Hello! My name is Carolyn, and I'm so happy to be sharing my experiences in Rwanda with you. I feel that I have been able to carry many of my hobbies and passions I’ve had as a child into adulthood. I am working as a student researcher with an organization called Gorilla Doctors, and I found myself here because I have always loved animals, ever since I was a kid. One of my favorite shows was BBC’s Planet Earth, and I remember watching the series for hours.
Because I was interested in a career in medicine and helping others, I chose to attend Johns Hopkins University as a pre-med student. There, I worked at the laboratory of a veterinary pathologist, and I thought she had the coolest job. When an animal died of disease at the Maryland Zoo, the zoo staff would bring her tissue samples for her to look at and ask for her professional opinion. She connected me with some people at Gorilla Doctors who were happy to host a student. Before, I thought I would only ever see gorillas on television, and now, I am working for their conservation!
Other than caring for and studying animals, another lifelong passion I’ve had is language learning. I learned Chinese growing up, French in school, and now I am learning Kinyarwanda! I’m hoping to learn Japanese and Spanish next. Another of my favorite pastimes is playing the piano, and it has been for the past 15 years.
I'm so excited to have you join me... let's go!
