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Leah Birmingham is Assistant Director and Internship Coordinator at Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre. She is a registered veterinary technologist, and manages patient care at the wildlife centre. Leah also teaches part time at St. Lawrence College as a professor of wildlife care and exotic pet medicine to the vet assistants and vet tech students.
One could say Leah discovered her love and passion for animal welfare by accident. She was in her 20’s and visited Aspen Valley Wildlife Sanctuary to deliver some baby racoons that her friend had been caring for. Leah says as soon as she arrived, it was as if an epiphany happened. She explains that it was in that very moment that she knew she was in love and that is what she wanted to do. From there she decided to go to school, with the plan of eventually opening her own rehab centre. She began her post-secondary studies in Kingston, and it was there that she met the Director of Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre, Sue Meech, when she made a presentation to the class. Leah said at the start of the presentation Sue mentioned that she was going to hire a summer student, and after hearing the presentation, Leah knew the job was meant for. She recalls that Sue said by the time she got home she had already received both an email and voicemail from the passionate student. After spending the summer at Sandy Pines, Leah admits she did not want to go back and finish school because she knew that Sandy Pines was where she belonged, but she knew she had to finish her third year and get her diploma. Once that was accomplished, she went on to work in Kingston for another few years. But one New Year’s Day she received a call from Sue, who was concerned that if something happened to her there would be no one to take care of the animals at Sandy Pines, so she asked Leah if she would be that person. Leah felt honoured, and quit her full time job to start working at the centre seasonally, with the hope that it would eventually turn into a full-time job. And it did.
Leah is extremely passionate, but she says there was a time that she was too passionate and did not take time for anything other then the centre. She says it’s important to have other dreams and goals and not just fixate on one thing, because you will start to lose yourself. She adds it’s important to remember not to let go of everything, just for one thing, and she stresses how important it is to find that work life balance, and says it’s something she has never been good at.
When asked what she feels her biggest accomplishment is, Leah says one thing would have to be the day to day work. Far too often animals arrive at the centre and everyone wonders if they will make it. Leah explains that being able to rehabilitate those animals and eventually release them is a huge accomplishment because you are making a difference in that animal’s life. She adds the joy she feels during those times is incredible. She points out that none of this could be done by just one individual, it is always a team effort. Which is the second thing she is proud of. The team that she has been able to build and has the honour of working with every day. Leah says they are all like–minded individuals with the same passion, heart and drive.
If you would like to learn more about Sandy Pines Wildlife Centre, visit this link.
