Let's Hear it for the Kids

They could hardly wait to turn 12 years old to be a volunteer.

Friends spend time caring for animals at wildlife center
For most people, turning 12 isn't necessarily an important birthday. But for friends Adrian Smith and Madison Weaver, turning 12 meant they could finally volunteer at the South Plains Wildlife Rehabilitation Center.
And that made it a very special birthday.

"We had known Gail (Barnes, coordinator of the center's Junior Volunteer program) and we had seen her work with the animals," Weaver said. "She told us when we were 12 we could come out and help, so we did."
The two have been volunteering at the center since the beginning of the summer as part of the Junior Volunteer program. The program, which started four years ago, is designed to give teens ages 12 to 17 experience working with the animals at the center.