Dog Volunteer / Advocate Let Go By Sheriff

[John G]

SHERIFF DISMISSES VOLUNTEER
Animals loose longtime advocate
Walton County Sheriff Michael A. Adkinson, Jr. has dismissed a longtime volunteer from the Walton County Animal Shelter.

Jennifer Hagedorn was notified Monday that her services were no longer needed at the facility. Hagedorn, a resident of Crestview, has been a volunteer at the facility for the past 5 years. She says she was devastated at the news and that Sheriff Adkinson never spoke to her nor was she given a reason for her termination.

“I think it is interesting that no one from the WCSO has contacted me at any point to discuss the issues I am being accused of. In fact, when I asked the Captain why my volunteer privileges were terminated, he declined to answer, simply saying that the shelter is going a “different direction” and that I seem to be at the center of the drama going on there,” said Hagedorn.

Hagedorn says she believes her dismissal is the result of petty politics and personality conflicts with facility manager Tina Barker. Barker was reassigned to the Animal Shelter from her position as the Sheriff’s Communications Supervisor last year. Hagedorn said Barker has accused her of failing to return her calls immediately and for leaving the shelter upset one day.

However, Walton County Sheriff’s Public information Officer Corey Dobridnia told WZEP that Hagedorn has been counseled on numerous occasions about her language and unprofessional conduct. “She has repeatedly circumvented the chain of command to get what she wants and that cannot be tolerated in any organization.” said Dobridnia.

“We hold volunteers and paid employees to the same and exacting standards,” said Dobridnia. “While we appreciate her service, the lifeblood of any organization cannot rest on any single person. It takes teamwork.” Dobridnia said the Sheriff is actively looking into other issues regarding Hagedorn’s actions while at the shelter.

Sheriff Adkinson briefly addressed the subject on his Facebook LIVE broadcast Wednesday. However, he was met with numerous negative comments and posts from Hagedorn’s supporters.

Dobridnia said while it is regrettable that the shelter has lost a volunteer, the Sheriff is committed to the compassionate and humane treatment of all animals and encouraged those who are concerned about animal welfare in Walton County to step forward and volunteer their time to help.

 

[John G]

FaceBook Post

John Robert Broussard · 0:00 In my opinion, Jennifer deserves a medal for her service, NOT to be slandered by an elected official who should know better.

Cindy Weaver Diaz · 0:00 SHAME on you for lying to cover up your horrible management of the shelter. It's called slander & you are guilty of it sir!

Devin Vernol · 0:00 Very disappointed in the way the SHERIFF slandered someone over something he has no idea what he is talking about, just to try to get people off his back. Shame on you!

Billy Monroe · 20:32 What is the county's policy on chronic problems with dogs off leash in a neighborhood that intimidate people and leashed animals?

Rebekah Johnson · Omg YES. My well behaved dog isn't allowed at the beach but my neighbors are free to roam, attack my leashed dog, and defecate all over the neighborhood.

 

[Danny Glidewell]

I found it interesting that a volunteer position was being changed to a paid one. If the same standards apply, then why not replace a volunteer with a volunteer?

 

[FactorFiction]

Something seems fishy on this one. I was shocked that the Sheriff said some of the things about her that he did on the live interview. I wonder WHO (assuming someone did) had counseled her about whatever issues there were. If the counselor is the same person who has a conflict with her, that has its own problems. I don't know her at all, but she certainly has a LOT of defenders on various social media. In any case, I think that addressing employee (including volunteer) issues publicly is not appropriate.

 

[John G]

Is the Auditor General still in town?

 

[John G]

Does Laurie Hood at Alaqua have an Opine???

 

[TeresaRaye]

This is the worst decision the Sheriff has made - many pets will die because of this. Why is he creating a paid position to do what the volunteer group has been doing for years at no cost to the taxpayers - nepotism? Good ole boy politics? As a member of the Compassionate Animal Rescue Team, I have worked with Jennifer over the years and know that she has worked miracles in bringing down the euthanasia rate in Walton County. Jen spends more time coordinating and assisting all volunteers in her group working toward saving as many homeless pets as possible in Walton County.than any paid employee will do without being paid overtime! She is truly a dedicated advocate for the homeless pets of Walton County. Jen, like a lot of us, is not the easiest person to work with at times. However, it is all about saving our homeless furbabies; and she is at the top of my list when it comes to working together to save our pets.

Most of us in the rescue world are devastated to know that Walton County is losing a great group of volunteers who spent countless hours setting up and holding adoption events throughout our area. "If it ain;t broke, don't try to fix it."

The entire situation needs to be thoroughly investigated and a detailed explanation given to the public.. We want details of why and how this decision by the Sheriff came to be. We want facts - not BS!\

 

[CandyM]

As a long time volunteer at the Walton County Animal Shelter I can vouch for Jennifer's character, work ethic, dedication, passion, and selflessness.

The whole situation seems like a poorly managed situation that has blown up in the shelter management's face.

All of the volunteers have things they prefer to do. Jennifer's was to go to the shelter, nearly daily, and interact with the dogs; finding as she called them, "rockstars"--the ones she knew we could take to adoption events and find forever homes for. I've never been able to handle the emotions that go along with seeing all those sweet souls in those runs and cages so I've fostered and transported. But I always knew the dogs up there were getting some attention and love and a chance to get out and play with others as long as Jennifer was there. So even if they never made it out of there, at least it wasn't the usual, hellish, total isolation that dogs experience in shelters...because Jennifer was there. She knew who was scared and needed some extra attention. She knew who was ready to move to foster care or adoption. She was consistent. She did it out of love and passion for saving lives. Now I can only hope that other people will fill that void.

Jennifer never had an official coordinator "position" or designation. We all just looked to her for guidance. She was the point person for any adoption event. She always orchestrated the details and made sure the crates were transported and that adoptable and vet-ready dogs got picked up and (if not adopted) returned to the shelter. She kept those of us with foster dogs apprised of events so we could attend. It was a total labor of love, an unbelievable amount of dedication, sweat, and time and it was a TON of work for all the volunteers. It would be hard to calculate the gallons of gas and wear and tear on volunteer's cars, personal expense for vet care and feed for fosters but last year the group had adoption events (most in Ft. Walton Beach and Niceville) 51 weekends last year plus 10 shelter open houses-- that's what Jennifer inspired.

This is the volunteer's annual report with some very significant and impressive data about what was accomplished over the past year:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/facebook-albums/2016+Annual+Report.pdf

The shelter seems to have issues with keeping a veterinarian and not too long ago, when once again they had no on-site vet care, Jennifer found a spay clinic in Dothan that would take the dogs and cats who were in foster care but as yet unsterilized. The volunteers arrived at Jennifer's house at 3:00 am to transport 21 dogs and cats to Dothan and then returned them in the afternoon to their foster homes. This is another example of her passion and dedication to the voiceless of our county.

She has a large group of volunteers who support her and we are all continuing what she calls our "miracle making." In fact, the group will be at Laura's Feed in Niceville this weekend with a beautiful group of adoptable pets. Please come support our volunteer group.

Sadly, she is now not welcome at our county shelter. A shelter that could boast bragging rights for the wonderful reduction in euthanasia rates that can be directly attributed to the volunteer efforts. I truly hope someone will step up and fill her shoes. It's aways been about the animals for all of us. I am shocked, heart-broken and concerned about the way this situation has been handled, as I know many in the community are also.

If you share my concern, I would ask you to contact your County Commissioners to let them know that you're concerned about the stray and discarded animals our community takes in, speak out about the importance of animal shelter vs animal control, demand transparency about the shelter's euthanasia rate--particularly during this transition time without volunteer leadership, and most importantly help promote a spay/neuter program in our county. There will never be enough homes for all the animals that get dumped at the shelter--we need to stop the flow.

 

[CandyM]

Just to clarify, the volunteer's annual report that I posted was completed before the recent decision to prevent Jennifer from volunteering there. So sadly, while we who are working with Jennifer will continue our efforts, it won't be affiliated with the Walton County Animal Shelter.

 

[CandyM]

Something seems fishy on this one. I was shocked that the Sheriff said some of the things about her that he did on the live interview. I wonder WHO (assuming someone did) had counseled her about whatever issues there were. If the counselor is the same person who has a conflict with her, that has its own problems. I don't know her at all, but she certainly has a LOT of defenders on various social media. In any case, I think that addressing employee (including volunteer) issues publicly is not appropriate.

I couldn't agree more. It's not my place to fight her battle, but I care very much about the welfare of the animals and it saddens me to see someone who gave so much selfless, unpaid time and dedication being so unfairly spoken about. And to know that the animals will be the ones who will be most affected. There is more to this story than the public and I guess the Sheriff will ever know, because interestingly, according to Jennifer, the Sheriff has never met her, asked for her side of the story, or allowed her to defend herself.