February 24, 2012

DENVER ZOO VOLUNTEERS HONORED FOR 35 YEARS OF SERVICE
Volunteers to be Remembered by Plaques at Main Entrance of Zoo

Denver Zoo honored two special volunteers for their 35 years of service. Margaret Zoller and Teri Hanzon have served the zoo tirelessly and have seen the zoo grow and improve the past three decades. At a February 7 ceremony, Denver Zoo President/CEO Craig Piper presented them with copies of plaques that will be placed on benches in the zoo's main plaza.

Margaret Zoller had volunteered for years with the Girl Scouts and started volunteering at the zoo with a friend from a painting class at the friend's suggestion. She didn't expect she would stay nearly as long as she did. Zoller quickly embraced the zoo and performed in a number of roles, including Volunteer Chair in 1986 and as a longtime writer for the zoo's volunteer publication, The Volunteer Voice. One of her favorite memories was when she volunteered as a zookeeper's assistant in the zoo hospital when Denver Zoo's famous polar cub twins, Klondike and Snow, were born. Today you'll likely see her talking about tigers, her favorite animal, as an "Ask Me," or a volunteer who answers questions, shows bio-facts and enhances visitors' experiences at specific zoo exhibits. She says others would do well to volunteer at the zoo. "It can be a lot of fun, you can learn a lot. There are always different things going on all the time," says Zoller. When not at the zoo she likes to read or play cards with her bridge club.

Teri Hanzon says she loved watching Denver Zoo blossom from "a little zoo to a first class zoo." The fifth generation Douglas County resident has done it all at the zoo, from fundraising to animal care and even served as the zoo's Volunteer Chair in 1995. These days she typically spends her time as a zookeeper assistant with the seals and sea lions and says they are wonderful, both the zookeepers and the animals. When asked why she volunteers she has difficulty picking one reason. "I love the animals, I've always loved the animals," says Hanzon. "There are also great people. It's lots of fun and there's always lots of exciting things to do." When she's not volunteering she hikes with her dogs and builds quarter-inch scale miniatures dollhouses.

Volunteers are a vital part of Denver Zoo, committed to the zoo's mission and sharing that mission with guests. Volunteers provide valuable assistance with administrative duties, special events, education programs, community outreach and public interpretation, feeling a sense of satisfaction and pride in a job well done.

Denver Zoo currently utilizes more than 550 adult volunteers, who in addition to the teen volunteers contribute more than 73,000 hours each year.