Board
George D. Jonson
Board President
Partner, Montgomery Jonson LLP
George graduated from Miami University in 1979 and the University of Cincinnati College of Law in 1983. He has practiced law in Cincinnati for the last 40 years and has been active with OAR since the late 1990s. He was instrumental in restructuring OAR’s debt and acquiring the clinic building in 2006. George is a past Board Treasurer, the current Board President, and, of course, a committed cat lover.
Dr. Liz Johnson
Board Treasurer
Chair, Department of Computer Science, Xavier University
Liz Johnson has been on the board since 2002. She began volunteering at OAR in 2001 and served as volunteer Executive Director for about 10 years. She has adopted several cats from OAR over the years, including all four kittens she fostered and several adults. She has a doctorate in Computer Science and is an Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Computer Science at Xavier University.
Melissa McNally
Board Member, Board Secretary
Realtor
Melissa began volunteering at OAR in 2007 after adopting two cats, drawn by the dedication she witnessed in the volunteers who worked tirelessly to save cats. Since then, she has fostered cats and participated in fundraising, events, etc. She has her own feral colony in her yard.
Melissa and her husband Tom share their Kennedy Heights home with too many pampered cats. They have adopted five cats from OAR since 2007. Melissa enjoys gardening, reading, hiking, volunteering in her community, and spoiling the cats that have adopted her.
Alle Foster
Board Member
After-Hours Program Manager
Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden
Alle graduated from Miami University with bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Zoology. She has spent most of her career as a Zookeeper and Conservationist but worked at OAR for three years in the Wellness Assessment Center.
Alle was a community cat trapper, colony feeder, medical assistant, and overall volunteer at OAR before becoming a Board Member and is currently focused on the fundraising side of the organization. In her downtime, Alle spends time with her four cats, enjoys time in her garden, listens to podcasts or audiobooks, and plays volleyball or trivia with friends.
Kevin Nester
Board Member
Database Administrator, Proware
Kevin began volunteering at OAR in 2001 after learning about TNR. Since then, he has served in various roles, including cat care, TNR instructor, and board member. He also helps manage feral cat colonies in his neighborhood.
Kevin and his wife Jayde live in Madisonville. They share their home with several foster-fails, misfits, and former ferals. You can often find them enjoying their garden, exploring the city, or trying out new vegan restaurants.
Emily Panoushek
Board Member
Bio coming soon!
Jessica Ruebusch
Board Member
Implementation Consultant, Chard Snyder/Ascensus
Jessica started volunteering with Ohio Alleycat Resource in 2011 and joined the Board in 2020. She is also a volunteer at the Cincinnati Zoo and at Ensemble Theatre.
Jessica and her husband Michael–along with their fur kids, Shadow and Tabitha–live in Amberly Village. Both Shadow and Tabitha were adopted from the streets of Oakley after being fixed at OAR. To relax, Jessica enjoys FC Cincinnati matches, traveling, drinking wine, and taking photographs.
Jenny Thacker
Board Member
Manager, Prospect Research in University Relations, Xavier University
Jenny has worked for the last 31 years as a successful fundraiser, presenting at several conferences on teaching the art of researching and producing detailed research profiles. Jenny started volunteering at OAR in 2008, participating in fundraising events and trapping community cats. She has managed several feral colonies over the years. Jenny currently has four feral and two domestic cats.
Jay Elliot
Board Member
Head of Global Medical Strategy for Nephrology, Immunology, and Digital Medicine, Otsuka
Jay Elliott has been a proud OAR adoption host since 2020 and thoroughly enjoys helping adopters find their purr-fect feline friends. Professionally, he serves as the Head of Global Medical Strategy for Nephrology, Immunology, and Digital Medicine at Otsuka. Jay lives in Hyde Park with his wife, Katie, and their four beloved fur babies: Teddy (OAR Alum), Asparagus (OAR Alum), Jasper, and Sage.
Christine Marck
Board Member
Senior Asset Manager, Matrix Holdings
Christine began fostering cats with OAR in 2020, ultimately assuming other volunteer roles within the Adoption Center, the Spay & Neuter Clinic, and via OAR’s social media channels. She earned a degree in Biological Sciences from NKU and has spent her career in the commercial real estate industry.
Christine and her husband, Ben, live in Columbia-Tusculum with their beloved resident and foster cats. They are advocates for diabetic cats and have a passion for feline diabetes education & care. In her free time, Christine enjoys traveling, reading, puzzles, and getting out and about in Cincinnati with friends and family.
Gwen Triplett
Board Member
Gwen is a Cincinnati native and has also lived in New York City, Paris, Boston and Toronto. She is a graduate of Walnut Hills High School and the University of New Hampshire. Now retired, she held positions in Sales and Marketing in Technology and Financial Services companies.
Gwen lives in Northern Kentucky with her very spoiled OAR alum & foster fail, Layla. Gwen loves traveling, skiing, following the Cincinnati Bengals, and spending time with friends.
She has volunteered at OAR including Cat Care, Adoptions, Fostering, TNR, and Fundraising.
Roger Wade
Board Member
President of Cintech Construction, Inc.
Roger graduated from The Ohio State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering. In 1984, he founded Cintech Construction, a commercial construction company, which he has led and operated for 40 years.
After the passing of the family dog and cat, Dylan and Clio in 2014-15, his kids gave a certificate to adopt from OAR as a Christmas gift in 2016. Roger and his wife, Jennie, currently live in Terrace Park with their 8-year-old OAR Alum, Hazel-Mae. After learning about OAR in 2016, Roger has been a strong contributor and supporter for their mission. In his spare time, he loves seeing his “granddogs,” Zoe and Reggie and refilling the array of bird feeders with his monthly bird-feed budget.
Recently in December 2023, Roger discovered a stray kitten outside his home with an eye infection. He tried to catch him but he would run away. Temperatures were to drop within the next few days to below freezing and out of concern for the kitten. Committed, he spent the subsequent two evenings trying to help him. He left the garage door cracked open and set cat food within a trap. Fortunately, he caught the cat and was able to take him to OAR where the veterinary staff were able to surgically remove his eye and save him from worsening infection. OAR named him Roger and within a month Roger was adopted!
Jill Zadik
Board Member
Senior Director, Information Design, Medpace
Jill is a downtown resident of 15+ years and joined OAR in 2010, focusing on helping cats become more adoptable through the OAR Behavior team (I’m looking at you, Crash and Aurora). Since then, Jill has adopted and fostered several amazing felines from OAR, supported OAR TNR efforts, contributed to many fundraising efforts, served on the medical team for special needs cats, and helped define OAR’s branding and marketing efforts. Formerly the volunteer Volunteer Coordinator for OAR (2013-2018), Jill has experience at the intersection of helping cats, working alongside people who love cats, and progressing the organization. In her down time, Jill loves spending time with her husband and children, cheering on FCC, exploring new (vegetarian) restaurants, and crushing her Peloton stack.
