Our final spotlight of National Volunteer Appreciation week is to one of our volunteer couples: Elizabeth B & Nick W

These two have touched the lives of so many sweet pups as they get acclimated to the shelter. They are regular attendees of our Shy Dog class and have a passion for giving their time to our dogs who are under socialized with people. They are so incredibly patient and spend a great deal of time simply sitting in kennels giving our fearful kiddos the time and space they need to recognize that most people are kind and have delicious snacks to share. These two also volunteer regularly for our monthly Vaccine Clinics with clinic support. They spend hours assisting our veterinary team administer vaccines to hundreds of animals each month all to ensure that our community has healthy and happy pets. Last, but not least, these two are always available to help with miscellaneous time-consuming projects that would tie up our staff otherwise. They always raise a hand when we are in need and for that we are eternally grateful. We can’t thank them enough!

Today we would like to recognize one of our behind the scenes volunteers: Kristi J

Kristi has been giving her time to AAWL for nearly 4 years and has spent over 280 hours helping around the shelter. She started off volunteering in the Cattery but quickly found her niche helping with data entry in our Development department. Our Donor Development Manager, Teresa Valencia, had this to say about Kristi: “She is so dependable, always coming in unless life has her doing something else, she’s very funny, she travels far to get here and she not only volunteers but she donates as well. She’s been helping me for several years now and has been a huge asset in Development.” Kristi truly is an amazing human and we love having her as a part of our family.

This Thursday morning we salute one of our fabulous multi-faceted volunteers: Lynda S

Lynda S has been a member of the AAWL volunteer crew for nearly two years giving over 208 hours of service in that time. Lynda has given so much of herself to the shelter in a multitude of ways including socializing dogs, assisting with events, training new volunteers as an AAWL Mentor and serving as a member of The League. She is super sweet, patient and thorough with her training as an AAWL Mentor. We would not be able to continue training new volunteers without AAWL Mentors like Lynda! Her passion for animals shines through with her service as Chair of The League’s Advocacy Committee. She and the Advocacy Committee have worked on introducing and supporting legislation on several bills to improve the lives of pets in Maricopa County. We are so grateful for Lynda’s dedication to AAWL and pets in our community!

 

Today we recognize a newer volunteer who has found ways to help shelter wide: Kelly P

Kelly only began volunteering with us in September of 2018 giving 185+ volunteer hours of service but you wouldn’t guess it! You would think she’s been a part of the AAWL family for years and years considering the great work she has done. She began as a kennel volunteer and quickly moved up the ranks taking dogs home for a much needed Gimme-A-Break, acting as a Retriever for our Playgroups, volunteering in the Cattery and now helping in our shelter clinic! She also decided to become an AAWL Foster Parent to further help pups in need! We are honored to have Kelly as a part of our AAWL family and will forever owe her our thanks.

Today we give our thanks to one of our elite kennel volunteers: Vince M

Vince began his volunteer career at AAWL nearly 10 years ago in August of 2009 and has since given over 1,600 hours of service. Vince is one of our early birds who focuses on dogs who have newly arrived to the shelter on what we call our “Staging Side Kennels”. When dogs first arrive at the shelter they are often afraid and stressed with the new environment which is why volunteers like Vince are so vital! Vince has an amazing way with the dogs and a commitment to getting them out of their kennels on walks to exercise their bodies and calm their minds. He spends time just about Tuesday, Thursday and even Sunday mornings to ensure that our pups get the outlet they need. We cannot thank Vince enough for his commitment to our shelter and the dogs who need him the most.

Today we would like to spotlight a volunteer who we could not imagine running our Chandler Mall Adoption Center without: Ginger J

Ginger started volunteering at the AAWL Chandler Mall Adoption Center in December of 2017 and has since given 400+ hours of service. She is always willing to jump in and help wherever is needed with a smile no less! She welcomes guests to the mall adoption center with a beautiful attitude even on busy Saturday mornings when a seemingly never-ending carousel of mall goers come by to visit with available dogs and cats. She also recently raised her hand to take on teaching a class to other volunteers to sharpen their customer service skills and further educate on who we are and what we do so our volunteers will be well equipped when folks ask shelter related questions. From the bottom of our hearts, thank you Ginger! We’re excited to continue our mission with you for years to come!

Today, April 7th, kicks off National Volunteer Appreciation Week! At AAWL we have more than 450 volunteers that log 60,000 volunteer hours each year. These volunteers save AAWL more than 1 million dollars each year. We thank all of our volunteers for their work every day – and this week we’d like to highlight a handful of volunteers for their amazing dedication. To kick things off let’s talk about one of our most committed Cattery volunteers: Merlin M

Merlin has been a regular volunteer for nearly 12 years and has given 2,700+ hours of service! Merlin has touched so many areas of the shelter over the years including the Cattery, the shelter clinic, events, data entry projects and more! Nowadays, he tends to spend his time socializing our cats while they wait for their furever homes. This year, he was welcomed as a member of our Cat Behavior Team because of his gift of working with cats, particularly those who need a little extra to make them comfortable around people. We are exceedingly grateful for Merlin for his amazing contributions to AAWL and we know our kitties appreciate him too (even though they may not admit it).

 

Oh what can we say about our pal Dale K? He is just a hoot! Dale is kind, generous and always has smile to share. His laugh is contagious and when he’s around you can’t help but feel an extra pep in your step. Dale has been volunteering with us for a little over a year and has given 280+ hours of service! Over the last year he has walked miles and miles with pups in need, taken many, many dogs home on Gimme-A-Break, has been a huge help at some events and is a regular Retriever for our Wednesday Playgroups. Brie K, who oversees our Playgroups program said, “he always shows up with such a great attitude and his happiness for being here and getting the dogs out to play is infectious. He always puts a smile on everyone’s face and his pockets are never without a treat for the dogs!”

We are grateful for our rare souls who are willing to be to the shelter by 6am to help make sure our dogs get their wiggles out in the morning and Dale is one of those top notch volunteers who fits the bill. We appreciate volunteers like Dale each and are lucky to have him on our AAWL volunteer crew!

We have another dynamic duo of volunteers to spotlight this month: Ali G & Mary C! Ali has been with AAWL since 2016 and has given 325+ hours of service. Mary has been with us since 2015 and has given 850+ hours! These two give so much of themselves to our shelter dogs in so many ways including our weekly hikes, Playgroups, Mentoring, our Champion program and more!

This duo loves a good hike and understand that the dogs often need an energy release outside of the shelter, so they have taken over our weekly volunteer hiking excursions. Together, they coordinate anywhere from 15-20 volunteers and shelter dogs to give the pups a fun outing each and every Sunday morning. They are instrumental in helping volunteers pick dogs for their skill level and direct them on their way to Papago Park. These hiking adventures are an amazing way for our shelter dogs to get out for some fresh air, great exercise and de-stress.

Our Playgroup leads breathe a sigh of relief knowing that they have these two on board to help as Playgroup Retrievers. They are quick, knowledgeable and great with the pups! Mary is also an AAWL Mentor, helping to train our new volunteers the ropes around the shelter. Last, but not least, they are incredible advocates for our pups in need by participating in our Champion Program! Champions are AAWL staff or volunteers who select a long timer dog or cat and give that animal extra love and attention until they get adopted. In addition to spending extra time, they also take on marketing duty by making flyers, social media pages and taking dogs offsite to potentially meet their furever family! Whenever one of their Champions are adopted, they are quick always to pick the next pup who needs their help the most.

We cannot fully express our gratitude for all these amazing women do for our shelter. Their love and dedication has touched so many lives, not only our AAWL dogs, but fellow volunteers and staff alike. They are an inspiration to us and we love having them as a part of the AAWL family!

Our Chandler Mall Adoption Center would surely be hurting without volunteers like Karen B. Karen has been volunteering at the Mall Adoption center ever since the glorious day we took that storefront over from a puppy mill pet shop in 2012 and has given nearly 1,000 hours of service since! Karen is an excellent caretaker for our animals and always ready to pitch in whenever we are in need. We can rest easy knowing that every Sunday, Karen will be there, not only taking care of our animals, but keeping an eye out for the Chandler Mall staff as well! We asked our Chandler Mall Manager, Katlyn Riggs, what is like to work with Karen and this is what she said: “Karen is AWESOME! She is always willing to jump in and help when things get crazy busy! She even bought the adoption counselors lunch one Sunday afternoon because none of us had been able to sit down for lunch. THAT is how awesome Karen is!”

One way that Karen really shines is through her work as a Volunteer Mentor. She is one of an elite crew who trains our new volunteers each month after they complete their orientation. We are constantly receiving wonderful feedback from her trainees who say that she is incredibly kind, thorough and patient as she shows them the ropes. She provides such a wonderful experience, they simply cannot wait to return to spend time with our adoptable pups and kitties! We are so grateful to have Karen as a volunteer, mentor and part of the AAWL family!