April 17, 2009 Maine shelters benefit from unemployed volunteers Play video

(NECN: Marnie MacLean, Kennebunk, Maine) - The recession has left thousands of New Englanders out of a job. Turns out, that's good news for some agencies that rely on volunteers. An animal shelter in Kennebunk, Maine is benefiting from a new trend: unemployed volunteers.

Mollie Coyne is used to managing people, not bunnies. Several weeks ago she was laid off from her job at a Portland recruiting firm. She is actively job-hunting, and now one of several unemployed volunteers at the Animal Welfare Society in Kennebunk, Maine.

Mollie Coyne--Shelter Volunteer: "I found a really great way to get me out of the house one day a week, I do it on Friday’s. Its a slower day for resumes, let's me go into the weekend feeling good having given something back"

While Mollie takes care of the bunnies, Greg LeClair is looking at the books. A few weeks ago he lost his job as the CFO of an ad agency.

Greg LeClair: ”You get that stomach punch feeling, what do I do now?"

One thing he's done is offer his services, for free, to the shelter. He can fix the finances, or a brick walkway. There's no paycheck, but there are some benefits.

One thing all the unemployed volunteers say is you can only check email so many times a day...spending time with these guys makes them forget the job hunt, if only for a short time.

When Astrid Marshall lost her paralegal job, she increased her volunteer hours at the shelter; time that helps dogs looking for good

Liz Smith--United Way: "They are looking for employment and interacting with their communities and meeting people and doing the networking thing we all try to do when looking for a job."

The United Way of Greater Portland says the shelter is one example of a trend in unemployed volunteers. The agency says places like the Wayside Soup Kitchen in Portland and the Children's Museum of Maine are seeing a jump in their volunteers as well.

It's a trend the animal welfare society is happy to benefit from.

As people get jobs, those hours will be reduced--but the shelter hopes—not eliminated.

Astrid: "I look at Reba and I'm like, I’m going to go home soon, just don't know where...I’m going to get a job, just don’t know where"

In the meantime, they can help each other.