefully crossed over the rainbow bridge in my arms.
LuLu, Tessa, GiGi, and Trixe during our move to Nevada in July 2020.
Our New Additions
Meet Izzie, our 9+-year-old Chiweenie.
In the Spring of 2024, we decided the house was a bit too quiet with just two little dogs, so we adopted these two adorable senior pups from the Pet Network in Incline Village, Nevada.
Izzie is our mischievous, free-spirited little girl who is a total rockstar on the hiking trails.
Photon is our sweet, scruffy little boy – diaper-wearing, endlessly charming, and full of love.
Our pack is complete with GiGi and these two marvelous misfit mutts...at least for now. 😉
Meet Photon, our 12+-year-old Terrier mix.