Terry-Anne’s Story
Community Volunteer
“I love dogs. They are my favourite animal and whenever I get the chance, I visit my family member’s dogs. My cousin Chris has a dog named Mia who got sick this summer and this made me feel very sad and worried. I knew Chris was worried about Mia’s health and I wanted to help. I decided that I would hold a yard sale during Wallaceburg’s Town Wide Sales. When I told Chris about my idea, he was so happy and really appreciated what I wanted to do for him and Mia. He told me her surgery was already taken care of but that there were other dogs that were not as lucky as Mia who needed help too. He told me about a dog named Benny who he needed surgery for his eyes. Chris learned about Benny through his friends at PAWR and the more he told me about it, the more I knew I wanted to help Benny in Mia’s name.
The weeks leading up to the yard sale were filled with a lot of enthusiasm with my family helping to promote the event. Chris wrote a letter to the paper and told everyone on his Facebook page to come see me! As the day got closer, I started to worry. What if no one came? What if I couldn’t make enough money to help Benny? I had nothing to worry about-as soon as our yard sale started, people from the community came. Some people came to buy, some people came to donate, some people came to show their support and introduce me to their dogs. I had the best day and I felt so proud- I got to meet a lot of new friends while helping a dog in need. At the end of the day, we made over $500 to help get Benny the surgery for his eyes and that made me smile. I smiled even bigger a few weeks later when I found out through PAWR that after his surgery, Benny was adopted by a local family.
It feels good to be able to give back to a community that has always given to me. Whether it be making balloon animals to brighten someone’s day, spending time at the Early Years Centre or volunteering at events run through Community Living Wallaceburg, giving back is just what I do. Wallaceburg is a great place to live because the people here are very supportive of one another and make me feel good about myself. My moto in life is pay it forward and that is something I will strive to do every day!”
– Terry-Anne Burke, Community Volunteer