| TCWR Volunteer / Intern Program
By Mike Fleming, B.A. Volunteer Coordinator
Nearly two
years have passed since we started the Full-Time Volunteer Program at Turpentine Creek. In
that time, over a hundred and fifty people have applied for a six month Animal Keeper
position. Of all these eager applicants, the handful who made the cut each time have been
some truly incredible people. The Volunteer Program has given us tireless workers, loving
caretakers, poignant speakers, and spirited beggars. Also, it’s given us a lot of
great friends.
Right now the program is in the middle of turnover season. Kendra Richards, Dan Zakai, and Kriste Karnasiewicz are packing up their stuff, and it saddens us to see them leave. These guys carried us through a very tough winter without letting us down for a second. Their replacements are moving in throughout the month of March. The first one to arrive was Emily McCormack, from Oswego, New York. She is finishing a zoology degree from The State University of New York. Emily is using her work at Turpentine Creek to fulfill an internship obligation for her degree. Brooke Wurrey, from New Hampshire, completes our staff for the spring and summer. She is a biology major at Northeastern Shannon Galvin is from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. She received her Bachelors Degree in zoology from the University of Alberta. University in Boston, and like Emily, Brook is also using her work at Turpentine Creek to finish her degree. In addition to these two, Laurie Vanderwal, the zoologist from Canada, is still working here and will probably continue to work here for the rest of her life. After visiting her family over Christmas, she returned with a new visa and a ton of new ideas for the refuge. I’m telling you, that’s the spirit! The doors of the Volunteer Program won’t open again until August of this year, but the applications for those August positions are already pouring in. Surely we’ll have some more great "interns" out of this crowd. I wish them luck, because they have big shoes to fill!
(If you would like information on the program, please visit our web-site or write to Mike Fleming, Volunteer Coordinator at the Refuge.) at tigers@turpentinecreek.org or Call:1-501-253-5841 |