Wednesday, March 19, 2014

Kids' Care Connection: Making a difference for the animals

Leech Lake Legacy received the following letter yesterday:

March 17th, 2014

Dear Leech Lake Legacy,

On January 15th, 2014 I adopted a cat from the Golden Valley Animal Humane Society. Along with the usual information like age, weight and physical condition, they said my cat was from an Indian reservation in northern Minnesota. They explained that she was brought down by a rescue organization along with other cats and dogs. 
Hattie seemed comfortable in her new home right away. She's sweet, smart and rarely leaves my side when I am home. I work with children at a school age program in Plymouth and shared my adoption story with them. They were interested and excited to learn more.
Hattie

The children were curious about the journey these cats and dogs take and wanted to know how they could help. The children quickly started thinking of ways to raise money to send to the rescue. So I called the Animal Humane Society and explained the situation. That's when I learned about Leech Lake Legacy! After going to your website and reading about the great care and commitment your staff has towards these animals, I couldn't wait to share this with the children! The children learned of the many volunteers, some who drive vans each week-end, to pick up the homeless cats and dogs. We also talked about the volunteers who care for these animals once they are back in the Twin Cities area. Many of the children said this is what they want to do when they are old enough!

The children decided to make rubber band bracelets and sell them at the center! They worked on making the bracelets for three weeks. The children put up a display on Monday and set a goal of $100.00. By Friday at 4:00pm they had $90.00! But by closing time at 6:00pm they had $113.00! They cheered! From our little corner of Minnesota to Leech Lake Legacy! 

                                                                     Thanks for all you do!  
                                                
                                          Sincerely,
                                                        Julle Norman & the School Age Classroom
                                                                                    from Kids' Care Connection

Hattie (formerly Bella) arrived on our 1/12/2014 transport from Leech Lake. She was rescued by one of our amazing volunteers, Martha, who lives up at Leech Lake. I shared with Martha this morning that we got an update on her Bella (now Hattie) and if she could provide more info on her story. Here is what Martha shared :)


"Oh my!!! Such good news ! She has a great story. She was left by owners when they moved. They were gone for months and they came back to there old house cause they were selling it and were surprised she was still there (that's the part i heard) they left her again but i got permission to try to rescue her.  I put out food and eventually got her thanks to the help of some other people too. She lived in my basement for months because you were full for cats for a while. In the mean time i fell in love. The most docile cat I have ever met. I knew she deserved more than to live in a basement. 

They also left a sibling behind of hers that i never did find. :( she also had a very strange wound someone said its possible a eagle or large bird tried to get her but she made it. Very luck & I'm very thankful. 

With love Martha."

Thank you Martha, Julie, AHS, and the amazing kids of the School Age Classroom of Kids' Care Connection. 

Julie, thank you for opening up your heart and your home to Hattie; thank you for sharing her story with your kids at school; thank you for creating space in your classroom for your students to know that they can make a difference. And please let each and every one of them know that they ARE making a difference. 

miigwech/thank you.

Marilou Chanrasmi
Leech Lake Legacy, President/Co-Founder


Friday, March 14, 2014

Leech Lake Legacy hosting our first spay/neuter and wellness clinic of 2014 (March 21-22, 2014)

Leech Lake Legacy will host our first 2014 spay/neuter and wellness clinic of 2014 on March 21-22 in Cass Lake. Our March 2014 clinic is partially funded by Pause 4 Paws and the FAIR School.  We are truly grateful for their support. We would also like to thank the Leech Lake Tribal Police for providing food for all of our volunteers and for providing lodging for our vets and vet techs.

Due to construction going on at the Leech Lake Tribal Police garage we have moved the location of our spay/neuter and wellness clinic to the Big Garage behind the Palace Casino. The Veteran's Memorial Building has also been opened up as space where volunteers can sleep. We are truly grateful to the residents of Leech Lake who helped us make the connections so that we were able to secure additional space to host our clinic. Miigwech to the Palace Casino and the staff of the Veteran's Memorial Building for welcoming us :)

Our spay/neuter and wellness clinic is open to residents of Leech Lake Reservation. We will also be accepting surrenders on both days (Friday, 3/21 and Saturday, 3/22).

To download a flyer visit our website at:
http://leechlakelegacy.org/spayneuter0314.pdf


Thursday, March 13, 2014

LLL participates in the 5th Annual Women's Expo in Walker, MN

Sandra and Terri representing LLL!
We were very excited to attend our first Women’s Expo March 8th, 2014 at the Northern Lights Casino.   Along with about 70 vendors, we shared a lovely, well-lit spot in the Casino’s Conference Center.  Our goal for attending was to create greater awareness about Leech Lake Legacy’s efforts and broaden our friendship circle in the community.  

We made many friends among the vendors, and had the opportunity to meet many women who are interested in animal welfare and did not know of us.  BUT, we also met women who already know us…friends of ours on facebook, and some who have actually brought their animals to our clinics.

Everyone had an animal rescue story to share and it was so affirming to be in the company of so many caring and compassionate women.  We were fortunate enough to collect some donations that will go directly to support our clinics.   We passed out brochures, magnets, chip clips, and pedometers that we hope will act as a reminder of LLL & our mission.

The” icing on the cake” was the cultivation of several people who are interested in volunteering to help us…boots on the ground!.

In just a few hours we made friendships that we hope to last a life-time and an opening to tell our story.  Can’t wait until next year’s event…

Terri Hill, Events Coordinator
Sandra Olberding, Board Member