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*****
Food pantries finding pets need
meals, too
Recession brings new need for aid at non
profits
At Neighbors in Need in Andover, Barbara
Hinckley unloads pet food. (Jim Davis/Globe
Staff)
By Brian Benson
Globe Correspondent / January 14, 2010
As director of Neighbors in Need, Linda Zimmerman expected the recession
to increase the number of people using the food pantry.
Zimmerman didn’t expect the Lawrence-based organization to have to start
helping dogs and cats in addition to humans.
But thanks to the non-profit Coalition to Protect Animals Locally, which has
donated about 800 pounds of pet food and supplies to the pantry since
November, many clients have had an easier time feeding their pets in
recent weeks.
“Certainly, the need is there,’’ Zimmerman said. “The first day people knew
we had it, it was flying out of there.’’
Although Neighbors in Need occasionally received pet food through
individual donations or local stores, this was the first program targeted at
animals.
“I hadn’t really gone after pet food before, but now that this project is
happening I can put it on our list,’’ Zimmerman said.
The coalition, founded last spring, consists of a network of 20 animal lovers
living throughout the Merrimack Valley.
“For most families, animals represent a member of their own family just like
children,’’ said Lois Karfunkel of Andover, one of its founding volunteers. “It
would be a shame if families have to decide between feeding their children
and pets.’’
The biggest challenge is raising awareness, since people generally donate
pet food to animal shelters, said Karfunkel, who teaches an animal law
course at Boston University.
But most shelters, battling overcrowding and rising costs, only use the food
for animals under their care, she said.
“There was a gap that I thought we could fill,’’ Karfunkel said.
“It’s one of those things where you mention it and people say ‘Gee, that
makes a lot of sense. Why hasn’t it been done before?’ ’’
One shelter that does provide food to pet owners is Gloucester-based Cape
Ann Animal Aid, although it has not networked with a food pantry, said
Rebecca Shatford, the group’s public relations manager.
The shelter typically collects 20 bags of food per week in addition to pet
treats and cat litter, mostly from individual donations, Shatford said.
“We hear from people who are crying on the phone and just can’t find a way
to feed their animals,’’ she said. “We’ve been able to give them an option.’’
For Zimmerman, the coalition’s work has opened her eyes to a new way to
help clients while reducing the demand on animal shelters, she said.
“People are just beginning to understand that need,’’ she said. “If we can
help people keep animals in their homes, we are certainly interested in
doing what we can.’’
The Coalition to Protect Animals Locally hopes to also become involved in
supporting animal legislation, grant writing, and funding spay and neuter
clinics. For more information, visit www.protectanimalslocally.org.
© Copyright 2010 Globe Newspaper Company.
Food pantries finding pets need
meals, too
Recession brings new need for aid at non
profits
At Neighbors in Need in Andover, Barbara
Hinckley unloads pet food. (Jim Davis/Globe
Staff)
By Brian Benson
Globe Correspondent / January 14, 2010
As director of Neighbors in Need, Linda Zimmerman expected the recession
to increase the number of people using the food pantry.
Zimmerman didn’t expect the Lawrence-based organization to have to start
helping dogs and cats in addition to humans.
But thanks to the non-profit Coalition to Protect Animals Locally, which has
donated about 800 pounds of pet food and supplies to the pantry since
November, many clients have had an easier time feeding their pets in
recent weeks.
“Certainly, the need is there,’’ Zimmerman said. “The first day people knew
we had it, it was flying out of there.’’
Although Neighbors in Need occasionally received pet food through
individual donations or local stores, this was the first program targeted at
animals.
“I hadn’t really gone after pet food before, but now that this project is
happening I can put it on our list,’’ Zimmerman said.
The coalition, founded last spring, consists of a network of 20 animal lovers
living throughout the Merrimack Valley.
“For most families, animals represent a member of their own family just like
children,’’ said Lois Karfunkel of Andover, one of its founding volunteers. “It
would be a shame if families have to decide between feeding their children
and pets.’’
The biggest challenge is raising awareness, since people generally donate
pet food to animal shelters, said Karfunkel, who teaches an animal law
course at Boston University.
But most shelters, battling overcrowding and rising costs, only use the food
for animals under their care, she said.
“There was a gap that I thought we could fill,’’ Karfunkel said.
“It’s one of those things where you mention it and people say ‘Gee, that
makes a lot of sense. Why hasn’t it been done before?’ ’’
One shelter that does provide food to pet owners is Gloucester-based Cape
Ann Animal Aid, although it has not networked with a food pantry, said
Rebecca Shatford, the group’s public relations manager.
The shelter typically collects 20 bags of food per week in addition to pet
treats and cat litter, mostly from individual donations, Shatford said.
“We hear from people who are crying on the phone and just can’t find a way
to feed their animals,’’ she said. “We’ve been able to give them an option.’’
For Zimmerman, the coalition’s work has opened her eyes to a new way to
help clients while reducing the demand on animal shelters, she said.
“People are just beginning to understand that need,’’ she said. “If we can
help people keep animals in their homes, we are certainly interested in
doing what we can.’’
The Coalition to Protect Animals Locally hopes to also become involved in
supporting animal legislation, grant writing, and funding spay and neuter
clinics. For more information, visit www.protectanimalslocally.org.
© Copyright 2010 Globe Newspaper Company.
| CoPal in the News |
Merrimack Valley pantry helping needy keep pet bowls filled
By Marie Donovan, Sun Correspondent
"If I didn't have that cat, I'd be all alone," says Donna Tornberg, who shares
her Lowell home with Cali. She recently became a client of the Pet Food
Pantry, a service offered by the Merrimack Valley Food Pantry in partnership
with the Coalition to Protect Animals Locally and the Lowell Humane Society.
SUN / DAVID H. BROW
Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our MyCapture site.
Donna Tornberg and her 40-pound cat, Cali, have a symbiotic relationship.
Tornberg needs a wheelchair to get around. She spends most of her time at
home because of mobility issues, and Cali provides her with
around-the-clock companionship.
"My cat's my baby. If I didn't have that cat, I'd be all alone," said Tornberg, of
Lowell.
Cali also serves as the 51-year-old's alarm clock every morning and even
helps her keep track of the nation's birthday.
"She'll be 4 on July Fourth," Tornberg said.
In turn, Tornberg provides Cali with a loving home that possibly no one else
would.
Cali is a bit of a scratcher, especially with women. She hogs the bed, refuses
to eat wet cat food and doesn't really take
Thanks to the Pet Food Pantry, Donna Tornberg of Lowell is better able to
care for Cali. The service is especially valuable to Tornberg because of her
mobility issues. SUN / DAVID H. BROW
Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our MyCapture site.
much direction either.
Those water bottles the experts say to squirt your pet with to discipline
them?
Useless.
"She likes me to squirt her," Tornberg said.
Earlier this month, Tornberg became a client of the Pet Food Pantry, a
service offered by the Merrimack Valley Food Pantry in partnership with the
Coalition to Protect Animals Locally (CoPAL) and the Lowell Humane Society.
According to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals, the number of families surrendering pets to shelters has increased
110 percent since the recession began two years ago.
"They had to give up their pets because they couldn't afford the expense,"
said Lois Karfunkel, co-founder of CoPAL.
Karfunkel, an animal-law professor at Boston University who lives in
Andover, said the goal of her organization is to gather and distribute
donated pet food to families in need to avoid "economic euthanasia." Older
pets are much harder to find new homes for. An eccentric like Cali would be
nearly impossible to place.
"She spits at me and stuff, but I love her," said Tornberg, who bottle-fed Cali
as a kitten and now gets donations of nutritious cat food made by Wellness
Naturally Delicious Dietary Solutions.
Although the cat is overweight, it's because Tornberg couldn't afford to give
her healthy food and had been feeding her table scraps.
"Our goal is to help families and individuals that may be struggling to feed
their pets and keep them in the home," Pet Food Pantry Executive Director
Amy Pessia said. "We're all pet owners. I have a cat, Figaro, and he's like a
family member to us,"
CoPAL has already donated nearly 800 pounds of pet food to the Merrimack
Valley Food Bank. The pet food is stored in the Lowell Food Bank
Warehouse.
"We work with nearly 80 food-assistance programs in 32 cities and towns in
Massachusetts and New Hampshire," Pessia said.
The pantries have been getting more and more requests for food for cats,
dogs, rabbits and birds, she said.
"It's going so well, we can't keep up with the demand," said Kathleen
Bourdelais, a CoPal member from Dracut.
For more information or to donate pet food, contact the MVFB at
978-454-7272 or CoPAL at 978-475-0056. Visit the food bank at www.mvfb.org.
Read more: http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_14935298#ixzz0m1ncQwjJ
By Marie Donovan, Sun Correspondent
"If I didn't have that cat, I'd be all alone," says Donna Tornberg, who shares
her Lowell home with Cali. She recently became a client of the Pet Food
Pantry, a service offered by the Merrimack Valley Food Pantry in partnership
with the Coalition to Protect Animals Locally and the Lowell Humane Society.
SUN / DAVID H. BROW
Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our MyCapture site.
Donna Tornberg and her 40-pound cat, Cali, have a symbiotic relationship.
Tornberg needs a wheelchair to get around. She spends most of her time at
home because of mobility issues, and Cali provides her with
around-the-clock companionship.
"My cat's my baby. If I didn't have that cat, I'd be all alone," said Tornberg, of
Lowell.
Cali also serves as the 51-year-old's alarm clock every morning and even
helps her keep track of the nation's birthday.
"She'll be 4 on July Fourth," Tornberg said.
In turn, Tornberg provides Cali with a loving home that possibly no one else
would.
Cali is a bit of a scratcher, especially with women. She hogs the bed, refuses
to eat wet cat food and doesn't really take
Thanks to the Pet Food Pantry, Donna Tornberg of Lowell is better able to
care for Cali. The service is especially valuable to Tornberg because of her
mobility issues. SUN / DAVID H. BROW
Sun staff photos can be ordered by visiting our MyCapture site.
much direction either.
Those water bottles the experts say to squirt your pet with to discipline
them?
Useless.
"She likes me to squirt her," Tornberg said.
Earlier this month, Tornberg became a client of the Pet Food Pantry, a
service offered by the Merrimack Valley Food Pantry in partnership with the
Coalition to Protect Animals Locally (CoPAL) and the Lowell Humane Society.
According to the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to
Animals, the number of families surrendering pets to shelters has increased
110 percent since the recession began two years ago.
"They had to give up their pets because they couldn't afford the expense,"
said Lois Karfunkel, co-founder of CoPAL.
Karfunkel, an animal-law professor at Boston University who lives in
Andover, said the goal of her organization is to gather and distribute
donated pet food to families in need to avoid "economic euthanasia." Older
pets are much harder to find new homes for. An eccentric like Cali would be
nearly impossible to place.
"She spits at me and stuff, but I love her," said Tornberg, who bottle-fed Cali
as a kitten and now gets donations of nutritious cat food made by Wellness
Naturally Delicious Dietary Solutions.
Although the cat is overweight, it's because Tornberg couldn't afford to give
her healthy food and had been feeding her table scraps.
"Our goal is to help families and individuals that may be struggling to feed
their pets and keep them in the home," Pet Food Pantry Executive Director
Amy Pessia said. "We're all pet owners. I have a cat, Figaro, and he's like a
family member to us,"
CoPAL has already donated nearly 800 pounds of pet food to the Merrimack
Valley Food Bank. The pet food is stored in the Lowell Food Bank
Warehouse.
"We work with nearly 80 food-assistance programs in 32 cities and towns in
Massachusetts and New Hampshire," Pessia said.
The pantries have been getting more and more requests for food for cats,
dogs, rabbits and birds, she said.
"It's going so well, we can't keep up with the demand," said Kathleen
Bourdelais, a CoPal member from Dracut.
For more information or to donate pet food, contact the MVFB at
978-454-7272 or CoPAL at 978-475-0056. Visit the food bank at www.mvfb.org.
Read more: http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_14935298#ixzz0m1ncQwjJ
| COPYRIGHT 2009-2011 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED |