Each year, the organization honors the efforts of a nominated volunteer who has shown commitment, compassion and care to the animals at the Humane Society of North Iowa’s Mason City shelter.
Mason City resident Jerry Kurash started visiting the shelter last April, never having visited the shelter before then. “I heard that the Humane Society of North Iowa was looking for volunteers to come walk dogs,” said Jerry. “As a person who loves animals, I knew I would be able to help out.”
Jerry certainly has helped with his volunteerism. “Jerry volunteers 3-4 days a week,” says Sybil Soukup, Executive Director of the Humane Society of North Iowa. “He makes sure to walk the bigger dogs that aren’t taken out as often. He keeps track of every dog he walks and often will bring treats for the dogs, cats, and small animals we have at the shelter. Truly, he is invaluable and we appreciate his efforts,” concluded Soukup.
In the 9 months Jerry has volunteered for the shelter, he has walked over 100 individual dogs, multiple times each. “I really enjoy spending time with the animals. It makes me happy to make a difference in the life of a dog while they are at the shelter, “said Jerry. “It also makes me happy when I see other people volunteering their time at the shelter; it really makes a difference for these animals to have so many people walking them and keeping them active,” concluded Jerry.
The Humane Society of North Iowa encourages anyone who is interested in volunteering to call the shelter or visit their website for more information.
“We have a wonderful staff here at the shelter,” explained Soukup, “but the majority of their time is spent feeding, cleaning, and providing direct care to our animals. We definitely rely on volunteers like Jerry to come and socialize the shelter animals. Volunteers are very important to us and we appreciate all they do.”
The Humane Society of North Iowa is a non-profit organization that serves a 9 county area in North Iowa and operates a no-kill rescue animal shelter in Mason City.
