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Valerie Mitchell
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I'm 29 and live in Lyons, CO with my husband Aaron and our 3 dogs. I garden for a living, make artwork on the side and volunteer in between the two. Activity is key in my life. When I'm not busy I'm reading or relaxing with friends.
I met Dr. Hick, Maya, and Cristina when I started working at the Boulder Humane Society in 2000. They always had these amazing and inspiring stories of their trips to Mexico, and I knew this was something I would have to experience. When I was asked this summer to join in with the first VIDAS! crew to go to Akumal, I quickly bought a ticket. It was definitely hard work, but at every moment it was well worth it, as I could look down at the dogs recovering, or out the window at their patient guardians faithfully watching, and know this was good stuff. We were helping. We were doing something beyond what we do daily to help animals, beyond our own communities.
And it was awesome to watch 7 people work so well together. We all pitched in, we all struggled and sweat, we all worked our butts off for 5 days to make a difference in these animals lives. I'm proud of that.
I know I left with new friends, both in Colorado and Mexico.
Luckily, along with the hard work, we also got to swim in lagoons, release baby loggerhead turtles, snorkel, see Mayan ruins, and sip cocktails in tree houses on the beach. Not Bad!
A Thank You to Cristina for all the hard work you personally did for VIDAS!
You shouldered the trip with your confidence and motivation. You stayed focused and on top of everything, and all the clinics were a success because of that.
A Thank You to all the volunteers in Mexico who came out to help us. You kept us sheltered, hydrated, organized and free to focus on the task at hand. It was wonderful to see such energy, thank you!!!
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