Feeding needy pets
By Renee Carey
Published in News on October 28, 2015 1:46 PM
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Ed Swindell and Farley, Tracy Coonradt and Missy Moo, Gay Elmore and Kenan, Jeri Lynn Coker and Mea and Danny Southerland and Katie pose for a photo around some of the donated pet food at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices/McMillen & Associates Realty.
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News-Argus/CASEY MOZINGO
Kenan and Missy Poo sniff each other's noses as they help their owners promote the Pet Food Drive at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices/McMillen & Associates.
Jeri Lynn Coker doesn't want to think about what her life would be like without her little fur baby, 6-pound yorkie poo Mea.
"She is my family member," Jeri Lynn said. "She is my daughter."
And she has an even harder time thinking about a lonely elderly person on a fixed income, a child with a beloved dog or cat or a family who is struggling financially having to give up a pet they love because they cannot afford to feed it.
"These folks need these animals," she said.
That is why she and the other members of the Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices/McMillen & Associates Realty team have joined forces with the Wayne County Humane Society's pet food pantry to offer pet food for families who are having trouble feeding their pets but who want to keep them.
The purpose of the drive -- and of the Humane Society's food pantry, said Ed Swindell, one of the organizers for the event, is to keep these animals in their homes.
The idea for the company's drive started during an economic downturn when many families were underwater on their homes or facing foreclosure.
"People were turning in their pets at the shelter because they could not afford to keep them," he said.
Ed knows how heartbreaking it must be to have to give up a furry family member.
He has four at his home -- one of whom, Farley, a rescued Staffordshire terrier, is still very, very scared after having been rescued from a dog-fighting operation, where she was used as a bait dog.
"She is a result of me saying, 'no more dogs,'" Ed says as he bends down to praise and comfort Farley who came out Tuesday to help promote the pet food drive.
He and his wife also foster needy animals as well, and have three other rescued pets who are part of their family.
Both Jeri Lynn and Ed and the rest of the team at Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices/McMillen & Associates Realty want those who might consider donating to the food drive to know that the pet food pantry services people with real need.
"They use the same income requirements as for other forms of assistance," Ed said. "They have to show real need."
In fact, when a person comes to the pantry, they are checked first, and then they receive food.
"They are very careful," Jeri Lynn said.
The pet food drive will accept donations of any kind -- dry food, canned food, treats -- for dogs or cats, because both are special to the people who love them, the group says.
Toys, bedding, carriers also will be gratefully accepted and passed on to the Humane Society.
All items collected will be donated to the pantry for distribution around the community.
Drop-off times are from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday at the company's offices at 1004 N. Berkeley Blvd.
Donations also will be accepted from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays.
For more information, call 919-778-9500.
And at this time of year, it is especially important to offer help, as families juggle bills and other expenses.
"We want these animals to stay in their homes and out of the shelter," Jeri Lynn said.
Items will be collected through Nov. 14 -- to make sure the pet food pantry has time to get them to needy families before Thanksgiving.