Youth Forward Scholarship Submission

Rachel
Korynoski

Address:
6387 Magnetic Point, Flowery Branch, GA

Email: [email protected]

Phone
Number: 770-851-0600

Youth
Forward Scholarship Submission

Even
though I do other volunteer work at various local non-profits and
events, I chose to mainly be a part of the care and adoption process
of animals at the Humane Society of Northeast Georgia because of my
passion and love towards animals and because the Humane Society acts
as an alternative for owners who can no longer care for their pets
and has their pets stay there until they are adopted, no matter how
long it takes (they are a non-kill shelter). There, the animals are
taken care of on a daily basis, are spayed/neutered, given all of
their vaccinations, and put up for adoption at a lower price than the
cost of the care, spaying/neutering, and vaccinations. This past
year, I volunteered 140 volunteer. My volunteer responsibilities
included walking, cleaning up after, and playing with large dogs and
cats/kittens and comforting/holding the puppies. I also helped adopt
out animals as an Adoption Counselor. I have felt the most
satisfaction whenever I take out a dog or a cat for a potential
adoptee to see and hold, and in the few minutes that pass by between
animal and human, they both become infatuated with each other, and it
results in the potential adopter becoming interested and finally
adopting the animal. However, the biggest challenge I have had to
face has been when a select few animals got returned or were at the
Humane Society for a long time because it noticeably distressed the
animal and prolonged their wait to find a home. Through these
volunteer efforts, I’ve learned how to properly care for cats and
dogs, run the adoption process, expand my networking skills, and I
have gained the happiness and satisfaction that comes with making
someone’s day, and being able to open that door for others.

“Forward
thinking,” to me is being able to hypothesize potential issues that
could arise and doing something in the present to prevent those
potential issues from coming about. The Humane Society of Northeast
Georgia is, “forward thinking,” because they think ahead and acts
as an alternative organization to the already crowded Animal Shelter.
Without the services it and volunteers such as me provides, there
would be more homeless pets, meaning there would be an increase in
animal euthenizations. Furthermore, I hope that my volunteer
activities will create a change in the world by finding animals new
homes, and in the process of doing so, decrease the amount in
shelters and on the streets and push for more non-kill, alternative
organizations. If I came back later, I believe my volunteer efforts
would have left some impact, maybe not visibly at the shelter, but
animals surely would have received care and been adopted due to my
efforts. Even though they aren’t the same, I hope to continue my
efforts of caring and helping others, whether they be animal or
human, in my career as a Nurse, and throughout my overall
volunteering, my goal is to help others in need in any way I can.