Amy Belaus: Volunteer Spotlight

“I’ve been volunteering with Furry Friends since January 2026,” Amy says. “The reason I got involved with you was because I had volunteered at Feline Friends in Olympia and loved it (I’m still their volunteer coordinator), so that when I moved to Vancouver, I looked for similar opportunities and found Furry Friends.

“Just for fun: I recently learned how to ride a motorcycle and bought my first one, a Honda CRF300L Rally.”

“I volunteer for two hours a week at the shelter and my shift duties include cleaning out litter boxes, feeding the kitties and keeping their water bowls filled. My favorite part about volunteering is watching kitties with various issues learn to trust people again over time and blossom. (We truly don’t deserve them). My greatest challenge, quite naturally, is not taking all of them home!

“Outside of Furry Friends, I work as a project coordinator for an engineering consulting firm. The reason I give back is because it feels good, and the issue I’m most passionate about is, without a doubt, animal welfare.

“At home, I have two ‘meatballs’ named Archer and Calvin. Archer’s 16 years old, suffers from two types of cancer and is, thankfully, beating all the odds. Calvin’s a chunky, happy tabby that’s afraid of his own shadow.

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Furry Friends Volunteer Spotlights are compiled and written by Nomi Berger who is the bestselling author of seven novels, one work of non-fiction, two volumes of poetry, and hundreds of articles. She is a volunteer writer for Furry Friends in Vancouver, WA and also volunteers her writing skills to animal rescue groups in Canada and the USA.