Humane Society of Wilkes
P.O. Box 306, North Wilkesboro, NC 28659
336-838-9588
Newsletter for December 2008
Happy Holidays!As 2008 comes to an end, we would like to look back at our accomplishments in the past year. We are very fortunate to have had a very successful year. Our foster adoption program has succeeded in placing many pets into permanent homes. Our spay neuter program has helped to pay for more spays and neuters than ever before. We are providing Kind News subscriptions to almost 3000 children in Wilkes County classrooms. Hard work and fundraising, along with donations and a generous grant, have managed to pay for all of this, even in tough economic times. We have much to be proud of. However, there is still much that needs to be done. There are far too many unwanted animals being euthanized in our county animal shelter. There are animals in our county that are being neglected or mistreated. As our economy worsens, there will be even more requests for assistance from people who can no longer afford to care for their pets. We expect 2009 to be a challenging year for everyone. So, as we enjoy our holidays and express our thanks for the blessings that we have received, please consider ways that you might help the Humane Society of Wilkes in the coming year. We need and appreciate donations of time, talent, supplies, and of course funds. On behalf of the board of directors, thank you all for everything that you have done to help the Humane Society. We appreciate all that you have given. May you each be blessed with good health, family, and friends. We wish you a peaceful and joyous holiday season. Kind News Educational ProgramOnce again, the Humane Society of Wilkes has provided Kind News subscriptions for every kindergarten, first and second grade classroom in Wilkes County for the 2008-2009 school year. Kind News is an award-winning classroom newspaper for children; it has been published since 1983 by The Humane Society of the United States. It encourages good habits in children, with an emphasis on kindness to animals, respect for natural habitats, and good citizenship. Each classroom subscription includes newsletters for 28 children, a teacher’s guide, and reproducible worksheets. It is a fun teaching tool that uses games, pictures, and puzzles that are appropriate for children. Kind News can be incorporated into subjects such as math, science, reading, and language arts, or simply handed out for students to enjoy during free time. The newsletters can also be taken home and shared with other family members. The cost of these subscriptions is $25.00 per classroom. The total cost for 2008-2009 was $2,415. We were very thankful to receive a generous $1,200 grant from the Greater Wilkes Community Fund, a component fund of the North Carolina Community Foundation. The remaining $1,215 was paid for by individual donations – often given in honor of or in memory of a person or pet. We recently received the following note from a kindergarten teacher at C.B. Eller school. “Thank you so much for providing Kind News for my students. They enjoy reading the paper and I feel it is a great resource and benefit to our educational program.” Adoption Committee NewsOur adoption committee and foster parents continue to work very, very hard to find the perfect home for each pet. Through the end of November, they had placed 175 dogs and 33 cats into new homes. A total of 52 dogs had also been transferred to various breed rescue organizations. As of December 1, there were 22 dogs and 17 cats being cared for in our foster homes. The adoption committee has set up a special fund for Special Needs and Senior animals. These are defined as animals that need ongoing medical care, or those that have a disability that could require more veterinary care as they age. These funds will be used to reduce the cost of adoption for these animals. Currently, we do not foster very many animals in this category, due to constraints of space and funding. Additional funds would allow us to help more of these special fosters. We would like to acknowledge the great staff at the Wilkes County Animal Shelter. These dedicated folks have a very difficult and often thankless job, but they perform it with grace and compassion. We are very fortunate to have such a good working relationship with them, and we appreciate their willingness to contact us when we are needed. They go above and beyond the minimum requirements to give every adoptable animal its best chance to be adopted. We would also like to thank our local veterinarians for providing veterinary services to our fosters, as well as to all animals adopted from the animal shelter. We would not be able to save as many lives without their care and support of our efforts. If you are interested in becoming more involved with adoption, please contact Joanna Cates. She can be reached at 984-0227 or coandjo@earthlink.net. You are also invited to attend adoption committee meetings at 6:30 PM on the third Monday of each month at the Wilkes Christian Church on Second Street in North Wilkesboro. “The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.” - Gandhi Spay Neuter ProgramOur spay neuter assistance program has been in much demand this year. Pet owners fill out and submit a form requesting assistance. The form requests information about the pet and the owner, including minimal financial information. These can be submitted via the internet or old fashioned paper and pen. Application forms are available at local veterinary offices, the public library, and social services. When the application is approved, the owner receives a voucher that covers part of the cost of the surgery; the owner pays the balance of the cost. The veterinarians accept the vouchers as payment, and we reimburse the veterinarians for the vouchers. There is a limit of three vouchers per residence per year, and vouchers are limited to residents of Wilkes County. So far in 2008 we have issued 667 vouchers. A total of 332 vouchers have been used, at a total cost of $ 15,113. Ours is a need based program; of these vouchers, 81% were used by families with annual income of less than $25,000. This program helped pay for surgery for:
We would like to thank our local veterinarians for participating in this program. Every local veterinary hospital accepts these vouchers, and the program operates successfully because of their cooperation. This program is paid for by our fund raising events, as well as donations from individuals. Donations may be mailed to: The Humane Society of Wilkes “No matter how much the cats fight, there always seem to be plenty of kittens.” - Abraham Lincoln FundRaisingFundraising is a year round necessity for the Humane Society of Wilkes. We are a private 501(c)(3) organization that receives no government or United Way funding. We are therefore extremely dependent on private donations and fundraising events. During the past year, we have held several fundraising events. Thanks to all of you who helped with these events – either by working on them or by attending or purchasing items. In June we held our 4th annual Cruisin’ for Critters Fund Raising event. This is always a fun event, with motorcycles, food, and music. We netted a total of $938 on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. Our 2009 Best Friends Calendar was a year long project. We began accepting entries in the spring, and had approximately 150 entries. The judging was held in early June, and the winners were notified. David Ritter did a superb job of putting the calendar together, and our calendars arrived in September. Though there are a few left, we have sold almost the entire printing of 300 calendars. Calendar ads, entry fees, and calendar sales, less the expenses of printing and advertising, give us a net income of approximately $2,400 on this project. We had our usual spot at the Brushy Mountain Apple Festival on the first Saturday in October. Once again, we had a beautiful day. Our sales (calendars, pet item, tee shirts, tote bags, etc.), and donations amounted to $2,606. After paying expenses we netted approximately $1,500. On November 1 we held our 6th annual Responsible Dog Day. This is an event where we celebrate responsible dog ownership. We had demonstrations, business exhibits, drug company representatives, a clinic for rabies vaccines and microchips, items to sell, raffles, food, and a fun dog show. Again, we were fortunate to have a beautiful day and we were pleased to have a large turnout. We had a net income of approximately $850. Our Sagebrush Dining events began in April of this year, and are held on the fourth Thursday of each month. We would like to thank Sagebrush for allowing us this opportunity. On the designated day, any diner may request that 10% of their bill be donated to the Humane Society. Humane Society volunteers man a table at the restaurant, explaining the program and offering a small array of items for sale. We also talk to diners about adoption, spay neuter, and Humane Society membership. To date, we have received $ 1,578.33 from Sagebrush, plus additional amounts received from donations and sales. This event will continue next year. If you would like to volunteer an hour or two once monthly to work at the table, please contact Joanna at 984-0227 or coandjo@earthlink.net. Or bring your family and friends out to eat on a fourth Thursday and designate 10% for the Humane Society. Last year we also had the opportunity to partner with SunTrust Bank on a fundraising project. Every customer who opened a new checking account that met certain criteria was offered the option of selecting a charitable organization to receive a $100 donation from the bank. There were 12 accounts opened that designated us – we have received $1,200. This was certainly one of the easiest fundraisers ever! We would like to thank SunTrust and Sandra Watts for making this available to us. |
Community ServiceIn May of 2008 we once again assisted Wilkes County Animal Control at their rabies clinics. This is a community service project that is a collaboration of animal control, local veterinarians, and the Humane Society. Animal control organizes the event, provides publicity, and provides an animal control officer at each location. Local veterinarians volunteer to administer the rabies vaccines. Humane Society volunteers provide assistance at the clinics – filling out rabies certificates, holding animals, and helping in any other way needed. Rabies vaccines are available at these clinics for a reduced fee. Also, the clinics are held out in the community at schools, community centers, etc. so that they are convenient for owners. As an ongoing community service, Humane Society volunteers take well mannered and socialized pets to visit residents at Wilkes Senior Village on the third Sunday of every month, from 3:30 to 5:00 PM. The residents appear to enjoy the pets, and often tell us about the special pets in their lives. Call Joanna at 984-0227 or coandjo@earthlink.net for more information. MembershipThe following people have started or renewed their memberships from September 1 through November 30, 2008. Thank you very much for your support. September
Humane Society of Wilkes membership fees are $15.00 per year for adults and $10.00 per year for youth (under 16 years old). Membership fees collected so far in 2008 amount to $ 2237. These fees cover a large part of our administrative costs (postage, copies, telephone, newsletters, insurance, etc.). Your mailing label indicates when your membership fee is due again. If you feel that there is an error, please contact Sylvia Smith at 667-1109 or sjsdvm@aol.com. Profit & Loss StatementJan 1 through Nov 30, 2008
12 Days of Christmas
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