How did you first get involved with the Four-Legged Food Pantry?
I have four dogs, sometimes five, sometimes six, sometimes three. It depends. I have a sign on my yard that says ‘Sucker lives here’, so I always have dogs, and they go to Northside Veterinary for their care. I’ve gone there for years and I know everyone there. They said they were starting this Four-Legged Food Pantry and I said I’d be happy to help.
What do you do with the food pantry?
I beat people over the head. I put signs up. I put little jars around for people to put money in. And then I beat people over the head some more. I buy food and I take it there. On Monday nights twice a month I help hand it out. That’s what I do.
Are you still raising money?
Oh yes, it’s an ongoing thing. Fortunately the Community Foundation, their youth section, has picked the Four-Legged Food Pantry as their project. So that’s going to really take the burden off. It’s wonderful. I am so pleased, and we are so blessed.
Do you have any stories about the Pantry’s impact on the community?
There’s one woman who’s probably my age. She is alone and has 11 dogs, 11 Jack Russells, 11 ankle-biters. She says, ‘I know I shouldn’t have them, but who do I give them to?’ It just breaks your heart. These are her family. There’s [another] little old lady who has got to be in her eighties. We carry the food out [to her] because there’s no way she could lift a 10 pound bag. She cries when she comes to get the food, because otherwise she could not keep her animals. It has touched Betsy and I, and Dr. Woods and others, by how much people love their animals. So yes, we help them with food, and they help us too.
Email mvonsydow@hillsdale.edu to volunteer.