As the front door opened into the Norfolk Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), smells of beloved pets and soon-to-be pets wafted through the air. Dogs on leashes sat lovingly by their owners and played with each other as they awaited their turn to be seen by the staff.

Sailors from the aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) arrived early in the morning, May 30, ready to assist with the needs of the local SPCA.

Amidst the cacophony of dogs barking, people chatting and the meowing of cats, Sailors pet some of the dogs in the lobby, completely entranced by the affection they received from the animals. A few minutes later the Sailors were divided up into groups to man different stations throughout the facility.

"We are having the Sailors work in all of our departments," said Jillian Talley, volunteering outreach coordinator at the Norfolk SCPA. "They are cleaning the kennels, the cattery, picking up trash outside the building, weeding, and reorganizing the food shed so we can put more food in there for the public."

Sailors in the cattery cleaned out litter boxes in all of the rooms, wiped down windows and mopped the floors as cats climbed among them, demanding attention as they cleaned.

"It has been really relaxing cleaning the cattery," said Operations Specialist 3rd Class Rachel Forney, a volunteer for the community relations event (COMREL). "I am really impressed with this place. The kennels are really large and there is lot of food and toys for all of the animals here. It's nice to be able to help out in any way I can."

As the day went on, Talley moved from station to station making sure Sailors were comfortable with the work they were doing.

"This has been a huge help to us," said Talley. "Having all of these Sailors here has really assisted us is many ways. We only have one maintenance person, John, and it is really great that we have people coming to help him so we don't have to take away from other departments so we can get the work that needs to be finished, accomplished."

Walking down a hallway adjacent to the main lobby lies an office where once you walk in your eyes are greeted by hundreds and hundreds of photos of all sorts of animals, and three small dogs, each with their own bed to lie in. This is the office of Rob Blizard, the executive director of Norfolk SCPA.

"Something a lot of people don't realize is that we are really running two integrated businesses here," said Blizard. "One is the shelter for homeless animals. But we also have a public affordable veterinary clinic. The clinic started about 20 years ago as just a spay and neuter clinic, but that has morphed into something bigger. We do exams, dentistry, surgeries such as mass removals, and we have a walk-in vaccine clinic six days a week, which is why our lobby is always so busy."

In 2016, the Norfolk SPCA provided affordable medical care for shelter animals, city shelter animals and animals owned by the public. Norfolk SPCA conducted 3,280 spays/neuters, provided 11,120 walk-in vaccines to clinic patients, and performed 1,130 dental and other surgeries.

"Providing all of these services with a limited staff, many of whom are volunteers, often keeps the staff pressed for work. So having volunteers such as Sailors is greatly welcomed and appreciated," said Blizard.

"Having Sailors volunteer here really warms my heart," said Blizard. "I have the greatest respect for folks that are in the military and all that they do to protect us and keep us safe. I love the fact that we get groups of them here to come in and help us. The Sailors are usually eager and young and healthy so they can help out with all sorts of things. We here at the Norfolk SPCA are very honored and grateful to have these Sailors from the George Washington here with us today, and I just want to say thank you to everyone that helped us and for what you do in the military."

Sailors interested in volunteering at the Norfolk SPCA, or those who are curious about what services the foundation provides can visit www.norfolkSPCA.org, or call at 757-622-3319.

For more information, visit www.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/usnavy, or www.twitter.com/usnavy.

For more news from USS George Washington (CVN 73), visit www.navy.mil/.