When the leaders of the Open Door Animal Sanctuary in House Springs selected their Volunteer of the Year for 2023, they chose one of the organization’s youngest volunteers – Oksana Murray, 24, of Arnold.
“Most of the people who get the award are, like many of our volunteers, retired or of retirement age. I don’t know that we’ve had someone that young win the award before,” said Lynese Cargill, director of development for Missouri’s largest no-kill animal shelter.
Even though Murray wasn’t a typical choice for the award, she was the obvious choice, Cargill said.
“She’s so willing to help with everything we do here. When she’s here, she wants to help. She volunteers several times a week, walking dogs and socializing with our cats,” Cargill said. “She helps out where we need help – with everything. When she’s here, she likes to stay busy; she doesn’t want to sit around. It wasn’t a difficult choice to give her the award.”
Murray received the award at an Aug. 20 ceremony at the Hilton St. Louis Frontenac Hotel.
“I was kind of surprised,” she said. “I didn’t think they did that kind of thing.”
Cargill said Murray and her mother, Johnna, were invited to attend the ceremony, but they didn’t know why.
“I told her mother that we had a surprise for Murray, but she didn’t know what it was,” Cargill said. “When her name was announced, she burst into tears. She was very excited. It was an awesome moment.”
“Yes, I was very emotional,” Murray said. “I couldn’t control myself or my emotions. It’s part of my disability.”
She said she was born with a learning disability.
“It’s tough for me to learn,” she said. “I don’t have a great short-term memory.”
But that doesn’t stop Murray from visiting the shelter three times a week to walk dogs.
“I would say walking the dogs has helped me physically,” Murray said. “Some of them are pretty strong.”
A 2018 Fox High School graduate, she said she ran cross country for the Warriors for four years and was on the track and field team for three.
The daughter of Chuck and Johnna Murray, she is pursuing a fine arts degree at Jefferson College.
“I think I’ll be there for six years, but that’s OK,” she said.
Murray’s specialty is techniques art.
“It’s basically digital art,” she said. “I draw anything I can see visually.”
Some of her favorite subjects are of the four-legged variety.
“Oh yes, I draw dogs,” she said. “Multiple dogs. Some abstract dogs. I have quite a few of the dog who lives next door, a tiny, little dog. I think it’s a beagle.”
While Murray, who was adopted at the age of 5 1/2, said she grew up with a cat, Felix, she’s more drawn to dogs.
“I’m definitely more into dogs than cats,” she said. “But really, I’ve always been attracted to animals. I help lost dogs in my neighborhood get back to their homes.”
That passion, she said, led her mother to direct her to the Open Door’s Facebook page about two years ago.
“I knew then that I wanted to volunteer there,” Murray said.
It turned out to be a perfect match, and her father delivers her to the sanctuary at 6065 Duda Road three times a week.
“I go to Open Door three times a week, and I go to class three times a week,” she said. “The hours can be different, depending on what’s going on with my class work.”
Murray said she enjoys her volunteer work.
“The people at Open Door are very open. They love to help other people out, like with their pet food pantry. It’s also neat to see dogs going home to their new families,” she said.
Murray said when she arrives at the animal shelter, the regular residents know.
“I think many of the dogs know me,” she said.
She said she has a favorite, Mojo.
“He’s a puppy, but he reminds me of an older dog, Rex, that was my favorite before he was adopted. Rex had a really goofy face, a big head and a muscular body. He reminded me of a dinosaur. Mojo reminds me of him.”
Murray said it’s bittersweet when she learns one of “her” dogs has been adopted.
“It’s a little bit sad for me, but, of course, I’m very happy for them,” she said.
Murray has two brothers, Teddy, 20, and Chip, 23.
“When Chip moved out of our house, he adopted Brutus, an Open Door dog in May, which I think is really neat,” she said.
“One of these days, I’m going to walk out of there with a dog,” Murray said, laughing.
Despite all the time Murray spends at Open Door, she’s willing to pay good money for additional hours with her four-legged friends.
“We do a Shelter Slumber Pawty every year,” Cargill said. “It’s a fundraiser that requires people who want to spend a night at Open Door to raise $1,000.”
Cargill said Murray was so excited about the upcoming event, which will be held in April 2024, that she already has raised $1,200.
Murray said she went door to door asking for donations near her home, then rode Jeffco Express to a couple of nearby neighborhoods.
“The thing I’d like people to know is when I went up to houses in (more affluent) neighborhoods, when I said I was there to help Open Door, some people just rolled their eyes. I had much better luck in other kinds of neighborhoods.”
Still, she said, she wasn’t deterred.
“I really like it at Open Door, the atmosphere,” she said. “I know I already am here a lot, but I think these animals deserve the money. It’s a really good place.”
Cargill said she admired Murray’s resolve to raise so much money so quickly for the event.
“This is someone who is already here a lot,” she said. “That says a lot about who she is and how much she cares about animals.”
Cargill said Open Door has an active roster of about 150 volunteers.
“Some are dog walkers only, some come to socialize with our cats. Some do both, while others help plan and work at our community activities,” she said.
There’s plenty to do, she said.
“At any given moment, we might have 250 cats and 100 dogs,” Cargill said. “We’re definitely busy.”
In addition to offering pet adoptions, Open Door, which has been open for 48 years, offers low-cost spaying and neutering services for pet owners who have low incomes, as well as an animal food pantry.
“If we can help keep animals in their homes with their families, that’s much better than having them here at the shelter,” she said.
For more information on Open Door, call 636-671-3643.