Friday, May 15, 2009
Girl Scout cookies help Pets Eat Too
Have you heard?
JoAnne Poindexter
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Since it's not wise to give cookies to cats and dogs, the seven members of Girl Scout Troop 173 gave a quarter of their profits from selling Girl Scout cookies to the Roanoke Valley SPCA's Pets Eat Too program.
Savannah Oaks, Abigail Dimmick, Madelyn Valley, Caroline Cooper, Sarah Dooley, Halley Rice and Sadie Hayes sold about 1,000 boxes of cookies, earning about 84 cents from each box, said troop leader Tammy Dunn.
The Scouts, all 8 years old, decided they wanted to give something to the community, their leader said.
The girls made posters to display with SPCA literature during their sales events. They later clipped coupons and shopped for sales to make their $240 donation go further when they purchased animal food and treats. While delivering the products, the Scouts toured the SPCA shelter and fed and played with some of the animals.
Pets Eat Too provides food for the pets of recipients of Meals on Wheels, Manna Ministries, Bethel Baptist Church in Salem and the Botetourt Food Pantry in Fincastle.
Roanoke-area businesses, organizations and individuals hold food drives to provide the 45,000 pounds of food needed for these food programs. Cash donations are accepted to help purchase supplies such as gallon-size Ziploc bags and plastic containers used to repackage the food for distribution.
The Pets Eat Too program also reaped the rewards of a penny-collection competition at Oak Grove Elementary School. Students used pennies to vote for their favorite kind of pet -- cat or dogs. They collected $800.68 in pennies, with dogs coming out the winner in the contest.
As a result, Principal Cris Flippen had to walk around school all day with a golden retriever.
Fortunately, the dog is used in a therapy program and was at ease around the principal, students and teachers.
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Eleven first-time donors gave blood April 18 during a sickle cell anemia drive to benefit three Roanoke brothers.
The number of first-time donors "is remarkable," Nicole Page, the brothers' mother, said of the drive at Acting Faith Ministries in Salem. "We were only three donors shy of our goal or 30."
Page, her husband, the elder Tommy Page, and their sons -- Jon-Anthony, Tommy and Nari'k -- have been working on drives with the Roanoke-based American Red Cross Appalachian Blood Services Region for nearly five years.
They previously held two drives a year, collecting 120 units of blood per year, but have altered the schedule to sponsor four drives annually.
The next blood drive is July 25 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the church at 913 E. Main St. in Salem. Page said 40 to 50 donors are needed to reach the 30-gallon blood goal for the drive.
Sickle cell anemia is an inherited blood disorder that affects hemoglobin, the protein found in red blood cells that helps carry oxygen throughout the body.
Page's sons require frequent blood transfusions. JonAnthony, 16, needs transfusions every two weeks to keep the number of abnormal red blood cells, which are sickle-shaped, low. Tommy, 12, needs them every five weeks. The youngest son, Nari'k, 11, is not on a regular cycle now, but his doctors are looking to start in the near future to prevent complications as he gets older, Page said.
For more information on the blood drives or sickle cell anemia, call Nicole Page at 529-5583.
