Christmas in July!
Animal Hospital of Statesville really gets into the Christmas spirit when we help others in our community! From providing food for those in need, to providing gifts to families who can't provide a memorable Christmas for their kids, we are all about shopping to help them out. This year, as we did last year, we are providing Christmas stockings to seniors in a few local nursing homes. We sing carols and have a great time singing and talking with them. We even played bells together - we weren't real good at that, but we had fun and lots of laughs! We will be providing the stockings. However, if you have a stocking you wish to use, that's fine, too! We are "stuffing" them with goodies, as listed below:
- Small packages of Kleenex (you know, the ones you can fit in your purse)
- Lip balm - like Chapstick
- Warm scarves or hats
- Gloves or mittens
- Hand lotion
- Large print playing cards
- Puzzles (won't fit in a stocking, but you can include that "on the side"!)
- Crossword/find-a-word books
- Adult coloring books
- Colored pencils to coloring in those adult coloring books
Please bring your purchased items to stuff your stocking in a big Ziploc bag so we can keep it all together. We'll then stuff your stocking in December and take it with us to distribute to our cherished senior friends! We hope to fill at least 50 stockings, and are happy to deliver to more nursing/assisted living homes if we get lots more! We'll also be caroling, and you are welcome to join the fun! We've some some great singers on our staff, and we have a great time harmonizing together! We'll give more details when that is scheduled.
Thanks so much for your donations for this project. We can fill even more stockings with YOUR help! Merry Christmas in July!!!
Food for Days
In years past, before COVID-19 became the "norm", we were collecting items for Food for Days, which provides food in backpacks for local kids who may not get a meal on the weekends. Can you imagine? Each month, Food for Days collects a different item. While some of these may not seem as nutritious as you might want, these are items that kids will actually EAT, filling their bellies when they may not get anything else. They are easy-to-make food items that are appropriate for kids to make themselves.
As you can see, each month has a specific food item that we are collecting. These items may be purchased and placed in the basket in our lobby – it's on the top of the shelves where the cat food is kept. You'll see a sign, or just ask! Each month, we'll remind everyone which item we are collecting on FB, but this list will remain on our website as a reference for you.
Please help us feed local kids. As you may know, Animal Hospital of Statesville is very involved in community projects throughout the year.
As always, thank you for your generosity. We know we ask much of you, but no more than we ask of ourselves. We try to help those that can't help themselves. In this instance, and in the instance of our Quarters for Laundry drive, the kids are the ones who benefit. Let’s make 2022 a better year for our community’s kids of all ages!
For more information visit: foodfordays.org
Quarters for Laundry
One of the needs that Tonya Reid, who was the District Homeless Liaison for the Iredell-Statesville Schools, has made us aware of is the need for local homeless students to have clean clothes to wear to school. To that end, we are collecting quarters for Tonya and her “crew” of helpers to use to make sure those kids are sent to school with fresh, clean clothes. We have a big jar on the desk in the front lobby to donate your quarters to help her accomplish this important, but, dare we say, often overlooked issue that faces our community’s homeless students. We’ll be keep the jar up indefinitely, so gather up your quarters and stick them in our big plastic jar! Our staff is donating, as well as clients who come in, have a few quarters, and just pop them in the jar! They will add up quickly! In the video accompanying this write-up, two of Sarah’s daughters – Sarah, who was once one of our Client Services Representatives – robbed their piggy bank of their savings and generously donated their hard-won quarters - $20-worth, to be exact - to help out other kids in need! It’s a great lesson for kids to learn about charitable giving. It feels good to us, and it benefits others and makes them feel better, too! We have 2 cups on our counter - one at check in, and another at what we call retail. Please consider gathering up your quarters to help Tonya. She is no long the liaison, but STILL donates her time (and money) to do "her" kids' laundry so they can be clean and ready for school.