Sharon Nordrum, InReach Coordinator, Community Animal CARE [CAC]
Hello, my name is Sharon Nordrum. I live in Laporte, MN with my adult son Andreas and several dogs and 2 cats. My whole life has revolved around the care and wellbeing of animals. My mom was the first animal rescuer in my hometown.
At any one time we would have 3 or 4 dogs in our home looking for their forever homes. I really started helping with this endeavor when I was 12 years old and have never looked back. My first job was a kennel worker at one of our veterinarian clinics. At 15 I was working at both clinics with the money going towards the care of all the foster dogs and cats that came through our door.
When we moved to our current location, we thought that we would be stepping away from rescue work as there are local shelters around us. Oh, how wrong we were! We had only been in our new home for 2 weeks before the first rescue came through the door. He ended up being a foster failure and my son’s best friend. Loner was with us for almost 7 years. We believed he was around 13 years old when he passed away. Loner was just the first of many that have graced our home.
In 2011 I bought my first purebred dog BaWaaJige (2011-2022) and the two of us entered into the world of dog shows/sports. I compete in dock jumping, agility, rally, scent work, hunting and fast cat. I am an AKC CGC (Canine Good Citizen), trick dog, farm dog, fetch dog evaluator. I am also a UKC evaluator for SPOT (Socialized Pet Obedience Test). I am working on becoming a Fit Dog evaluator and a Scent Work judge for UKC. Dogs are not my whole life. I am also an artist. My artistic style is a combination of Woodland Indian/Saami floral and fauna.
I have been commissioned to paint several murals in our local schools. My art has been used in books and for company signs. I also sit on 3 local organization boards. MAHUBE -OTWA, Regional Sustainable Development Partnership and Coalition to Re-Authorize MN Lottery Funds. My life is busy, but full. I can’t wait to dive into working for/with CARE.