- (618) 687-2079
- 6228 Country Club Rd, Murphysboro, IL
- Mon-Fri: 8:30am-4pm | Sat: 9am–3pm | Sun: Closed
St. Francis Community Animal Rescue and Education (St. Francis CARE) was founded in 2006 by a group of animal enthusiasts who wanted to provide shelter for unwanted animals before placing them in good homes. The founders soon expanded their purpose to educate the public about the importance of spaying and neutering pets to minimize the use of euthanasia for population control.
Shelter Director
Jessica Piquard joined St. Francis CARE in 2017 and is our Shelter Director.She is in charge of all the day-to-day operations. Prior to joining us, Jessica was a stay-athome mom of two kids. Not all of Jessica’s children are human. She has six dogs and three cats. Five of those fur babies were rescued from St. Francis CARE.
Board Member
Diane Daugherty, President and founder. She is a very active board member, involved with the day-to-day activities. Diane is a member of the Ladies Professional Golf Association, and was the women’s golf coach at Southern Illinois University for 25 years. She has 3 animals, all rescues from St. Francis.
Board Member
Lynda Kuether has been a board member with St. Francis CARE since 2013 and volunteered before that. Lynda runs all of our social media. Lynda also heads up our rehab team and Bottle feeding team. She grew up in a family that did mission work in Central America. She is employed by Southern Illinois Healthcare.
Board Member
Laurie Geiger is the Vice President and volunteer coordinator. It’s a role she’s held since 2017. As the volunteer coordinator, Laurie works as a liaison between our applicants and SFC. She is also a member of our Bottle feeding team. laurie and her husband Jon are also involved in the group, Greyhound Pet Adoption.
Board Member
Cindy Hall started as a volunteer in 2016 then became a board member in 2020. Cindy works as an occupational therapy assistant and is a member of our rehabilitation team.
Board Member
Gary Tisdale is currently the Treasurer for St. Francis CARE, joining our board in 2014. Gary retired from SIU and enjoys playing with his St Francis rescues and watching TV.
Board Member
Mary Rudasill serves as SFC secretary and has been a board member since 2009. Mary is retired from the SIU school of law and also established Institute. She has two rescues from St. Francis.
Board Member
Dawn Boyd joined the board of St. Francis CARE in 2013. Dawn has fostered many puppies for SFC. Dawn retired from teaching junior high in the Chicago suburbs for 33 years. Dawn has 3 rescues from SFC.
Board Member
Board Member
Pam joined the St. Francis board in 2025. She is a retired Human Resources professional, having worked for 30 years in the banking and high technology industries in the Silicon Valley in California.
We are so grateful to have the support of our community for a mission that we began over twenty years ago. From volunteers to donors, we wouldn’t be where we are without you.
