top of page
Meet the Team

Meet our Ambassador Animals, Staff, & Board of Directors

Ambassador Animals

Ambassador animals are educational resident animals that have been deemed non-releasable for a variety of reasons. Our Ambassador Animals are given not only physical necessities and medical care at ECWR, but also a whole lot of love! They teach us the importance of keeping the wild, wild.

How do we get Animal Ambassadors?

As mentioned above, our ambassadors cannot be released into the wild due to a variety of factors. Below are some situations in which an animal may become an Ambassador Animal:

  1. An animal has imprinted upon humans, and therefore would not survive on their own in the wild. This includes being a prior (legal or illegal) pet.

  2. Past rehabilitation patients from any facility were fully recoverable, but still have an injury that would hinder their ability to hunt, seek shelter, or survive in the wild.

  3. An animal from another rehabilitation facility that may be unable to provide the time or financial capabilities of their own at that time.

  4. From collaborations with law enforcement and wildlife management agencies to provide a home for a non-native or invasive species in Florida.

IMG_9042.JPG
Meet our Ambassador Animals

Rose

Raccoon
(Procyon lotor)

20220904_104719.jpg

Keanu Trees

Sherman Fox Squirrel
(Sciurus niger shermani)

20221025_145338.jpg

Loxy

Red Fox
(Vulpes vulpes)

20221007_140927.jpg

Peggy

Virginia Opossum
(Didelphis virginiana)

IMG_9183.JPG

Aries

Red-Shouldered Hawk
(Buteo lineatus)

20220911_103243 (1).jpg

Owliver

Barred Owl
(Strix varia)

20221026_084035.jpg

Dwight

Corn Snake
(Pantherophis guttatus)

20221019_145910 (1).jpg

Butch

Corn Snake
(Pantherophis guttatus)

20220908_113236.jpg

Tot

Eastern Box Turtle
(Terrapene carolina carolina)

Landlord (1).jpg

Landlord

Gopher Tortoise
(Gopherus polyphemus)

Shelldon (2).jpg

African Spur Tortoise
(Geochelone sulcata)

Shelldon

20220907_151257.jpg

Garfunkel

Leopard Gecko
(Eublepharis macularius)

20220918_134404.jpg

Leopard Gecko
(Eublepharis macularius)

Simon

Meet our Staff
8587764B-FBE9-488B-8F05-AC7A93B01FE2 (2).jpg

Pascal

Executive Director

director@emeraldcoast
wildliferefuge.org

Michelle.png

Michelle, CVT CWR

Director of Animal Care &
Volunteer and Intern Coordinator

michelle@emeraldcoast
wildliferefuge.org

Amelia

Wildlife Technician

IMG_1772.jpg

Emma

Conservation & Rehabilitation Educator

Summer.png

Summer

Development & Content Creator

IMG_2026.JPEG

Grace

Education Center Representative

Dawn.png

Dawn

Education Center Representative

Meet our  2023 Board of Directors
Dr Dyson.png

Dr. Dyson, DVM

President and Chairman
of the Board

Owner and Chief Veterinarian of St. Francis Veterinary Center in Navarre, Florida, with over 22 years of experience in veterinary medicine in the panhandle of Florida. A long-term volunteer and skilled medical professional, Dr. Dyson provides a critical service to ECWR. 

Erin.png

Vice President

Erin Crumbley

Mrs. Crumbley is a realtor at The American Realty of Florida, LLC and is co-owner of The Vine Wine Bar, Bistro & Shoppe in Navarre, FL.  She is also the CEO of Crumbley Consulting and Marketing, Inc. which is a computer consulting business established in 2011. In 2019, she was nominated and now serves as a member of the Santa Rosa County zoning committee. 

Dr Fox.png

Dr. Fox (Bowles), DVM

Secretary

Dr. Fox is a 2017 graduate from Ross University. She has been in the veterinary field and volunteered with ECWR since 2008. She is now a full time veterinary associate at St. Francis Veterinary Center in Navarre, Florida.

Annette.png

Annette Beard

Treasurer

Mrs. Beard is a native of Northwest Florida.  She retired from the Department of the Air Force in January 2019 after 36 years of federal civil service in Financial Management.  She earned her B.S. degree in Computer Science from the University of South Alabama and her M.S. in Management from Troy University. 

Fred.png

Director & Lead Maintenance

Fred Abbott

Mr. Abbott is a recently retired National Sales Representative for 3M. He also leads our maintenance and habitat building volunteers, coming to the aid of the refuge and its structural integrity at any moment.

Kim.png

Kim Alexander

Director

Ms. Alexander is the school counselor at West Navarre Intermediate (WNI) school and has been a 4th grade teacher at WNI for the past seven years.  She earned her M.S. in Counseling and prior to teaching, she served as a parent volunteer in the classroom, on PTO, and the SAC committee as well as a substitute teacher for multiple years. She has lived in the Emerald Coast area, on and off via military orders, since 2006 and always stayed active with her three children in a multitude of educational and extracurricular activities. 

Shawna.png

Director

Shawna Thompson

Biography coming soon!

IMG_2363.jpg

Director

Tony Olmsted

Mr. Olmstead is a  information Assurance Cyber Security Professional. He has over 25 years of 25 years of experience managing IT departments, building and designing Networks, customer and VIP support.

Bill.png

Bill Andersen

Emeritus Director

Colonel Andersen retired in 2013 as Commander, Air Force Special Operations Training Center, where he led a force of 1050 military, civilian, and contract personnel, executing an annual budget of $84 million, responsible for the indoctrination, training, and education of over 9,800 Airmen annually flying 11 different aircraft from 4 operating locations across the United States.

Mitch.png

Mitch Robbins

Emeritus Director

Mr. Robbins is the National Key Account Representative, 3M Water Purification Division, where he manages the Central Region of the United States for distribution and national chain accounts with experience in contract negotiation/ administration, and fiscal and personnel management including leading 17 sales representatives.

Honorary Board Members

George Gray
Tammy Tierce

Rich Everett
Diane Parsonnet
Larry Anchors

Julie Parvin
Carol "Stormy" Andersen

bottom of page