Why HPHH is the ‘best of both worlds’ for Rachel Horan
Rachel Horan grew up in Brisbane, Australia, before moving to the Netherlands 2 days after she turned 18. After bouncing around Europe – from Stockholm to Rome – she returned to Australia and settled back into her hometown life.
“Living in Europe honestly changed me. I know it’s a bit cringe, and that everyone always says that after living abroad, but it really is true,” Rachel says.
“I’d recommend travelling to anyone that wants a whole new perspective on life, especially to places like Europe with such a rich history and different way of life."
Rachel is the Communication & Media Officer at Happy Paws Happy Hearts. Prior to joining HPHH in February 2023, Rachel worked in Public Relations (PR) agencies and as a Finance Journalist at a popular financial website, Savings.com.au.
She always loved animals: “In my interview for my high school, I actually said I wanted to be a vet so that I could help animals. However, I have a bit of a weak stomach, so that dream went out the window.”
“Working at Happy Paws Happy Hearts is honestly my dream job,” Rachel says.
“When I was working in PR agencies, I was always very transparent with my managers that my end game was to land a gig at a not-for-profit. I never really liked helping money-hungry companies make more money, despite also working in finance."
Rachel says she has ‘too many memories to pick just one’ favourite in her time at HPHH. It always makes her day hearing the adoption success stories of the animals she meets at RSPCA Wacol, and the success stories of HPHH participants and alumni.
“I have had the pleasure of meeting so many wonderful people and animals. I’m so lucky that my job is to share their stories with the world and let more people know about HPHH,” she says.
Her favourite animals are cats because they are ‘so fiercely, unapologetically themselves, not to mention they sleep a lot’.
If she was an animal, she says she would be a sloth: “They’re a bit dim. Sloths will often mistake their own arms for tree branches and fall to their deaths. I would do something like that,” she laughs.
When she’s not at work, you would probably find Rachel chilling at home with her RSPCA rescue cat Luna, dancing, or pumping iron in the gym.
Rachel’s ‘coolest brag’ - other than living in Europe - is that she has completed an astronaut training program at NASA in Orlando, Florida.
“I did it while I was in high school. I did the training over 4 days and even met an astronaut. I used to love physics and thought space was cool. However, turns out it’s really hard to become an astronaut and that space is really scary,” she says.
Rachel is a huge fan of Harry Potter, rewatching the movies (excluding the Chamber of Secrets) periodically throughout the year. She still listens to One Direction and is patiently waiting for their hiatus to end.