Another first for Joppa Flats! Thanks to a generous grant from the Tower Foundation which provides organizations the ability to offer vocational internships to people of all ability levels to give them the opportunity to learn practical skills for future career endeavors. This fall, we recruited two young adults to be animal husbandry interns for the school year working between 6 and 12 hours a week assisting staff with our tank care, collecting and releasing wildlife, doing program prep and helping during family programs and events.
Our three vocational interns are Benjamin Cakir, a young man with a flair for online research who left Joppa in December to pursue college in CA; Nick Dunn, a senior at Essex Technical High School and Katie Catalano, a young woman with a passion for all wildlife. Having enthusiastic interns that have a great amount of respect and care for the animals we have; ensures our animals are receiving the best possible care. Working with live tide pool animals from collecting them to sharing them with visitors has been a highlight for both Katie and Nick. Joppa Flats is so fortunate to have these great vocational interns that are a great addition to our team! Each has brought different skill sets to Joppa; Benjamin was a dedicated researcher that was a major help in getting us the information we need to further research and care for our animals. Nick has been a great help in both working with us on programs and in taking care of the animals, his care and enthusiasm for the animals allows him to thrive in both jobs. Katie is a passionate individual that works to handle the animals with the utmost care, she is a great person to have when working with the critters as she is always dependable to care for them.
Joppa Flats strives to be a leading institution where education, leadership and stewardship come together and having vocational individuals as part of our support team, only adds to the unique blend of learning, animal husbandry and passion that makes our sanctuary so special.
– Written by Anna Breeden and edited by Miss Lisa Hutchings