Veterinary Assistant Apprenticeship Graduates – Deepening Our Engagement with Animal Lovers in Under-Served Communities 

Congratulations to our most recent Veterinary Assistant Apprentice graduates, Shameika Walton and Marigold Martinez! The Apprentices have spent the last 12 weeks learning the skills needed to become a Veterinary Assistant while providing injury and illness care to neighborhood pets at our Englewood Outreach Center. Five Apprentices have graduated since the program launched in 2020. Four out of five were hired here at our Medical Center. One Apprentice, Cynthia Ortiz, recently received a promotion to a more advanced role in our Lurie Spay/Neuter Clinic.  

The Apprenticeship program harnesses the assets and passion of community members while filling a critical staffing need. Our Community Medicine was designed to fill a vacuum for pet care in the Englewood community by providing free, weekly veterinary care options for residents. There are currently no other veterinarians in the neighborhood. Some of our Apprentices started off by bringing their own pets to us for care. Many of the pet owners we’ve served over the years through PAWS for Life have expressed interest in working with animals. The Apprenticeship program provides skills and exposure for entry-level work in the Veterinary industry. The Apprenticeship is open to candidates 18 years of age and older, with preference given to residents of our PAWS for Life service communities of Englewood, West Englewood, and Back of the Yards.  

Laurie Maxwell, Director of Community Outreach, said “a vet needs technicians and assistants, and instead of pulling one of our technicians away from the Medical Center when we started offering our weekly Community Medicine Days in Englewood, what we did is we used this real job need as an opportunity to engage the community in a different way,”

We’ve loved getting to know Shameika and Marigold during their time at PAWS and can’t wait to see what they accomplish!

Upcoming January Events

• TNR Sundays: Our Community Cats team will head out into Chicago’s Southside communities to capture feral cats, provide neuter surgeries, and return them to their colonies. TNR is at the root of limiting Chicago’s homeless animal population and provides assistance to colony caretakers. Learn more about PAWS Chicago’s TNR services.
• Mobile Pet Food Pantry: During the last two weekends of January (January 23rd - 24th, 29th - 30th), our Pet Food Pantry will hit the road to provide food and supplies to some of Chicago’s in-need pet owners! Many of Chicago’s South Side neighborhoods, like Englewood, West Englewood, and Back of the Yards exist in a pet resource desert without easily accessible pet supplies stores, pet food, and pet care - our Mobile Pet Food Pantry is one way to help alleviate the need for these resources! Learn more about our Mobile Pet Food Pantry.
• Spay Day: On January 22nd, the PAWS Community Outreach team will take over the Lurie Spay/Neuter Clinic to provide spay/neuter surgeries for the pets of Englewood, West Englewood, and Back of the Yards residents! Although our Lurie Clinic provides low-cost spay/neuter surgeries daily, the January 22nd Spay Day is a way to specifically service the communities and pet owners that rely on PAWS Community Outreach to help keep their furry friends healthy and happy. Learn more about the services our PAWS for Life team offers.