Volunteers, Fosters and Community - Supporting One Another

Volunteers and foster homes are the mostly unseen backbone of any rescue agency. Even those who are able to pay some employees need volunteers to walk dogs, pet kittens and cats, shampoo animals and attend adoption, information events. At Silverwalk, I have a very consistent dog walker, Cynthia. She started in September '08 with other volunteers from a SEMO sorority. Sarah had met Shiloh, greeter extraordinaire, at Panera's where we were having lunch one day. She, of course!, fell in love with him. When I told her she could get her "dog fix" by walking dogs at Silverwalk, she jumped at the chance, bringing a number of friends along, Cynthia among them. I have two to three other SEMO walkers on Fridays plus my now every other week junior walkers and kennel cleaners from Notre Dame High School Francis Key Club.

It may seem like those of us in rescue are always asking for help and frankly, we are. We realize that lives change and people need to move on - sometimes to different cities, sometimes to different jobs which no longer give them the flexibility to walk dogs when the sun is out :). Because people move on, we need to seek out others to help in their places. We always, always appreciate the time people choose to give to us and to our animals, be they dogs at Silverwalk or cats at Safe Harbor.

The young women from the SEMO sorority have seen and made happen the change in Farrah and other dogs here waiting adoption at Silverwalk. It is these irregular visits by kind volunteers who socialize and reinforce to previously fearful, timid dogs they are worthy, loved and cherished. I can't thank these women and men enough.

Back to Cynthia - next semester, she plans to study in Australia! So, despite keeping a course load of 18 credits this semester, she has found time to design, locate a printer, write up information and seek out buyers for Silverwalk T-shirts. The generosity of people always floors me. The eagerness with which the dogs greet their benefactors does not - they know the girls' pulling up in those cars, they know the one on one attention they soon will be getting, both in walking and in simply being loved on in the yards. The recent kindness, generosity of time and spirit, plus the amazement voiced by one young volunteer "I have never seen so many dogs in one place before!" from the Francis Key Club volunteers reinforces to me this young generations' commitment to more than themselves. YESH!