Edison students aid animal shelter
Molly Shore
The Burbank Animal Shelter is $1,000 richer, thanks to the generosity
of Edison Elementary School students.
Following a fund-raising T-shirt sale in April, which gave the
school a 50% profit after contributing to a fund to save the rain
forest, students decided to donate to a local organization.
“We thought that we wanted to do something for our environment
globally, but we also wanted to do something for our community,”
Edison fifth-grade teacher Susan Stone said.
Because most of the student council members like animals, they
voted to give the money to the animal shelter, said student council
president Jenna Solis, 11.
Student council vice president Tiffany Ho, 10, said the
environmental T-shirts had animals on them, which gave students the
idea to contribute to the shelter.
Stone and the two girls were at the animal shelter Thursday
morning to present a $1,000 check to police department Deputy Chief
Larry Koch and Lt. Bruce Speirs, who supervises the facility.
Some of the money will be used to help people who cannot afford to
spay or neuter their animals, Speirs said. The money will also be
used to help elderly people on fixed incomes who need critical care
for their sick animals, he said.
Most of the donations the shelter receives are through schools and
youth programs, according to kennel attendant Stacie Levin.
“Plus, we get a lot of donated labor through volunteers,” Speirs
added.
After a thorough background investigation, anyone 18 and older can volunteer as little as two hours a week, Levin said. Volunteers walk
the dogs and clean dog and cat kennels, she said.The animal shelter
is open from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5
p.m. Saturday, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. The shelter is closed
Mondays.