Juan's family had their own dog, a little dachshund. "In my family, we all came together because of that puppy. We all worked together to make sure he had food and shelter." Juan's family also had chickens and rabbits, and they shared the care of those animals too.

Now, as an adult, Juan still finds that pets bring people together. He and his wife Lily have two dogs, Princess and Chiquita. Chiquita (pictured with Juan) has diabetes and is blind. Together, Lily and Juan provide for their dogs, and this has brought husband and wife closer together. Juan believes that "pets sense how we are in our spirit and they are protective of us. It's like you have your own little guardian angel."

When Juan read about Victoria's intention to run a marathon and collect funds to benefit AKI, he was inspired to also do something for AKI. Juan is going to train for a 10 k and raise money for AKI. Juan tells us that he is an AKI supporter because AKI is helping animal welfare organizations in poor countries that may not be able to continue without AKI support. Juan knows that in poor countries, having a role model who encourages kindness to animals can mean the difference between someone who grows up and protects animals and someone who grows up and is indifferent, or even cruel to animals.  

Thank you very much to Ellie and the SIC Club for raising $500 for AKI.  Ellie and her friends are heading off to college this fall, but we hope they won't forget AKI; we won't forget them!

Ellie at Ward Melville High School in Setauket, Long Island, New York tells us her club, Stop Injustice and Cruelty, is working hard to raise money for Animal-Kind International. She sent us the following message:
Sorry this took so long! I have been very busy. SIC (Stop Injustice and Cruelty) has been working very hard this year to send money to Animal- Kind International. So far, we have done a “Helping Hands” fundraiser. We set up huge pieces of paper and a ton of paint. For one dollar, each student would dip their hand in paint and put their hand on the wall. For Thanksgiving, the hands were in the shape of turkeys. This was a hit and many kids were lining up to get their hands dirty. We are planning many more events in the future like movie nights for children featuring movies like Madagascar and Finding Nemo. We are very interested in your organization and can’t wait until we can send the checks!