From tires to pet beds, how a sustainability lesson turned into a community project in Catlin
CATLIN, Ill. (WCIA) — In Vermilion County, Salt Fork High School FFA students are scrubbing, power washing, and spray painting all for a good cause. They’re making dog beds for Central Illinois animal shelters.
It didn’t come together overnight. It started with a sustainability lesson.
“It’s when you’re taking what you do now to help and be a positive impact on the generations to come,” Macie Russell, one of the students, said.
After that, it turned into a very popular tire drive. People donated about 100 tires in the first hour of the collection, and the class had about 300 by the end of the day.
After that, the Salt Fork students got to work. Some people were cutting and measuring wood, others focused on cleaning the tires, while the rest either spray painted or finished the cushioned parts for the dogs to lay on.
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Stacey Rickard, the agriculture teacher, is literally and figuratively adding tools to their toolboxes.
“If you help a student feel a part of the community then they’ll want to come back here and stay,” she said. “Maybe I’ll teach their kid someday!”
Keeping their work in Central Illinois is exactly what they’re doing. The beds will go to a few shelters, one of those in Vermilion County.
“It’s super exciting for us. We try to enrich their lives as much as possible while they’re here,” Kathleen Orcutt, the adoptions manager at the Vermilion County Animal Shelter, said.
She said that’s key to making sure the animals are happy.
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“A lot of dogs when they’re in the shelter, they either become depressed and shut down or they can get worked up and anxious,” Orcutt explained. “We do a lot of things to try to prevent putting them on medication.”
The high schoolers are happy to make a difference for so many furry friends.
“I just think it’s cool how our school is able to provide this and help the community and be a part of something bigger than ourselves,” Russell said.
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Rickard is cheering them on along the way, while they continue living to serve.
The dog beds will be delivered in the next few days as the weather improves. The shelter in Danville isn’t the only one benefitting. The students will donate beds and other necessities to a few other Central Illinois shelters but want it to be a surprise.
The work doesn’t end there, any leftover tires not used to make beds will be used to create garden beds.
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