MAGDRL's Board of Directors - Volunteers
Nikki Russell

Location: Northern VA

Rescue Experience: We adopted our second Dane 8 years ago and I’ve been hooked on rescue ever since! I started volunteering after that and adopted another Dane in 2005. For the last three years, I’ve been a Coordinator for the Northern Virginia area. This has given me a great deal of experience with our own volunteers, adopters and fosters. In addition to being a Match Maker and the Home Check Coordinator, I also work to bring Danes into the rescue and place them into foster homes. I myself, foster failed in January 2006 after fostering 2 puppy siblings which now brings my crew to 5 Danes and 3 rescued cats! One of my jobs as a coordinator and a volunteer is to educate the public about Danes. I do that by holding a Meet & Greet every month at our local Petsmart and attending many local events. I enjoy talking with many people, educating them on rescue and encouraging them to adopt or volunteer. I also enjoy designing new items for the Café Press MAGDRL Mall and Zazzle…and I have designed several original graphics for MAGDRL events and merchandise.

Special Skills: I have worked in the real estate business for over 6 years, had my real estate agent license and am currently working for a Real Estate Broker. I am also painting commissioned pet portraits and doing computer graphics for several different companies. I have a bachelors degree in Journalism/Advertising (minor in Art) and have used these skills often as a coordinator and the volunteer representative on the board. I believe all of my experience in these areas enables me to work well with our volunteers and members.

Motto: Animals can’t speak for themselves, so we have to be their advocates and stand up for them. I always knew I would help animals in one way or another, but didn’t know my true calling until Great Danes and the rescue found me.

Vision for MAGDRL: This rescue has come so far and will only get bigger and better. My vision for this position is to use technology to move us forward and make our jobs more efficient. My goal, is to try and find or implement a program that will bring our volunteer and accounting records together for easier access. This would also allow us a more proficient volunteer database to contact volunteers and members with programs, events and updates. In the past two years, our rescue’s volunteer base and grown by 37%! That is great accomplishment for an all “volunteer” organization and a wonderful tribute to all our members!

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