Can’t Thank You Enough
In honor of Thanksgiving, ASPCA Shelters’ Edge bloggers wax appreciative on the past year in the animal sheltering world. Please tell us what you’re thankful for, too.
Bert Troughton “I am thankful for a lot of things this year, but if I have to narrow it down to just one thing…well… I love my job. It’s a great job with exceptional colleagues and opportunities to do really cutting-edge work that is hopefully helping lots of shelters and people and animals.
But I’ve never quite stopped missing the incredible feeling of working in a shelter…the opportunity every day to do something direct to help an animal — or many — and a person — or many. This year, I am filled with thanks to the shelter staff members in the ASPCA $100K Challenge shelters. You took the Challenge personally. You committed the extra time, the extra brain space, the extra heart. You dedicated yourselves even if you felt you probably didn’t have a shot at ‘winning’…because that’s what you do when there’s a chance to help one more animal and one more person. As I look at the numbers and the photos and the stories of the lives you’ve touched, I feel eternally grateful to you. For the first time since I left my direct service job, I’ve got that old feeling again. Thank you!”
A rescuer who brings animals to clinics
Timy Sullivan “It starts with ‘Wouldn’t it be great if…’ — a vision for a program to make things better for the animals. That vision becomes a reality only when people with passion and a whole range of talents jump in to make it happen. I’ve had the great joy over and over again of watching ‘Wouldn’t it be great if…’ turn into ‘Isn’t it wonderful that…’ I am amazed every single day by the energy and commitment of volunteers, staff members, and donors who turn visions into realities, and I am so grateful to have them in my life.”
The first vet who joined in to launch PetFix
Pune Dracker “I am grateful for the opportunity to attend the Dialogue Education ‘Learning to Listen, Learning to Teach’ workshop with Global Learning Partners this year. I’ve always loved learning, but to find out that there are so many ways to do it — and so many ways to pass on what you’ve learned to others… PRICELESS! Added bonus: At what other training do you get to make things out of Play-Doh?!
And I am so jazzed by this blog we’ve got cooking here — and I want to thank my fellow panelists and our Shelters’ Edge moderator/poster and LOLcat creator, Elyse Orecchio, for kick-butt teamwork. And you guys reading and commenting — thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and experiences. You’re worth more than gold. Or is it platinum?! Whichever’s more precious.”
OK, guys, you’re up next. What are YOU thankful for this year?
