Do you recycle? If you are looking for a place to take your recycled goods, you can help out the Humane Society of the Lakes by bringing them to MinnKota Enviroservices! HSL will receive a cash donation from all of the material recycled by our supporters. Drop off your separated aluminum cans, steel and tin cans, glass, plastics (labeled #1 & 2), newspapers, magazines, corrugated cardboard, and office paper at MinnKota, located on Highway 59 North, about a mile south of the shelter. They are open M-F 9am-5pm & Saturday 8am-noon. Let the attendant know you’d like to donate your recycling proceeds to us. Call 218-847-4790 with questions. The resident animals thank you for your contributions! Foster spotlight Why I foster By Janelle Anderson 30 years ago I was president of the Becker County Humane Society, the predecessor to the HSL. Back then we had just organized and we didn’t have a shelter; that wouldn’t come for many more years. But we developed a great network of foster homes that were willing to open their hearts and homes to a homeless pet. Fostering was one of the most rewarding experiences of my 17 years as a volunteer with the BCHS. I fostered cats and dogs, but mostly pregnant cats. I had a separate room in my house set up for it since I had my own pets. I would foster the mom, help with the birth (I really wasn’t much help), then socialize the kittens until they were ready for adoption. It was so much fun having kittens around. It was very rewarding seeing them get adopted into loving homes. Some people asked me how could I foster and then let them go; they say they would want to keep them all. Well, I enjoyed helping these pets find permanent homes knowing that I could then take the next homeless pet in until that one, too, could find a loving forever home. Oh, yes, I had a few “foster fails,” but I knew I couldn’t save them all. So fostering was a way to meet many pets in need of help, and meet the wonderful adopters who would give them a loving home. Congratulations! Congratulations to our staff that have assumed new positions in the last month! Sarah Bachleitner was hired as a shelter attendant nearly five years ago and has always had a special interest in veterinary medicine. When the position of Animal Technician became available, she applied and was selected to take on this very important role. “I am very excited to have been accepted for the position. It is something I have always been interested in doing so being able to do it with HSL is even better!” Please join us in congratulating her on this new role! Congratulations also goes to Rachel Nolan, who has recently been promoted from Animal Coordinator to Assistant Manager. Rachel was hired in March of 2009, making her the shelter’s longest-serving employee. As Assistant Manager, she takes on new responsibilities and plays an even larger role in shelter operations as a whole. Rachel has adopted several “furbabies” from HSL and is very invested in the success of the shelter and finding loving homes for all the cats and dogs we serve. Next time you see Rachel, congratulate her on her promotion and thank her for her continued dedication to HSL! 3
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