Volunteer Spotlight: Vanessa Kearney

My name is Vanessa Kearney. I live in Greensboro with my boyfriend, Jeremy Williamson, and our two girls. In addition to our human babies, we have 2 of our own dogs, 1 foster dog, a cat, a turtle, and a fish. Juggling two kids and these crazy animals I like to jokingly say that I am the ring leader of this circus.

It all started with a kitty. NotFotsKitty to be exact. Then I rescued a jack russell terrier, Baxter. I never thought of having a pit bull. All of that changed when my long distance boyfriend was laid off in Roanoke, VA. The sluggish economy made finding a job in that area hard. Although we'd only been dating a couple months, I knew finding a job would be much easier in Greensboro. Without hesitating, I told Jeremy to pack his stuff and bring his elderbull to my house. Two years later, I can't imagine my life without Jeremy and Danky.

Jeremy has said many times, that his family was concerned when he adopted Danky as a puppy in 1997. They were worried that Danky would be aggressive and live up to all of the negative media. It took a few years, but his family now loves and trusts, "old Mr. Black." Danky has changed lots of misconceived notions about pit bulls in Crewe, Virginia and abroad.

We happened upon CCB by chance at a local corn maze. We started following them on Facebook and waited about 6 months before volunteering to dog sit while permanent fosters went on vacation. That's when we were asked to sit Valentino for a week. Having a third dog in the house presented its challenges, but everyone rose to the occasion. When it was time for Valentino to go home, we were all sad and crying. About 6 weeks later, while on vacation, I saw that Valentino needed a new foster. Jeremy and I both agreed, almost instantly, that we would step up. Valentino has been with us since August 8th, 2011.

Our CCB friends have become like a second family to us. We look forward to seeing everyone and their fosters at events all over the triad. Whether it's helping with events, soliciting fundraising donations or loving on all the pibbles, Jeremy and I try our best to be good spokespeople for CCB. We are so humbled to be part of this great group pf pit bulls and people.

Featured Happy Ending: Aurora

In December of 2010, we found ourselves suddenly dog-less.  Both of our pittie mixes had passed away within 3 months of each other.  I knew right away that I wanted to get another pittie or pittie mix, but a couple of things were standing in my way.  My husband, Morgan, wasn't ready for another dog yet, he needed time to grieve our painful losses.  Additionally, we have two human kiddos, Avery, 2 years at the time, and Carson, only 3months old at the time.  Our previous pups had already been members of our family before we had children, so we knew what to expect from them.  Adding a new dog was a great unknown to us.  Morgan told me that we would look into getting a dog in the spring.   

Well, spring came, and was turning quickly into summer when I came upon CCB’s Facebook page. A friend had shared a picture of one of the Adopt-a-Bulls, so I made that “fateful” click. As I was perusing the pictures of all the sweet pups, I mentioned the site and group to Morgan. He told me to go ahead and fill out an adoption application, causing me to cheer a little bit, and then fill out my application. In the space on the application for choosing which dog I was interested in, I left that blank, opting instead to be matched with the right pup for our family. I explained that we had 2 children under three, and needed a dog who would be able to deal with a frequently chaotic household. Amanda emailed me back, telling me about Aurora – and how CCB wanted specifically to adopt her to a family with children. Morgan and I agreed to meet her, and we were immediately taken with this sweet girl who had been waiting so patiently for the perfect home.
 

Aurora has fit in so seamlessly with our family; it is as if she has always been here.  Avery and Carson both love her, and climb all over her.  She is so patient, gentle and sweet with them, and seems to love her new “nannying job.”  She is also becoming my running buddy, as we do the Couch to 5K program (we both have a little baby weight we need to work off). I know she spent a long time in foster care, while almost all of her puppies were adopted into their forever homes, but I really feel as though she was waiting for there to be room in our home and hearts.  I truly appreciate CCB giving her a place to be until her permanent place to be was ready for her.