Executive Director & Founder

Camille has been in the nonprofit world for 10+ years, both on staff and as a volunteer. Her love for animal welfare started early when she began fostering as a kid and never really stopped. In the past few years she began my work as a dog trainer, which has really stoked her interest in not just keeping things positive in training, but also reframing how we think about animals and the ways they belong in our community ecosystem. While there are a ton of great rescues in our community, she wanted this work to be a bit different. The Paws & People Initiative was born out of a belief that when we support people, they can support their pets, and our communities become stronger.

Operations Director

Meredith is a long time animal lover and advocate. She started her welfare journey by becoming a vegetarian at just 10 years old.  After rescuing her two dogs, Meredith learned more about municipal animal shelters and started volunteering at her local county shelter. At Wake County Animal Center, she volunteered by walking dogs, assisting with playgroups, taking dogs on daycations, and fostering. She also served as an administrative volunteer for the shelter where she spoke with folks looking to surrender their animals. These conversations revealed that most people don’t want to give up their pets, they just feel they have no other options. This lack of resources for pet guardians is what inspired her to get started with Paws & People.

Community Outreach Director

Emily has been involved in supporting her community for over a decade, volunteering at organizations like Meals on Wheels, Durham Rescue Mission, and Note in the Pocket. In 2019 she temporarily fostered a dog named Xena for a woman who became unhoused. Eventually, Emily ended up permanently adopting Xena. This experience highlighted for her how little support exists for people facing hardship while also trying to keep their pets. In 2021 Emily started volunteering with Wake County Animal Center where she walks dogs, helps plan events, and coordinates food and supply donations. She is very excited to be working with The Paws and People Initiative to dive even deeper into supporting people and pets in our community.