This is Kinessa Johnson. She’s a four year veteran of the war in Afghanistan. But now she’s fighting a totally new war. This time in Africa, it’s poachers that Kinessa pursuing with extreme prejudice. She’s got a new mission and it’s to stop cut-throat poachers, well, cutting the throats of endangered animals. As Kinessa puts it, “We’re going over there to do some anti-poaching, kill some bad guys, and do some good.”
Johnson is a part of a new group called ‘Veterans Empowered To Protect African Wildlife’ (VETPAW), her job being, technically, Anti-Poaching Advisor. VETPAW’s a not-for-profit organization that employs American Army vets to help protect African wildlife from the gun sights of ruthless poachers.
Kinessa and her colleagues have not long been deployed in the country of Tanzania, assisting local park rangers learn tactics and skill like field medicine, marksmanship and counter intelligence. Their job is to level the playing field and help the rangers fight back and ultimately save animals’ lives.
Kinessa’s always loved animals and wants to put her skills to great use. As a glamorous gal who’s got a knack in front of the camera and is great value in interviews, she’s more than happy to be the poster girl for the movement, especially if it helps bring attention to what VETPAW are doing in Africa.
They’ve already seen a drop in the number of poached rhinos and elephants in Tanzania. So VETPAW’s work is already yielding results. They play tough, but they’re getting the job done. And pretty soon you’ll be able to follow the action, as The Discovery Channel will be showing Kinessa and the team’s mission.
Meet Kinessa:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?t=120&v=r4Xvcv2-_3U
Great work!
