VOLUME 3, ISSUE 2

Prev

It was somewhat hard to believe when I interviewed FFR Board Member and adoption volunteer Sharon Franck that she described herself as "a shy person."  It was hard to believe because Sharon gathered the most pledges for CatWalk 2003, the group's fundraising walk-a-thon.  Her total pledges came to $480.  Apparently, when it comes to feline causes, Sharon is not too shy to ask for money!

Sharon started volunteering with FFR 2 years ago when she was introduced to the group through another volunteer.  Sharon, a single woman, was told that volunteering was a good way to meet men.  However, when I asked Sharon about that, she said, "I have made many wonderful new friends through FFR and they are female!"

Sharon works full time for a company called Insweb.  As a Senior Project Man

ager, she manages technical projects for the in-house insurance agency, designing software tools and writing up specification documents that the programmers use to write their code.  She is currently working on a project creating a new application for underwriting. 

In previous jobs, Sharon traveled all around the world.  She installed newspaper publishing systems, spending a lot of time in Australia and New Zealand.  The Sydney Morning Herald was one of her clients.  She worked in that job from 1994 to 2000.  "I liked the travel and I have been to over half of the United States and many foreign countries," she said, "but I would be gone for a month at a time and I eventually got burned out on it.  I looked for a job that had less travel and I ended up at Insweb.
Now, I'm planning some leisure travel with my sister and it's an adjustment because the company is not paying for it."

When I asked her what volunteer roles she likes, she said that she likes to staff adoption events.  "I really love the adoptions," she beamed, "It gives me great joy to see a cat and an adopter bond.  When it's the right fit of cat and adopter, it gives me a good feeling."  Before working with FFR, she wanted to save every stray herself; she felt responsible. Now, she realizes there are available homes and she works the adoption events so that she can screen

potential adopters, answer questions, and educate the public. 
Sharon also provides training classes for new FFR volunteers.  Kasi Morrison developed the 2-hour training program and Sharon is the trainer.  Sharon has made some modifications and revisions to the training, as needed, and as new information becomes available.  For example, it was found that the full training program was not appropriate for high school students who just needed a few hours of community service to complete a school requirement.  Sharon holds training sessions when there are

enough new volunteers to fill a class.
In addition to working adoption events, Sharon is a FFR Board Member and she is also active on the Grants Committee.  Sharon helps with decision making, goal setting, and FFR policy.  When I asked her about what she sees in the future for FFR, she said that FFR is very involved in the No More Homeless Pet Movement in the Sacramento area and she said, "We are going to be the influential force to bring Sacramento County into the 'no kill' community."

Sharon's household includes a complement of four kitties.  Two of the cats belong to her sister, Lisa Franck, and two belong to Sharon.  Each cat has its own distinct personality and special traits and each one has a story.  When you see Sharon at an adoption event or FFR meeting, ask her about the current mischief of Ting, Trixie, Micki and Fireball.  She will fill you in on their latest escapades!