What do a goose with a broken wing, a seagull wrapped in fishing line, an abandoned baby fawn, a litter of unwanted puppies and old dogs without homes have in common?

All of them were brought to the attention of Tia VanFossen of Coastal Critters, a nonprofit rescue, rehabilitate and release animal shelter in Socastee.

VanFossen and the volunteers who help her are among many people in the Grand Strand area who work tirelessly to save animals, and many network to find homes for dogs, cats and other animals. Coastal Critters works with other local shelters to find homes and lost pets and to attempt to identify found animals and return them to their owners.

VanFossen also works with the United States Department of Agriculture and the Department of Natural Resources to save wild birds and animals, which are rehabilitated and released back into the air or to preserves where they are allowed to live out their lives.

“We have a lot of baby birds this time of year,” she said.

Horry Telephone Cooperative’s 2013 REEL Kids proved themselves through scholastic, athletic and community achievements while facing various trials. On May 23, HTC’s CEO Mike Hagg placed medallions around the necks of 50 REEL Kids from first to 12th grades during an awards ceremony at the Marina Inn at Grande Dunes.

The event theme was “Fly Without Wings,” and the featured speaker was Jessica Cox, who was born without arms and is the first armless person to get a pilot’s license. Using her feet as hands, she learned to fly, swim, drive, surf and scuba dive. A college graduate, she lives independently.

“Walls are only there to stop the people who don’t want it bad enough,” she said.

Benjamin Taylor, a North Myrtle Beach High senior, and Gabby Papamichael, a Myrtle Beach High senior, received Presidential Scholarships of $500 per semester for two years from Horry-Georgetown Technical College.