A few weeks ago, a former co-worker of mine from the Animal Rescue League of Berks County (ARL) decided it was time for her to leave her position as a kennel technician. As perplexed as I was, I wasn’t completely surprised by the resolution she had reached. Working in an animal shelter environment is one of the toughest places to be on a daily basis, let alone be a witness to the abuse, abandonement and heartache of animals who are no longer wanted.
People may conjure up different descriptions when they hear the words “kennel technician.” The term generally lends itself to those who feed, provide animals fresh water and clean out the kennels (“professional pooper scoopers” as they’ve been told by others) in animal shelters. While this is technically an important part of their job, people have no clue how many of them go above and beyond what their job responsibilities entail. Nicole is one of those people.
Since I did have the pleasure of working with Nicole at the ARL yrs. ago, I can say with 100% certainty that she was very dedicated, hard-working and passionate about her position to help animals. As is the case with many of us who work in the animal welfare field, we live and breathe,wanting to help animals. I can attest to the fact other former co-workers had the same work ethic as Nicole. They were/are as equally as important as Nicole. Many of the former staff have departed from the ARL so I felt it was finally time to write about the exit of one of them who exemplifies how many of them put their hearts and souls into saving the lives of the abandoned and homeless animals.
As the former media professional for the ARL, I was the host/producer of their monthly tv show. I can’t begin to tell you how appreciative I was of Nicole’s contribution to the show. Not only did she bring animals to be showcased for adoption, she was vocal about important issues of which she wanted the public to be aware. I enjoyed hearing her opinions and trust me, she is opinionated! Actually, when you do work in this field, you can’t help but be headstrong in your beliefs. When you see the abuse, sadness and death on a consistent basis, your mouth wants to lash out at those who have inflicted this pain on innocent animals.
Nicole’s passion and drive to help the animals was always evident no matter the reason. She was of great help when I wrote descriptions of the adoptable animals for the ARL’s website. She also held many of the animals as I took their photos for the same reason. Let it be known that at that time, the other employees also helped me with the photos. Not an easy task but I couldn’t have done it without all of their generous help.
She was always willing to lend a helping hand to me whenever she could. And believe me, her time was consumed not only by her “duties” but by calling rescues to find homes for the thousands of animals that came through their doors. She worked tirelessly, as so many of the former staff (that I worked with) did, to move the animals out of the ARL and into new homes and not body bags. Nicole’s heart, by anyone’s standards, was and is in the perfect place to help animals. She was the one person I could count on to volunteer for events. When she wasn’t officially working, she was volunteering her time helping the animals and the ARL. She was devoted, caring, and hard-working when it came to her job. But, her job was so much more than that. It is her mission.
I can vividly remember Nicole standing in Kennel Room 2 (puppy room), crying so badly while cleaning out the kennels one morning. The pain emanated from the fact that dogs she desperately was trying to find homes for had been euthanized the previous night. She was clearly devastated. I don’t think you could find dry eyes among any of us when some of our favorite animals were forced to lose their lives because there wasn’t enough room to house them and the new arrivals of dogs and cats. As I said, working in this environment is not an easy task. I didn’t know how to console Nicole except to listen to her. I think that’s all most of us could do.
Let me just say the staff that I worked with was there for you when you needed that extra boost at times like these. This isn’t to say the staff was by any means perfect. Of course, some of us didn’t get along at times. That’s to be expected. BUT, and that’s a big but, the staff that once was, all worked together to help the animals. Our main objective was finding homes for these precious souls. As I said to one former employee, we may have been dysfunctional at times just like any family is, but we did work together as a team to save lives. We put our differences aside and we moved on because it was about the animals. There was no room for egos.
Most of the former staff I once worked with at the ARL is gone. When I worked there, the staff remained the same for years. That is unheard of in the animal shelter world where high turnover rates for employees are more commonplace due to compassion fatigue a.k.a burnout.
Nicole is one of the few that had remained. She stayed as long as she could until she could no longer take it. I sincerely praise her for all that she accomplished during her years at the ARL. Nicole, I think so highly of you for everything you did to help and save animals. Your concern for animals extended beyond the ARL. I remember seeing you at the rally in Malvern, PA, that Senator Andy Dinniman held to let us know he was the main sponsor of SB 1329-abolishing gas chambers in PA animal shelters. So your voice, that you thought may be temporarily silenced, won’t be. I hope you realize that this is a new beginning for you and your voice can now be used for other causes. Former co-workers have been in your shoes and have learned that not working at the ARL doesn’t preclude them from helping animals in other arenas. You have too much to offer to be silenced. Animal advocates like us can’t be quieted!! We will always continue the fight for the animals.
Your work hasn’t gone unnoticed by me or anyone else who knows you. In fact, a few people have some messages for you.
“I have loved working with Nicole for the past 8 years. She is a dedicated, passionate and tireless advocate for animals everywhere. It is a sad day for me personally, and a profoundly sad day for animals, that she would be bullied and forced out of a job that she loved and excelled at. There is a void that will never be filled. Nicole, you deserve to be recognized and appreciated for everything that you have done. I am forever humbled and grateful to be your coworker and friend.” Anonymous
“I met Nicole at the ARL, when I was having one of my cats put to sleep. I was so impressed with the compassion and genuine concern for both the animal and myself. That was eight years ago. She has worked this whole time with complete dedication. Her concern is first and foremost, the animals. She is a voice for the animals. She has taken the training to become an evaluator to determine the nature of the various dogs. She went about that duty in a quiet way, and knew the nature of all the dogs in her care. She just took the first aid and CPR class for animals. She does wildlife rescue, and is excellent with that.”
“Guess you can tell I have a lot of respect for Nicole. She is not sophisticated, she tells it like it is, has great tattoos, and she has a heart as big as the outdoors! She works hard, and donates almost as much time as she gets paid for. She is at all the fundraising events and has taken vacation days to volunteer. She came up with the idea of the Carnival for the Animals at the ARL, and was told that she could go for it, and did. Each year it got better.” Anonymous
“Nicole was great with the animals. They loved her because they knew she loved them. She put in a lot of volunteer time there on her few days off a month and did a lot of animal transporting, again on her own time. Yes, sometimes she speaks before she thinks, but 99% of the time she is right. If she sees something is completely wrong, she will say something, especially when it’s someone of a much higher authority.” Anonymous
Nicole had a few words she wanted the readers to know about her. “My goal was to be a voice for the animals, but as things changed, my voice was going unheard and I felt there was no more I could do.” She continues to say that “her heart will always be with the animals and is now volunteering with rescue groups.”
For all my former co-workers, I have held you in the highest regard as well. None of the work was ever easy. These people include the following:
Pam, Lisa, Sheila, Steph, Renee, Alison, Hope, Lindsey, Malees, Tracie, Gina, Trisha, Sandy, Ashley, Gwen, Jen, Liz and countless number of volunteers that are too numerous to name.
This is dedicated to ALL who worked so diligently at the ARL to find these animals forever, loving homes. I praise each and everyone of you.
Nicole, on behalf of your friends and former co-workers, we wish you nothing but the best in all your future endeavors. The animals and I thank you for what you have done and what you will continue to do. You and the others inspired me in so many ways and I’m forever grateful for the time all of us worked together.
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