Church youth support the animals
PET BULLETIN
‘Mews and Yips’ from the Central Aroostook Humane Society
By Gloria J. Towle
Back in October I had the privilege of stopping by the United Parish Church in Fort Fairfield. Betsy, our shelter manager, had received a call that the church youth wanted to participate in an outreach project and had decided on the Central Aroostook Humane Society as their special project.
Contributed photo
From left, Ben Chartier, Hannah Chartier and Graedon Rosado of Fort Fairfield’s United Parish Church visit the Central Aroostook Humane Society shelter to drop off donations of money supplies they collected. 
Every month the church tithes 10 percent of their offerings to an area mission. Their request was to have a representative stop by and explain what the shelter does, answer some questions and have the children understand where their donations would go.
There were 15 children from Fort Fairfield and Carleton, N.B., gathered during their fall break from school for “Creation Camp.” After a brief introduction and some time spent explaining how the shelter runs, where funding comes from, the importance of what volunteers do and what happens when animals are first brought to the humane society, the children had a chance to ask questions.
There were many who had pets of their own, some had farm animals, some had rescued stray pets, and all of the kids were deeply committed to making sure that their animals were taken care of properly. They were proud of the fact that they helped care for their own pets by helping with the feeding, grooming, walking, cleaning litter boxes and spending quality time playing with their cherished 4-legged family members.
Their goal was to spend the next month collecting monetary donations, supplies for the animals and more importantly raising awareness to their church congregation of what the shelter does for the areas homeless pet population. They were very surprised to hear that in the course of a year the shelter can have up to 600 or 700 cats coming through the doors. That number has been decreasing over the past few years, thanks in part to the spay/neuter program that will alter many cats before they are adopted. This eliminates any chance of having dozens of unwanted kittens from just one female.
Pastor Meg Hegemann said, “The kids really got behind the mission to help the animals and this was by far the largest amount ever raised within the month period.”
They donated a whopping $481 along with many supplies. The children had the opportunity to visit the shelter to drop off all their donations and also to take a tour. They were excited to see all the different animals, check out the mother’s room with all the new kittens and to see what actually takes place behind the scenes.
We love seeing the dedication and interest that these young children show when they have a chance to really make a difference by getting involved. By learning the benefits of being responsible and caring pet owners and also taking responsibility for the care of their pet, makes all the kids feel like they are doing their part in making the world a better place for our furry friends.
Awesome job and a huge thank you to all the United Parish Youth!
If you are looking for a new addition to your family, then stop by the Central Aroostook Humane Society, Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., closing for lunch 12-12:30. You can also check us out on Petfinders.com and Facebook.
Please be responsible: spay and neuter your pets!
Gloria J. Towle is the secretary and a member of the Board of Directors of the Central Aroostook Humane Society.
