Life is pretty busy for Deborah Roy, who works 50 to 60 hours as a nurse.

"I'm usually leaving work, kind of tired, and maybe a little stressed out, somedays, I might be a little irritable, but when I get here, that all kind of goes out the window,” said Roy.  

That “here” is the Carolina Raptor Center in Huntersville, North Carolina. Aside from that busy schedule as a full-time nurse, she’s a mom of two, who volunteers at the center.

"It can just be three to four hours a week, going out and picking up sick and injured birds, can add time onto that. Monitoring a couple of eagles' nest adds a little bit more time onto that, so it can vary, three and four hours, even up to fifteen to twenty hours in a week,” said Roy.

Those that work at the Carolina Raptor Center say Roy’s dedication stands out in the world. "It's so nice to see that dedication, because there aren't enough people who care,” said Lauren Allen, who is part of the medical staff at the Carolina Raptor Center.

It’s that type of dedication that even the birds pick up on. "She's a very peaceful person; the birds respond really well to her,”  said Allen.

Despite Roy’s busy schedule nursing people back to health, she finds it calming helping injured animals in need.  “I need to do this; it’s almost like a therapy for me,”  said Roy.

While she doesn’t have a lot of free time for herself, she says volunteering is how she wants to spend it.  "I don't just want to sit in front of the TV and not do anything,” said Roy.

Roy helps prepare meals and medicines for the birds, cleans up holding areas, and helps monitor them.  “It’s very rewarding,” said Roy.

She says seeing an injured bird get back to health makes everything she does worth it. "Seeing sometimes the birds fly away, it's a feeling, and knowing how far they may have come, it's undescribable; just to see that freedom and that bird fly away, it's unbelievable, “ said Roy.

Roy has inspired others at the Carolina Raptor Center. When I asked Allen if she wishes more people were like Roy, Allen said, "everyday...everyday, I wish more people were like Deborah. She just inspires the people around her."

But, for Roy, she wouldn’t do it any other way, saying, "I'm getting more than what I am giving, because it's just a part of who I am, and who I want to be, and it's what I want to be doing."