Liz Swaynie describes herself as a “giver kind of person.”

“I couldn’t imagine working at a for-profit organization. It doesn’t align with my values,” said Swaynie, reflecting on the 10 years she’s worked at U-M and her current role as a stewardship officer for UM-Dearborn.

The same can be said for Swaynie’s pursuits outside the office.

Swaynie is on the board of Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary, where she also serves as fundraising chair. In that role, she launched the organization’s first major fundraising campaign, which just surpassed its goal of $25,000 to pay for building and floor repairs to the sanctuary’s rabbit facilities.

Her involvement with the sanctuary began with her own rabbit tale, so to speak.

In late 2021, after working for several years in development at the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, Swaynie applied for a position in stewardship at UM-Dearborn to move closer to her partner. She got the job in early 2022, but the relationship broke up.

“My first conversation with my new boss at Dearborn was, ‘I’m so excited for this job, but I’m really emotional right now,’” said Swaynie, laughing. “It’s darkly funny now, but I’m thankful it happened because being at Dearborn has been incredible.”

At the time, though, Swaynie was feeling low and decided she needed something to make her feel better: a bunny — or two.

“My cousin had a small farm with bunnies that bred, and she was looking for homes for the babies. I decided to take two and named them Willow and Poppy,” Swaynie said.

“Poppy was my soul bunny. When I was having a rough time, she would snuggle up onto my chest, and if I cried, she would lick tears off my face. She was an angel, but, unfortunately, never healthy. It didn’t matter what I did for her, she just could not maintain her weight. She only lived nine months.”

Poppy continued to be a source of comfort for Swaynie though, because after she died, Poppy was the catalyst for connecting Swaynie to the Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary.

“After Poppy died in the fall of 2022, I had a big box of unopened hay — alfalfa, a richer kind of feed for young bunnies or rabbits you’re trying to get to gain weight. So, I looked online to see if there was a place I could donate it. And Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary popped up. I emailed them, and the president emailed me right back,” she said.

After dropping off the hay at the facilities in rural Willis, Swaynie began following the sanctuary on social media, and in March 2023 saw that they were having a fundraising meeting and anyone was welcome to attend.

By then, Swaynie had gotten a new rabbit companion for Willow named Bucky and had cleared out a guest room in her home for the two to share. She’d also done considerable research into the care of domestic bunnies and realized how much misinformation was out there.

Appreciating the work Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary was doing, Swaynie decided to go to the meeting and see how she could help.

“I’m at the meeting in this old farmhouse on the property, and there are six or seven other people. It’s a small organization. We went around the table and introduced ourselves, and I’m like, ‘Hi, I’m Liz and I work for U-M in fundraising,’ and their eyes all lit up.”

Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary has been around since 1995 and was originally called Pig Hoppers. But once the founders realized there was a greater need for helping domestic rabbits than pigs, the name changed to Great Lakes Rabbit Sanctuary.

“The current president has been involved for over 20 years and most of the board members have been committed to the sanctuary for a long time,” she said. “So, when I came in at 29 and said I’d love to help, and had all these ideas for fundraising, social media engagement and how to be more proactive than reactive, I think they appreciated that energy.”  

One of the first changes Swaynie wanted to make was to the sanctuary’s database, which needed some significant improvements and modernizations.

Swaynie saw an opportunity to gain practical knowledge while attending a stewardship conference in Toronto.

“I asked the leader of the conference lots of questions on behalf of the sanctuary, and she started calling me the ‘bunny girl,’” she said.

“But she did give me some good database suggestions, and we ended up going with one called ‘Givebutter.’ It’s now also our donation processing platform. That really changed the game for us because we were able to start a real fundraising campaign.”

The primary goal of the current campaign, which launched last May, was to raise $25,000 to repair the floors of two buildings that house approximately 70 rabbits on the property. The cement floors have been deeply cracked and difficult to properly sanitize, potentially exposing the bunnies to harmful substances.

In the campaign video, Swaynie focused on the story of Odin, one of their rescued rabbits who was abandoned in poor health with an eye infection. The sanctuary took him in, nursed him back to health — and helped him find a loving home.

“Through my work in fundraising at U-M, I know people connect more with an individual story. And Odin was a good example of the kind of adoptable rabbit we have at the sanctuary,” she said.

Beyond spearheading their fundraising campaign, Swaynie is in the process of creating what she’s called the Michigan Rabbit Rescue Alliance to connect nonprofit bunny-rescue organizations within the state. The goal is to share resources and best practices.

She has also created a rabbit food pantry in collaboration with the Humane Society of Huron Valley and is working to help bunny owners learn how to properly care for their rabbits. She sets up a booth from March through November at the humane society, where she shares information on the best kind of hay, toys and enrichment for bunnies. She also talks about the sanctuary and the kinds of support it can provide for bunny owners.

“I believe in educating from a place of understanding and not trying to shame people or be condescending. I grew up on a farm and had a rabbit as a child that I didn’t care for the way I would today,” she said.

“The sanctuary has given me space to play with my professional goals and ambitions, and I think I’ve brought some organization and expertise. As a person who works in the University of Michigan system, I’ve had a lot of professional development training that I am thankful for. I’m now bringing that to the sanctuary, which is allowing me to be a frontline fundraiser and gain experience while doing it.”

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