How Volunteers Make a Difference
At BARCS, volunteers are more than just a tremendous help to our mission—they are our lifeline and our family. Our volunteers help us care for the animals and operate our programs in a variety of different areas.
One of our top volunteers is Justin U. He’s been volunteering with BARCS since 2015, and he’s accumulated over 2,880 hours in our shelter!
Justin started volunteering at BARCS because he had a lot of free time on his hands and wanted to use it to help animals in need. BARCS was the perfect spot for him with our open-admission model, high-volume animal intake and lots of ongoing projects and needs.
Justin quickly became our Jack-of-all-trades: he walks dogs, pets cats, greets potential adopters at the front desk, cleans kennels, does laundry and washes dishes. He also trains new volunteers, does off site events and does adoption counseling. Did we mention he also fosters?
Of all his duties, Justin has a favorite. “I really enjoy being an adoption counselor because I get to talk with the new adopters about their family addition and then hand them their new family member! Above all else, though, my favorite moments at BARCS are the short but meaningful relationships I build with all of the animals.”
Justin notes that volunteering is very important to him because it’s made him who he is today; he couldn’t imagine not having BARCS play such a big role in his life.
He says, “Volunteering at BARCS is an amazing experience. You really feel like part of a family with the staff and other volunteers, and I can tell I make a difference in the animals’ lives.”
Thank you for all you do, Justin! If you’re interested in volunteer opportunities with BARCS, read more here.
Share
