Brandon Smith

Organization:
The Jane Goodall Institute’s Roots & Shoots Program

Years volunteering:
One

The scope of my volunteer work:
Teaching others about animals, and raising money for the Roots & Shoots Tchimpounga Youth Campaign.

My first (or favorite) pet:
A gecko named Oreo.

The animal I am most like:
My pet rats because my mom says I am curious, full of energy, cute, and smart.

The animal I would take to:

• The Oscars: My gecko, Oreo
• Meet my parents: A T. rex
• The movies: My gecko and my rats
• On a trip around the world: All my pets – my gecko, my rats, my hermit crabs and also crickets for my gecko to eat!

My inspiration:
I just love animals.

The most rewarding aspect of volunteering:
Being able to help them – knowing the chimpanzee babies had a second chance at life. (Referring to the Tchimpounga Youth Campaign)

The most challenging:
Coming up with ways to raise enough money to help the animals.

The moment I knew it was all worth it:
When I started to become successful – when I raised money, and I knew it would help the chimpanzees.

In a perfect world:
There would be no habitat destruction, and everyone would treat animals the way they would want to be treated.

In my world:
Some people do the wrong things, but it’s OK because most people just still need to learn about doing the right thing.