School project coming up? Maybe your child just needs something to do on the weekends or over break.
Or you might just have an avid little animal lover who wants to help out! Whatever the reason, if your child is looking for a way to give back to the community and benefit our furry friends in the Pikes Peak Region, there are tons of ways to help at the Humane Society!
For example, one young supporter named Maya organized a donation drive in her neighborhood and donated lots of great items such as dog treats and cat toys for HSPPR animals. A little girl named Megan took up a collection for HSPPR at her church because she wanted to help homeless animals. And last December, Katlin decided she wanted the dogs and cats at HSPPR to have a happy holiday too. So she gave up one of her Christmas presents to make a donation to her furry friends!These are just a few recent examples of how children with love in their hearts can come up with ways to help the four-legged critters of Colorado Springs. And it doesn’t stop there! Here is a list of great ideas for your children to get involved and have fun doing it!
Volunteer at HSPPR: Shelter volunteers who work directly with animals must be at least 12 years of age, must train and work with their own adult at all times until they’re 17, and must commit to an average of 2 hours per week for a minimum of 50 hours in a 6-month period.
Organize a Pet Supply Drive: HSPPR is always in need of supplies to care for the constant influx of animals into the facility. Students can collect donations of items on the current wish list. You can involve the entire school or neighborhood by designating a regular drop-off point for donations.
Celebrate Your Birthday or Holidays: Ask friends and family to give presents to homeless animals instead of you.
Collect Coins for Critters: Create animal banks (or use a dog or cat food bowl) for each classroom and have the students compete to see which class can collect the most money. Have special recognition for the winning class (a certificate and visit from an HSPPR animal perhaps?).
Plan a Fundraiser: Come up with an idea to earn money for the animals. Set a date, advertise, recruit volunteers, then donate the proceeds.
- Bake sale – Organize a bake sale, have friends bring baked goods to sell, make posters to advertise your event, decide on a fair price for the goods.
- Lemonade stand – Find a busy corner in your neighborhood and hope for warm weather!
- Sell – Flowers on Mother’s Day or Valentine’s Day, lollipops or snacks during lunch or after school, or handmade holiday ornaments at Christmas time.
- Car wash – Choose a visible location, one with lots of traffic. Get permission from the property owner if you’re holding the event in a business parking lot. Make large posters advertising a FREE car wash, then ask for donations to benefit HSPPR.
- Dog wash – Same as above only for neighborhood dogs.
- Have a game booth ¬- Devise a fun game with an animal theme at your school carnival, charge people to play, and have inexpensive prizes for the winners.
Please notify HSPPR in advance about the ideas for your project. Always get approval for any function from the principal or other school official before holding an event on school grounds. The collection of proceeds from youth fundraising projects should be handled by one person (the sponsor, teacher, or a responsible student). HSPPR gives permission to use our name as follows: “Proceeds from this event (or sale) will benefit Humane Society of the Pikes Peak Region.” You will need to tell your donors the percentage or exact dollar amount of the proceeds that will be donated to HSPPR.
For more information, visit www.hsppr.org or call 719.302.8739.
