Ghosts of Turkeys Past

A doggone thank you from the dogs and the South Dundas Animal Shelter

Dear Editor,

On behalf of a whole bunch of homeless dogs who now have found homes, I would like to thank everyone who is contributing in some way to the South Dundas Animal Shelter.

I would especially like to thank Bonnie McNairn and the Morrisburg Leader who give these dogs exposure every week in the paper. Without their help, none of this would be possible.

Thanks to all of the people who have donated food, treats, blankets and towels, money and cheques and a big thank you to Carol Armstrong and Myrna Whelan for all of the work they are doing behind the scenes.

Just so everyone knows, the Township pays me for four days food and shelter for the canines I am called to rescue. After that, I rely on your support so that I can help them get to the point where they can be adopted–sometimes this can take months.

Without your support, some of these adoptable dogs would have to be euthanized.

Dogs are just like our children–they need us to take care of them and keep them safe.

I want to take this opportunity to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and all the best in 2013. Please continue to support the South Dundas Animal Shelter.

Kevin Casselman. 

Editor’s Note: Those of us involved here at The Leader add our thanks to everyone for their support and especially those people who have come forward and adopted the dogs. Since we first ran the story with Kevin and the plight of the dogs, we have featured 13 dogs in the paper. Twelve of the dogs have been adopted and another handful or more have been adopted before their pics even made it to the paper. Having made more people aware of the shelter and the dogs there has helped to make the shelter a first stop on many people’s “best friend” shopping list.

At the time of this letter, we still have one young fellow, looking for a loving, forever home…here’s hoping we can make him lucky 13, and get this very loving and very obedient mixed breed (yup the hound mix) a home. Please call Kevin at 613-543-2980. 

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It was only eight months ago that I was standing in a hospital room as Sarah and I were excited to welcome our new little guy into the world. 

Jacob was born a healthy little boy, 8 lbs and 16 ounces. From seconds after his birth his eyes opened, and he began to look around. His life in this world was completely new, and our life with him also was completely new. 

At that moment all three of us had plenty to learn. He would learn how the simple world around him works and we would learn how he works in our world! 

New life is something very exciting, as we have been watching Jacob discover his world. He has  discovered how to drink from a bottle, how to use a spoon and even more recently how to drag (crawl) himself across the floor. 

While he has been learning all these things his mother has  been learning what it’s like to have very little sleep, how to thoroughly baby proof the house and is always finding new ways to entertain someone with a very short attention span (to be clear, that person is Jacob not her husband). 

I have found myself thinking a lot about how this new life is like our lives when we come to Christ. 

Jesus invites people to follow him. As I read through scripture time and time again, Jesus is inviting people to follow him, and some of those people don’t even believe him. They follow him because they are curious about what he’s doing, they believe he may have something they need, or maybe they just wonder if he is who he claims to be. 

Our little Jacob doesn’t know much about this world, but he is learning every day. We watch him learn to use his hands to hold something, use his eyes as he’s amazed by the flashing lights, and then discover how to get our attention by using his voice. 

As we come to know and learn about Jesus we are on a similar journey, discovering how he’s created us for a special purpose. We discover that life is so much greater than this moment, the challenges we face or even the pressures that we feel. As we get to know who Jesus is, we learn how to trust him, how he cares for us, and how he promises to always look after us. 

Jacob is growing up, we don’t have to tell him to. Each day he grows and develops a little more. His features are continually changing and developing. Sarah and I don’t wake up each day and tell him to “GROW UP”, or to “GET BIG”, he does this on his own as we feed him, and care for him. 

Our relationship with God can be the same. As we learn about who God is and begin to trust him, we too will find ourselves growing into who we are created to be.  

We don’t start in this world knowing everything or understanding it all, but we learn as we go. The same is true in our relationship with God, it’s a journey that we’ve been invited to take. 

At MPT we invite you to consider who God is, and discover all He has for you. We would love to meet you and welcome your visit anytime. For more information please visit www.mptonline.ca. 

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