Volunteer Appreciation Week 2025
Volunteers are the heart of AWS, contributing their time and talents in so many ways. Whether they care for animals at our adoption center, help keep our clinic running smoothly, open their homes to foster pets, assist at fun events, or tend to our lovely flower gardens, their unwavering efforts create a substantial difference at AWS and for the community of pets and people we support. We invite you to join us in honoring the remarkable influence our volunteers have on our mission! This week, during Volunteer Appreciation Week 2025, we will showcase their contributions, applaud their incredible impact, and continue to express our appreciation for their generosity and support.
Adoption Center Volunteers
How many volunteers does it take to operate a busy adoption center? The answer is so MANY (and there is never enough!)! Our animal care volunteers provide direct care to pets including cleaning kennels, taking dogs out to do their business, walking dogs, cuddling with cats, interacting with small animals, making meals, delivering snacks, offering enrichment games and doing laundry (have we mentioned how much laundry we do each day? 14-20 loads!!!). Our animals thrive because our dedicated volunteers provide loving attention and devoted care every single day. We certainly couldn’t do it without them! Thank you!
Clinic Volunteers
The volunteers in our Community Veterinary Clinic are an instrumental resource to us. While they may not be performing any actual surgeries or exams, they are an integral part of each pet’s journey through AWS’ clinic. Clinic volunteers are adept at sterilizing equipment, putting together surgical packs and prepping surgery and exam rooms with towels and linens. These amazing volunteers work quietly, swiftly and efficiently in an environment that is often loud, busy and chaotic (what Clinic isn’t?). We are so grateful for their commitment to our Community Veterinary Clinic and the animals we serve.
Canine Training
Canine Training classroom volunteers are the extra eyes, ears and hands our certified trainers need. During classes, they set up equipment, support class participants and assist the instructors. Classes are smooth sailing with our training volunteers at our sides, think of them as teaching assistants, like in school classrooms, invaluable and always there. Thank you!
Events & Outreach
Did you know that not all our volunteers are human? That’s right! We have dog volunteers too and they are some of our most dedicated, supporting our community outreach! As part of our Visiting Pets program, volunteer pairs (dogs and their people) stop by group homes, dormitories, nursing homes, schools, libraries and so much more. We are so thankful for our event and outreach volunteers for expanding the work we’re able to do in our community. With their dedication, hundreds of people of all ages benefit from the comfort and joy that comes with petting a dog, reading to a dog or simply enjoying a dog’s presence. Thank you, Visiting Pets! (Woof!)
Admin & Facilities
We want to thank our volunteers who don’t work with animals because they also play a very crucial role in our operations! From answering phones, folding thank you letters, processing paperwork, entering data, unpacking donations and counting change, our administrative volunteers keep our business humming. With their vast knowledge, attention to detail and kind demeanors, it’s a pleasure to work with them each and every day!
And our facilities volunteers – whether it’s shoveling snow, filling bird feeders, grooming our hiking trails, moving lots of heavy things, or helping with whatever else might come up, we are so grateful for their time, dedication and willingness to be outdoors in all weather!
Foster Volunteers
Some of our volunteers don’t help here at our facility, but still provide 39,000 (!!!!) hours of support each year. We’re shouting out today to our foster volunteers! These terrific people open their homes and their hearts to dogs, cats, and small animals when the animals need the most care! Whether caring for a mother cat and her litter of kittens for three months, to taking a dog out for an afternoon dog date, and everything in between, our foster volunteers warm our hearts with their kindness, graciousness and love. We know our animals have the very best care when they are with our fosters. Thank you!
