Written by BHS Volunteer Coordinator, Kathleen Wyne.

Delisa has been a volunteer with BHS for over 10 years, and has given over 1,000 hours of her time to walk dogs! Delisa is a trained Level 2 dog walking volunteer, and always shows up to walk even the most challenging dogs in the heat and in the rain. Delisa tackles the hard work of walking dogs in the elements with determination and a positive attitude. Because of the skill it takes to walk our Level 2 dogs, they don’t get out for walks as frequently as our Level 1 dogs, so each week when Delisa visits, those dogs get essential trips outside to walk, let out pent up energy, and get some love. Delisa’s help with our dogs helps relieve the burden on staff of getting all out dogs out and keeps all our dogs happy and healthy.

Thank you for all you do, Delisa!

 

Nicole has been with BHS since 2017 and has since become a Level 2 dog walker and mentor. As a nurse, Nicole has long stretches of her work week and on days off chooses to spend her free time here at BHS. She’s partial to our older residents and gives them all the love they deserve. Because of her schedule you won’t see her around every day, but when you do she’ll always have a smile on her face. Thanks Nicole, we love having you here!

Do you have any animals of your own?
“I have a family dog Lola, she lives with my parents since I moved up here for nursing school a few years ago it was for her best interest to stay with them as I was a full time student renting an apartment at the time. I wouldn’t have been able to provide the best life for her. Since I was very little I grew up around dogs and as a family we always had a dog. Which I missed most about leaving for school as I no longer had that and that’s really what got me interested in volunteering.”

What are some of your hobbies?
“Some of my hobbies include, co ed softball, hiking, working out, and attending concerts with my friends.”

What do you like most about being a volunteer and mentor?
“I love being a volunteer and mentor. I initially did it to get my dog “fix” while not being able to adopt one myself due to various reasons at the time. I came to realize as much as they enjoyed getting out of the kennels, playing, and socializing, I also really needed them. The laughs, cheer, and happiness was also all I needed sometimes. Being able to give back while enjoying doing so is such an amazing feeling.”

What’s your favorite animal themed movie?
“My favorite animal themed movie would have to be Homeward Bound.”

Kandi Has been a volunteer at BHS for over a year, and since then has taken her natural talent for helping others to her position as a warehouse mentor. Kandi is always willing to lend a hand, especially in the administrative office. She helps in so many different ways and always goes above and beyond, all while keeping a smile on her face. Admin staff love having her and her cheerful personality around!

 

What made you want to start volunteering?

For years Cale and I would go sit in the cat room after yard sailing on Saturdays and give love till our eyes were red from allergies. We came in so often they even let us back to play with the puppies one time. If I had know Veterinary Nurse was an option, I most likely would have been a doggy nurse instead of an LVN. I have wanted to volunteer for years but worried I had too many health issues to do a good job. Finally I decided to give it a try, and I’m glad I did because I love it!

 

What’s your favorite area to volunteer in?

I love volunteering in the warehouse because I know I am making a difference for the cats and the staff in the surgery. Joline was my mentor for my first shadow shift and again for my mentor shift. She spent another couple shifts volunteering with me to help me get the hang of how to fold stuff so it would fit properly in the limited space. I quickly found out all of the mentors and staff had the same awesome helpful spirit.

 

What do you like to do for fun?  

For fun I like to nerd out with my hubby and binge watch documentaries and sci-fi tv shows (True Browncoat here…).  I also like to scrapbook, paint and papercraft while we watch..

 

Do you have any hidden talents? (for example: being a dog psychic!)

I’ve always been  able to communicate with animals, I’m glad to be able to put it to use! I also love making realistic crepe paper flowers and other decorations for friends and family’s wedding.

Tracy has been a volunteer at BHS since July 2018. For the past 6 months she has been a dedicated volunteer in our clinic, helping out with filing and all kinds of office tasks. Tracy will help whenever is needed, even coming in on weekends. She is so great at knowing when and where staff needs less or more help, which is great since the clinic can get very busy. According to clinic supervisor Emily, Tracy is always willing to help and spreads positivity wherever she goes. Staff love having her around!

Do you have any animals of your own?
“I have 4 Kitties- Sox, CoCo, Crush, and Sandy and 1 dog, Leo.”

What are some of your hobbies?
“My hobbies include traveling, playing with my grandkids, volunteering and am currently trying to start my small business in sales.”

Would you consider yourself a dog person or cat person?
“I love both dogs and cats, but I think if I had to choose I am more of a cat person.”

What do you like most about being a volunteer?
“The thing I like most about volunteering for BHS is the animals. I love taking care of them. I also love giving back to my community.”

 

Thank you for sharing your positive attitude with us Tracy, we’re lucky to have you on the BHS team!

This month we’re shining the spotlight on two special volunteers, Rayner & Monica!

They started volunteering at BHS about a year ago, and have since accrued 176 hours of service! They both love cats and dogs, which is what motivated them to volunteer for us. Because they are more experienced volunteers, they are able to take our dogs “On the Go” and for bedtime foster. They enjoy D.O.G (Do on the Go) because it allows them to take the pups away from the shelter to discover their true personalities and how well they interact with other people. Bedtime fostering gives the dogs the opportunity for a peaceful night and to experience life at home.

Their first bedtime foster experience was a total accident. They had taken BHS pup Mary on a hike and didn’t make it back to the shelter in time to drop her off, so they kept her overnight. This was the moment they fell in love with bedtime fostering because they could tell the dogs love & appreciate it so much. In the past few months, they have bedtime fostered Mary, Tammy, Hawkeye, Max, Winter, Chloe, & Chessie. It’s made a huge difference for these pups, and we can’t thank Rayner & Monica enough.

When asked about these two awesome volunteers, Dog Behaviorist Shannon said, “Rayner is amazing he’s always taking dogs “on the go” and bed time foster. He’s never afraid of a challenging dog and take dogs who really need a break from the shelter. Very friendly and always willing to help. I don’t know Monica too well but she’s always right there by his side participating in the same way.”

So, THANK YOU!