Naomi Mitchem

Adoption Coordinator

Naomi Mitchem serves as Adoption Coordinator for Carolina Waterfowl Rescue, where she works to find exceptional homes for adoptable animals and give them the second chances they deserve. Although she joined CWR in February 2023, her involvement in animal rescue stretches back nearly two decades.

Naomi earned a Regents Bachelor of Arts from Glenville State University in Glenville, West Virginia. She is also a trained grant writer and completed a venomous snake identification course through The Rattlesnake Conservancy in 2025.

Her formal rescue experience began long before she came to CWR. Naomi volunteered with the Humane Society of Raleigh County in Beckley, West Virginia, on and off beginning in 2005. From 2017 to 2019, she served as Secretary of the organization's Board of Directors before joining the staff as Rescue Coordinator in 2019.

Like many people who work in animal rescue, however, her actual responsibilities extended far beyond her job title.

During her time at the Humane Society, Naomi coordinated the placement of animals with rescue organizations and was particularly proud of achieving record-breaking numbers of rescue transfers. She also developed and managed an animal enrichment program, wrote successful grants, organized biannual online auctions, and assisted wherever she was needed—from animal intake, kennel cleaning, veterinary runs, laundry, and morning medications to kennel repairs, social media, and fundraising.

That experience gave Naomi an unusually broad understanding of the work that happens behind the scenes to successfully move an animal from an uncertain situation into a safe and appropriate home.

Naomi has also fostered animals since 2012, primarily dogs but also cats, rabbits, birds, and ferrets. Since 2014, she has provided pet-sitting services for an equally diverse assortment of animals. Rather than limiting herself to species she already knows, Naomi's approach has always been to learn what an unfamiliar animal needs so she can provide excellent care.

After moving from West Virginia to Union County, North Carolina, in 2022, Naomi finally found herself close to an organization she had followed for years: Carolina Waterfowl Rescue. She initially hoped she might have an opportunity to volunteer. When CWR advertised a remote position in February 2023, she applied instead—and has been part of the organization ever since.

As Adoption Coordinator, Naomi processes adoption applications and works carefully to match CWR's adoptable animals with appropriate homes. She collaborates closely with CWR's animal care and rehabilitation teams to determine which animals are suitable candidates for adoption and to understand their individual needs before placement.

For Naomi, finding a home isn't about simply completing an adoption. The process can take considerable time, but she believes finding the right adopter is worth the wait. Seeing an animal receive a second chance with an owner who is prepared to meet its needs remains one of the most rewarding parts of her work.

Her contributions to CWR extend well beyond adoptions. Naomi has assisted with hotline work and data entry and works closely with CWR's baby bird program during baby season to help ensure the birds are inventoried each week. She manages CWR's Patreon program and is also beginning to contribute her grant-writing experience to the organization.

Among the many species Naomi has cared for, domestic rabbits hold a particularly special place in her heart. She spent 12 years as a devoted rabbit owner to Jessika Nicole and developed extensive practical knowledge of rabbit husbandry along the way. She has also fostered numerous rabbits, including animals coming from difficult circumstances. Those experiences left her with a lasting affection for the species and a deep appreciation for the specialized care rabbits require.

Naomi's love of animals began in childhood. She spent her early years in a wooded area of Albemarle, North Carolina, where wildlife was a regular part of daily life. Box turtles and black rat snakes were particular favorites. She grew up wanting to become a veterinarian, and her mother encouraged her compassion for animals—even when that meant Naomi arrived with yet another creature that needed help.

That instinct followed her into adulthood. In her twenties, for example, Naomi took in cockatiels from a poor situation and successfully found them an excellent new home with a couple connected to her sister's veterinary school community.

Her own home continues that tradition. Naomi shares her life with two dogs, Jonesy, a Chihuahua mix, and Eileen, a pit bull; six indoor cats named Misti Dawn, Krystal Brooke, Todd, Seymour, Alicia, and Mr. Mittens; and three former CWR feral cats, Mallory, Duck, and Goose, who have since decided that friendship with humans isn't so bad after all.

There is also Lorenzo—the honorary garage opossum. Lorenzo remains completely wild and is never handled or treated as a pet, but he occasionally takes advantage of a heated outdoor cat house when Mallory isn't occupying it. Naomi's involvement is appropriately limited to providing space and informing Lorenzo that he is, indeed, a good boy.

Animal rescue is only one part of Naomi's life. She also works full-time in an elementary school cafeteria, where she has developed a strong affection for her “lunch room kiddies.” She co-coaches Girls on the Run at the same school and is a proud advocate for bully breeds.

Outside of work, Naomi enjoys gardening, cooking, home-improvement projects, exploring antique malls, spending time with her husband, and conducting an ongoing search for the perfect Eggs Benedict in the Charlotte area. She is also considering returning to school to pursue a master's degree.

A West Virginian at heart, Naomi remains deeply connected to Appalachia and proudly embraces her roots.

Across years of shelter work, fostering, rescue coordination, pet care, and now adoption work at CWR, one principle has remained consistent: an animal deserves more than simply somewhere to go. It deserves a home prepared to care for it properly.

That's why Naomi is willing to spend the time necessary to find the right match. When an animal who has already been through uncertainty, injury, abandonment, or displacement finally leaves CWR with the right person, the effort becomes worthwhile.

For Naomi, that successful adoption isn't simply paperwork completed.

It's another animal getting a second chance.