Emma DeMartino leads Carolina Helping Paws, a student group that works with the Orange County Animal Shelter to help shelter animals and raise money for their medical procedures.
Carolina junior psychology major and Spanish for the professions minor Emma DeMartino has been surrounded by dogs her whole life.
When she came to Chapel Hill, DeMartino knew she wanted to work with dogs and continue serving the community. Carolina Helping Paws became the way for her to do both.
One of Carolina’s largest student organizations, Carolina Helping Paws works with the Orange County Animal Shelter to create opportunities for Tar Heels to interact with shelter animals and raise money for the animals’ medical procedures. DeMartino joined the group during her first year on campus and is now the group’s president.
“I think we can learn a lot from dogs because they just live in the moment,” DeMartino said. “They’re so happy to be with the people that they love and they just live so stress-free. I think that’s something that students at Carolina and just human beings, in general, could learn from.”
