Volunteer of the Year

Eleven-year-old Amy Walsh has been volunteering at the Comox Valley & District Branch of the BC SPCA for two years. A Grade 6 student at Brooklyn elementary school, Amy was honoured for her wide-range dedication to the animals. As well as cleaning cat cages, walking dogs, and assisting the Pet Squad mobile adoption unit, Amy spreads the message of animal welfare to her classmates and with their help, she collected 124 signatures on a petition to boycott Snow Buddies, the locally shot Disney movie that earned an "unacceptable" rating from the American Humane Society after the deaths last year of five golden retriever puppies during filming. Amy is also concerned about the environment; she attended a Comox Valley Regional District public hearing in March to speak against a proposed Comox Road gas station due to its close proximity to the Courtenay River estuary and bird habitat.

Read our press release for more information.

Elementary school teacher Siobhan Lane is indispensable at the Kamloops Branch of the BC SPCA. Her "trial by fire" experience as a volunteer began in 2003 when wildfires ravaged the B.C. Interior and left many families unable to get to their homes to collect their animals. Lane played an integral role in finding foster homes for and later reuniting with their families some of the 1,500 animals that wound up in the SPCA's care that summer. Lane also aligned the shelter's adoptable animals with the Petfinder.com website to give them increased exposure, she was instrumental in getting the branch's local website going, she helps organize fundraisers, she served on the local SPCA community council, and she played a key role on the city's disaster planning committee, attending meetings with the Provincial Emergency Program. Today, Lane spends every Saturday at the Kamloops Branch and helps visitors with her knowledge of animal care and resources.

Read our press release for more information.