Animal Friends pet food drive planned at Edgeworth Elementary

Edgeworth Elementary students and staff want to repay the kindness shown by Animal Friends during a difficult time with a pet food drive.

The K-5 school in the Quaker Valley School District will be collecting wet and dry cat and dog food, treats and cat litter Feb. 13-17.

Counselor Jessica Jackson said they do donation drives for organizations during the school’s Kindness Week near Valentine’s Day in mid-February.

They chose Animal Friends after a discussion with the parent/teacher association as a way to say thank you for bringing therapy dogs following a fatal fire in December that claimed the lives of two students.

Wylde Lightner, 6, a first grader, and Lyric Keys, 9, a third grader, died inside a burning home along the 500 block of Miller Way on Dec. 13.

Their mother escaped the fire by crawling through a second-floor window onto a porch roof and jumping from there.

Therapy dogs and counselors were made readily available the day after the incident.

“The day that we found out as a school and talked with the kids about Lyric and Wylde, we had therapy dogs here throughout the entire day,” Jackson said. ”We designated one room as a crises room, so kids that were feeling sad or feeling like they needed to talk they could come down to that room.

“Counselors would go off and talk privately with kids. It was also sort of like a gathering space. We had coloring pages for kids to write memories on. We had books for kids to read and the therapy dogs as a calming presence, and something to help kids manage their feelings.”

Jackson said some students just wanted to sit with the dogs and pet them. Others were really excited about the animals being around. Therapy dogs also visited classrooms on Dec. 15.

“It was much more of a surface kind of visit,” Jackson said. “I think it was a really nice way to make that transition from a day when we were in crisis mode and taking care of kids’ needs.”

PTA volunteer Celina Kline has a fourth-grade and sixth-grade daughter in the district. She said Animal Friends really helped the young learners and the community.

“I think we were all pretty devastated that this happened in our community and affected our kids and our families the way that it did,” Kline said. “As a human being, it got to you; as a mom, just the pain that everyone’s going though dealing with it.”

The district went on winter break Dec. 22 through Jan. 2.

Jackson said some students are still processing the loss of their classmates. However, the counseling and dogs and time away from school has really helped.

“What we’re seeing more is just a general sadness sometimes in kids,” Jackson said. “Overall our kids are doing great, but those kids that were close friends to those two, they’re definitely still struggling.”

The cause of the fire and other details were still under investigation, Allegheny County spokeswoman Amie Downs said on Jan. 30.

Giving kindness

Kindness Week has been a part of the district for many years.

Edgeworth Elementary has done food drives the past two years as part of the festivities; one for Center for Hope in Ambridge and the other for the Sewickley Community Center. They each resulted in a truck load of donations.

“I’m hoping that because of the direct interaction that we’ve had with Animal Friends (in December) that we’ll see just as good of a turnout this year,” said Kline, who reached out to the charity to find out what they needed.

PTA volunteers will collect the donations on Feb. 17 and give them to Animal Friends.

“In previous years, I am always overwhelmed by the generosity that comes from our families,” Jackson said. “I don’t expect anything different. It’s a really fun and uplifting week.”

Animal Friends has about 100 different Therapets teams of people and dogs, cats and rabbits who have all gone through special training to become certified therapy animals and handlers. They visit schools, hospitals, assisted living facilities, workplaces and community events to highlight the healing powers of animal-human bonds, according to Animal Friends spokesman Cory Hoellerman.

Hoellerman and others in the organization are thankful for the district’s support.

“Pet food drives like this one are such a huge help,” he said via email Feb. 1. “Not only is it amazing to see the next generation of animal lovers taking on such a selfless and compassionate project, but it goes such a long way to support pets and people who are struggling right here in our community.

“Pet food donations help to sustain our Chow Wagon Pet Food Bank, which partners with food pantries throughout the region to support pet owners who are struggling to care for their beloved pets. Last year alone, Animal Friends’ Chow Wagon distributed over 180,000 pounds of pet food. The items that we have the greatest need for are small bags of dog and cat food and canned cat food.”