By Maegan Rocio
Staff Writer
In celebration of Thanksgiving, Baylor’s class of 2014 is giving back to the community.
The junior class has partnered with three local eateries, U-Swirl, BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse and 3 Spoons Yogurt, to help raise funds for the Animal Birth Control Clinic in response to the overcrowding issue the Waco Humane Society is facing.
Carrie Kuehl, the director of the ABC Clinic, said the junior class chose the clinic for its nonprofit organization project.
“This week, as part of their class projects, they have contacted area restaurants to do profit sharing,” she said. “A portion of the sales will be gifted to the ABC Clinic.”
Junior class president and Woodtock, Ga. junior Haley Davis said 15 percent of all purchases made between predetermined time slots at the locales will go toward funding the ABC Clinic.
“They are in desperate need of money to help spay and neuter pets and if they can spay and neuter pets, that will help prevent animals from having to go the Humane Society, which will help the Humane Society from becoming overpopulated, which will help them from putting animals down because they don’t have room for them,” she said.
Davis said the junior class decided on the fundraiser with the ABC Clinic after reading related articles from the Lariat.
“We contacted them and they were more than grateful and they told us if we could raise $1,000 that would spay 20 to 25 animals,” she said. “So that’s our goal. It’s to raise $1,000 through those three places.”
Davis said helping with the fundraiser is simple.
“Anyone can go in and say ‘I’m with BU Be Thankful Week’ and their purchase will go to help them,” she said.
Kuehl said the funds raised will benefit pets that are owned by low-income families.
Kuehl said the fundraising efforts by the Baylor junior class are not connected to the city of Waco or the Humane Society directly.
Davis said the efforts of the juniors is for BU Be Thankful Week, a yearly event that happens during the week of Baylor’s Thanksgiving on Grounds Dinner.
“This week is just a way to give back to the community,” she said. “We chose the Animal Birth Control Clinic because we felt the whole Humane Society was a huge issue towards the beginning of the year, with them being turned over to the city and not having enough room. We thought that was on so many people’s hearts.”
Kuehl said the ABC Clinic will have a table set up during the dinner on campus to further explain donations and inform members of the community about the clinic.
Kuehl said the fundraising efforts will end Friday afternoon.
Those who are interested in helping with the fundraising efforts can go to BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse from Noon – 11 p.m. on Thursday. Those who go to BJ’s Restaurant & Brewhouse must bring a flier posted on the Baylor student government’s BU Be Thankful Week at BJ’s’ Facebook page.
The fundrasing event at 3 Spoons Yogurt will happen from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Friday. The fundraising at U-Swirl took place Monday.
For more information, visit animalbirthcontrol.org.
