What Makes it Worth it?

by Emmaleigh Lewis

Emmaleigh and some of her volunteers at the EJ CARES event.

Throughout the duration of my project, there were many times that I wanted to give up. Hosting an awareness event was much more difficult than I thought it would be, and sometimes I became discouraged. I didn’t think I would make an impact. All of those feelings changed the minute people began arriving to my event.

Most of the people that came to my animal care and ethical adoption event were Girl Scouts and their parents, and there were not as many people as I expected. However, I put all of my focus onto the people that came, instead of letting the low attendance bother me.

There wasn’t a second that I wasn’t needed for something. I bounced around my event, making sure everything was running smoothly and talking to my guests. I had both of my snakes and all three of my dogs there, and the younger Girl Scouts wanted to know everything about them. Younger scouts overcome their fear of reptiles during my event. Girls who wouldn’t go near the snakes at first posed for pictures with my ball python around their shoulders before they left.

“I discovered that I love more than just animals themselves. I love teaching others about animal care, and showing people that reptiles can be great pets as well.”

Seeing younger Girl Scouts fall in love with animals, like I did so many years ago, made me proud. I’ll never forget the smiles some of the girls had while they held my snake. Many of them said they wanted to earn their Bronze or Silver Awards with a project about animals. I know my event made an impact on them, and that made all of the stress worth it.

Through my event, I discovered that I love more than just animals themselves. I love teaching others about animal care, and showing people that reptiles can be great pets as well. I have only considered careers working directly with animals, but now I think I would love being an animal educator. Sharing my knowledge with others in my community is what I’m passionate about. This project showed me what it is like to educate others on animal care, and I know I want it to be part of my future.