Leadership in Action Paper
Introduction
For our second Leadership in Action project, we decided to volunteer four hours of our time at the Allegany County Animal Shelter. For many years, the shelter served as the final destination for 85% of the animals that have entered it (1). However, in 2010, a group of citizens wanted to change the nature of the shelter and had a goal of doing as much as possible for every animal, every day (1). This goal was the first step on the journey of the shelter becoming A Shelter of Hope. With this new philosophy, the shelter is transitioning into an expanded role as a community service organization. Their expanding programs and services are designed to address the needs of animals and to provide support, education and assistance for all of the people that care about them (1). As three animal loving students, we decided that for our final project we wanted to spend time with man’s best friend and help in what the shelter strives for: to give them a sense of hope that they are not forgotten about and are still loved.
Volunteer Services
During our four hours at the shelter, we were assigned to walking the dogs, brushing them and cleaning out some of the cages. The work was easy and all of the animals that we came into contact with were friendly and loving. For the first hour, we were in charge of walking animals around a horseshoe shaped track to make sure that the animals are getting adequate exercise. We all had a sense of fulfillment because the animals looked happy to get out in the fresh air and stretch. For the next hour, we brushed them to make them look and feel clean. We were able to show the animals that people do care about them and spend quality time with them. It not only made us feel better and relax us from all the stress we are experiencing with exams coming up, but also made the animals relax a little more to the point where they could trust us and knew that we were there to help them. Even while we were playing with the animals, LMX
For our second Leadership in Action project, we decided to volunteer four hours of our time at the Allegany County Animal Shelter. For many years, the shelter served as the final destination for 85% of the animals that have entered it (1). However, in 2010, a group of citizens wanted to change the nature of the shelter and had a goal of doing as much as possible for every animal, every day (1). This goal was the first step on the journey of the shelter becoming A Shelter of Hope. With this new philosophy, the shelter is transitioning into an expanded role as a community service organization. Their expanding programs and services are designed to address the needs of animals and to provide support, education and assistance for all of the people that care about them (1). As three animal loving students, we decided that for our final project we wanted to spend time with man’s best friend and help in what the shelter strives for: to give them a sense of hope that they are not forgotten about and are still loved.
Volunteer Services
During our four hours at the shelter, we were assigned to walking the dogs, brushing them and cleaning out some of the cages. The work was easy and all of the animals that we came into contact with were friendly and loving. For the first hour, we were in charge of walking animals around a horseshoe shaped track to make sure that the animals are getting adequate exercise. We all had a sense of fulfillment because the animals looked happy to get out in the fresh air and stretch. For the next hour, we brushed them to make them look and feel clean. We were able to show the animals that people do care about them and spend quality time with them. It not only made us feel better and relax us from all the stress we are experiencing with exams coming up, but also made the animals relax a little more to the point where they could trust us and knew that we were there to help them. Even while we were playing with the animals, LMX
Cited: (1) Alleghany County Animal Shelter, About Us. Retrieved from http://www.ashelterofhope.com/aboutus.html (2) Comedy Central. Workaholics Video Clip, 1980’s Jock Style. Retrieved from http://www.comedycentral.com/video-clips/v7jhbe/workaholics-1980s-jock-style (3) Lussier & Achua (2010). Leadership: Theory, Application, & Skill Development 4e. South-Western Cengage Learning.