Hi Boys and Girls,

Isn’t this an exciting weekend?  Are you following your musher?

 I received a really nice letter from Mrs. Gobles 3^rd grade class at Cannelton Elementary in Cannelton, Indiana.  They have been very busy this year with Community Projects.  Their first project was for the Perry County Animal Shelter.  They wanted to help the homeless animals at the shelter find new homes. First, they went to the shelter to play with the animals. I know the animals really enjoyed that! While there, they took pictures and got information about each animal.  When they returned to school, they made posters featuring the dogs and cats up for adoption.  They then put the posters up throughout community at local businesses such as gas stations and restaurants. 

They also made paper ornaments with each animals picture on it and placed them on the class Christmas tree.  The students then brought in spare change, dog toys and bedding.  They raised $100 for the shelter plus supplies.  Isn’t that wonderful? There efforts helped find homes for animals who really needed one.  One very lucky cat found a home with Mrs. Goble. I asked the class why they picked this project and they said, “We feel it is so important for people who are looking for a new pet for their family to consider the adoption option. That is why we decided to help promote our animal shelter. We hope others will do the same. “

Their current project is to help the shelter purchase a grooming kit. This kit will be used to  clean up the animals and get them ready for adoption.  They are planning a celebration at the shelter when they deliver the kit.  The celebration will include a cake for the humans and treats for the animals.  They will take pictures of the new arrivals to the shelter and make new posters to feature them and hopefully find new homes for the newest members of the shelter.

Another project they did this year which had a direct link to the Iditarod was to make 100 booties for musher Ramey Smith.  They joined the Bootie Brigade which is a group of sewers who make booties for mushers in the Iditarod. They said they “were happy to be a part of the race in this way, because not only are they helping a musher but they are directly helping the dogs who make the race possible.”

I asked Mrs. Goble what she thought the children have learned.  She said, “they have learned that it doesn’t matter how old you are, anyone and everyone can help make the world a better place. They also learned that they can have a whole lot of fun doing it.”

Currently, a flat Ramey (modeled after Flat Stanley) they made is in Alaska enjoying the race and sending them back reports and pictures. They are very excited about this.  Flat Ramey even called them the other day and let them talk to the real Ramey!

Congratulations Mrs. Gobles class.  We K9 reporters are very proud of you.  You have helped a lot of cats and dogs find nice homes and families who will love them and take care of them.

Is your class doing a Community service project to help animals?  We’d love to hear from you and feature you on our blog.

Have fun this week following the race,

Gypsy