A lifelong animal lover, Reisterstown native Molly Schneider works with wildlife in Arkansas.
Most young people don’t dream of spending their summer months in the company of lions, tigers, leopards, cougars and bears. But most people aren’t Molly Schneider, 24, a Reisterstown native who works as an animal care intern at the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
The refuge is part of the Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that provides certification for rescue and rehabilitation centers for animals. Turpentine Creek’s overall mission, says Schneider, is “to provide lifetime refuge for abandoned, abused and neglected big cats.”
Schneider says the refuge becomes a home to big cats for many reasons, ranging from owners who surrender their animals to the government-seizing ownership to those who fail to comply with animal welfare laws.
At the refuge, which houses approximately 100 animals, Schneider’s daily duties include cleaning out cages, food preparation, feeding animals and maintaining and building habitats, among other tasks.
Her parents, Carol and Mike Schneider, describe their daughter as a passionate, outgoing free spirit. She attended Pikesville’s Beth Tfiloh Dahan Community School and graduated from Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, in 2018 with a degree in marine biology.
Schneider has been fascinated with animals and wildlife since childhood. Her father remembers a time when 3-year-old Molly put her hand in a goldfish bowl in an attempt to hold the fish.
“She saw me watching and simply explained, ‘I just want a pet that I can hold,’” he says. She even attended sleepaway camp at SeaWorld Orlando, where she cared for animals.
As an advocate for animal conservation, Schneider dreamed of becoming a wild animal keeper and interned at the Virginia Zoo in Norfolk while in college. It was at this zoo that she first learned about the Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge from one of her internship coordinators. Schneider applied for an internship and started working there in February of 2019.
Each internship at Turpentine Creek runs about seven months, and Schneider is finishing her third internship there.
Like all jobs, Schneider says her work at the refuge comes with its own set of obstacles and rewards. A major challenge, she says, is “experiencing loss. Losing an animal is always incredibly hard, and it’s always a really tough time around here when that happens.”
A reward, on the other hand, is sharing in the animals’ happiness.
“It’s extremely rewarding to see an animal who may have come from so little — like not even having access to grass to lay down in — step foot into a large grassy habitat that you just worked so hard to clean. It feels amazing to know that I may have even had a small part in helping to make this animal’s life better,” says Schneider.
Mike Schneider says he and his wife are most proud of Molly’s knowledge of wildlife, fearlessness and “[willingness] to go where there is the opportunity to grow and learn, no matter how far from home.”
In return, she describes her parents as “extremely supportive” and credits them for instilling in her respect for all living things.
“My parents are both in the field of helping people, and they taught me to be compassionate and empathetic,” she says.
Schneider says she wants to work with animals and ensure their safety throughout her career.
“These animals do not have a voice, and when we talk with the public and educate them on how to make a difference and allow these animals to be ambassadors for their species, we are giving these animals their voices,” she says.
Mike Schneider says his daughter’s Jewish identity and values inform her work.
“Molly exhibits an innate and instinctual understanding of the Jewish teaching of protecting animals and nature,” he says. “She clearly demonstrates the value of tikkun olam [repairing the world] on a daily basis through her advocacy of the animals in need of protection from the environment, human unkindness and irresponsibility.”
Tomer Nusinov is a Jmore editorial staff intern.
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