Primate Rescue Center

The residents of the Primate Rescue Center are cared for by a knowledgeable staff and a dedicated team of volunteers and interns. These are the people who make miracles possible - all day, every day, 365 days a year!

Eileen Dunnington

Eileen Dunnington joined the PRC staff in January 2004 upon the completion of her fall internship here. A native of nearby Lexington, Eileen graduated magna cum laude from the University of Kentucky with a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. Her introduction to the center’s chimpanzees and monkeys cemented her lifelong interest in working with animals. 


Melanie Parker

Melanie Parker, who grew up caring for horses, cows, and goats on a farm in Lewisport, KY, has been a member of the PRC staff since June 2006. Melanie graduated from Florida State University with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. She previously worked in the Education Department at the Louisville Zoo.

Nicole Bregler

Nicole Bregler completed an internship at the PRC in the summer of 2008 and joined the staff that September. She grew up in Alamogordo, NM, where a household filled with pets kindled a love for animals. Nicole is a graduate of Eastern New Mexico University, where she earned a Bachelors of Science in Biology with emphasis in Zoology and a minor in Psychology

Anna Hersh

Anna Hersh began working at the PRC in November 2010. A native of rural Springfield, TN, Anna graduated from the University of Tennessee at Martin with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Her internships included caring for anteaters at the Nashville Zoo and animal-care work at the Center for Great Apes, in Wauchula, FL.

Jenny Allen

Jenny Allen joined the PRC staff in October 2010. A native of Lexington, Jenny majored in Business Administration at Morehead State University, in the eastern part of Kentucky. Her work experience includes more than a decade in the nonprofit sector.

Matt Howard

Matt Howard, who joined the PRC staff in September 2010, graduated with a degree in Agricultural Economics, magna cum laude, from the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture. Matt grew up surrounded by animals on a farm in rural western Kentucky.

Volunteers

Cheryl Parson, a certified nursing assistant who hails from Nicholasville, KY, has been a volunteer here since October 2006.

Gina Lyons, a resident of Nicholasville, KY, who teaches World History at East Jessamine High School, began volunteering here in November 2009.

Retta Ritchie-Holbrook, a resident of Lexington, KY, and an employee of the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture, has been a volunteer at the PRC since November 2010.

Melissa Firestone, who began volunteering in May 2003, is our longest-serving volunteer, and works with primates at the Louisville Zoo.

Wally Littell, a volunteer since June 2006, retired to Florida, but each summer returns to Kentucky to help us keep things running smoothly.