A SIT-DOWN WITH MAYOR WOODARDS
It was a sunny summer morning when Melanie and I had the opportunity to sit down with Mayor of Tacoma, Victoria Woodards, to talk about her experience at the Center, and how non-profits like us benefit our community. Earlier this year Mayor Woodards took her dog, Genesis to Northwest Spay and Neuter, and we decided to take the opportunity to follow up with her about her experience. It is heartwarming to see the Mayor talk about her dog, it is clear how much love she has for Genesis.
The Mayor got her start in City Council and it was there that she heard about our organization. Each year different non-profits make presentations to City Council and for years Woodards heard about Northwest Spay Neuter in the Humane Society’s presentation to the Council. After learning about us Woodards said it never occurred to her to take Genesis anywhere else to get spayed. As for her actual experience at NWSNC, Woodards had nothing but good things to say. She had mentioned putting off surgery, thinking that it would require a huge amount of time, but was presently surprised by how quick and easy the process was, and by how quickly Genesis bounced back. She said that the staff was friendly, calm, and very helpful- Woodards felt like her beloved pup was going to be taken care of very well.
If there’s one thing that Woodards appears to love more than her dog, its the City of Tacoma and its residents. We talked to the Mayor about how NWSNC provides support to those very people. Woodards reflected on what made her want to get into public service: doing something everyday that made people’s lives better, to improve their quality of life. We asked the Mayor how she thinks our clinic does that for the people of Tacoma, and we absolutely loved her answer. She feels that pets bring joy to people’s lives, that they do exactly what she strives to do: make people’s lives better everyday. That pets are like family, and they deserve to be treated as such, no matter their owner’s situation. Providing affordable and accessible spay/neuter services allows people to provide that care for their pets, creating a domino affect. Happy pets mean happy owners, which leads to a happier city.
We had to end our time with the Mayor so that she could meet with 50 very excited children who were visiting our office but our visit with her was truly a joy!