Our education programs are back! We are visiting schools, meeting students, parents and teachers. This is so important when you see the numbers of homeless pets that come to the Aiken County Animal Shelter each day. We need to educate more young people in our community about responsible pet ownership. They are our future leaders and animal advocates.
Starting with the youngest, we’ve been lucky enough to be included in programs at local preschools.
Aiken’s First Baptist Preschool invited us to meet with their students and bring an adoptable dog with us. The children loved having the furry visitor and held a month-long donation collection for the shelter pets. Their kindergarteners delivered the items to the shelter at the end of the month and brought along their reading books, too! They spent time reading to the shelter dogs and making it such a joyful day!
We also visited Trinity United Methodist Preschool with a shelter dog for Pet Week. Their sweet students gave us pet food donations and made a lovely picture for the shelter.
Our most recent school visits occurred on the same day and let me tell you, it was a memorable one.
Each year, the Gloverville Elementary School Beta Club holds a collection for items from our shelter’s Wish List. I was invited to bring a dog and meet with these students. The students had great questions and were all super respectful young people. The students will be coming to the shelter in May to read to the dogs. Such a treat for our homeless pets!
Byrd Elementary, which has always shown its support to the shelter, has been going through a difficult time. One of their beloved teachers, Dana Foster, was murdered on Feb. 16. The entire school felt an incredible loss. What did they do to honor her? They collected items to help shelter pets because their teacher and friend was a big supporter and loved four-legged friends. Shelter Manager Bobby Arthurs and I were invited to pick up the items and we were overcome by their generosity. We brought along adoptable Sophia who gave hugs to some of the students who just couldn’t hold back their tears that day.
Our older students have also been pretty amazing!
Tall Pines Stem Academy has sent many students over to read to dogs as well as take part in our Doggy Day Out program. Students and their families have been taking shelter dogs to the park, for car rides and visits to Starbucks.
Mead Hall students from their Interact Club invited me to come and speak with their group. They were such amazing young people who wanted to help! Some group members came and helped us with our Community Pet Food Drive-Thru just a couple of weeks ago.
We also have been lucky enough to be part of a program at the Aiken Scholars Academy on the last Friday of each month, Furry Friends Friday. Volunteers bring adoptable dogs to meet the students and they are welcomed with such love!
Sometimes we forget how powerful children are and how much they can change the world. Over the past few months. I have had the privilege of meeting incredible young people. Some have brought their families to the shelter to adopt dogs they have met at school; some ask how they can help; and others are just eager and ready to support us.
I am truly inspired by the students I have met and cannot wait until more schools allow us to visit and talk to their students about FOTAS and what they can do to help the shelter’s homeless pets.
Their lives are in our hands.
— By Kathy Jacobs, FOTAS Programs Coordinator
