Senior Seminars give students a way to collaborate and come up with a creative way to help the community.
This past summer term seniors came up with an idea, an idea that would give way to one of the biggest donations their organization of choice had ever received.
By Giannina Gonzalez
Contributor
Senior Seminars give students a way to collaborate and come up with a creative way to help the community.
This past summer term seniors came up with an idea, an idea that would give way to one of the biggest donations their organization of choice had ever received.
Katie Monsour the instructor and a 2006 graduate of Seton Hill University (SHU) said that as her class was brainstorming they decided that they wanted to do something with animals. However after they did not get a response from the Humane Society they looked into other options.
“One student had a greyhound and knew of an organization called Going Home Greyhound and said that they were great,” Monsour said.
Going Home Greyhound helps create a link between the racetrack and a loving home. Greyhound racing is a legal activity and dogs in the business are often passed on to a non-profit organization where it is assumed that they find homes. However many of the dogs after years of racing may have health problems that previous owners do not want to pay for. Therefore, non-profit organizations often struggle to pay many of the veterinarian bills and costs associated with a greyhound that have just retired or been injured.
Going Home Greyhound spends no money on salaries or advertising and all of its funds go to medical care. The organization takes dogs other groups do not take.
Class group leader, Scott Cawthern, saw the project as a great opportunity to not only raise funds but to also raise awareness about greyhounds. The class decided that they would bake dog teats and sell them for a dollar outside of two local Walmarts. Students baked hundreds of treats and packaged them in bags. They collected information and literature about Going Home Greyhound. The class set up stations at the Greensburg and Latrobe Walmarts. Sandy Strychor from Going Home Greyhound brought a greyhound and spoke with individuals about adoptions.
“This was one of the most exciting groups I’ve ever worked with,” Strychor said.
As people passed students did not solicit but rather let the organization and its cause do the talking. Individuals who gave a donation would receive a package of dog treats. A total of 500 treats were packaged by the students.
Before long the dog treats were rapidly thinning and the donation for Going Home Greyhound grew and grew.
“In addition to giving people a chance to learn about greyhounds we also helped in setting up potential adopters which is amazing,” Cawthern said.
The students raised $1000.01 for Going Home Greyhound in just three hours and there were still dog treats left.
“The organization was so amazed that we cared to much,” Monsour said. “They had never received a donation of such amount.”
Monsour was proud that her that her students for their hard work but she found the project very dear to her.
“I’ve always been an animal lover and it was very excited that we were doing something with animals.”
Monsour took her Senior Seminar with Dr. Mary Ann Gawelek, now the dean of students. For her social action her class went to a food bank and helped with packaging. Monsour had a class that had a cake auction to raise money for a custodian with cancer.
“They were a very impressive group,” said Strychor. “If they tackle their careers the way they tackled the fundraiser they will be very successful.”
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