The good Cornellians can do: Bob Braun ’79
In late summer of 2006, the company president visited the factory where Bob Braun ’79 worked as an engineer troubleshooting production of Chinet paper plates. Bob had been burning the candle at both ends, working long shifts and on-call 24/7. When the president asked team members to share what they did for fun, Bob realized that his life was all work, and no fun. He determined to make a change.
Shortly after that, Bob volunteered at his local SPCA in Sacramento, as a cat socializer. He soon progressed to training other volunteers to interact with shelter cats. From there he moved to dog walking, dog socializing, and then to adoption counseling—to find good homes for shelter animals. Over the past nineteen years, Bob has filled his free time with caring for hundreds of cats and dogs.
“The first time you’re petting a cat or dog and they put their paw on your forearm, you know you have touched another’s life,” Bob says. “I never got that feeling from my work, and that’s when I knew what was really important.”
Bob shares that the secret to finding the right home for shelter animals is to trust them to find the right human(s). “In general, the animal picks the person,” he says.
He knew that Roxy (with Bob in the photo above) had found her forever home when she stood up on her hind legs and put her paws on the new owner’s shoulders.
Cornellians around the globe are sharing how they do good in communities big and small. Share your own story.
