ASPCA

This post is about two separate projects that I have been working on with friends to help the ASPCA. The ASPCA, American Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, is an organization that works to help fight animal cruelty and runs shelters for homeless animals. Out of the two projects we have done for the ASPCA, one is very simple and the other could have been simpler but was not for us.

The first of the projects helps the ASPCA in raising awareness about animal cruelty and getting people interested in their cause. It is very easy and takes up very little time. All you have to do in this project is add your name on their pledge to fight animal cruelty on their website, http://www.aspca.org/. The goal is to get 1 million signatures from people interested in helping them end animal cruelty. By pledging you are making a promise to "Learn to Recognize Animal Cruelty", "Report Animal Cruelty", "Set a Good Example for Others", "Fight for the Passage of Anti-Cruelty Laws by Joining the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade". You are also promising to support the ASPCA and try to help them fight animal cruelty.
*they are not asking for money
The other project, collecting tennis balls for the ASPCA's dog shelter was much harder than any of us expected. We thought it would be nice to go to the tennis courts to get some used tennis balls for the shelter dogs to play with. My friend and I had started the tennis ball project thinking that it would not be too hard to do. Under different circumstances we may have been right, but the location of the tennis courts was difficult to get to and they did not have as many tennis balls at the time when we came than they sometimes do. It would be a great project for someone who lives near the shelter or tennis ball court, and the best time to go was in the morning.

Although it was tough, we collected 45 tennis balls to donate to the animal shelter. I think that giving the shelter 45 tennis balls will make many dogs happy and is a significant donation. The tennis balls have not been donated yet due to the difficulty in getting to the shelter. We hope to make it to the shelter tommorow to donate the tennis balls.

Doing the project was hard, but I learned a valuble lesson on planning future community service projects. I learned that I need to make sure that what I am doing will be worth the work and that sometimes it is best to keep it simple. If you do live near either a dog shelter or tennis court, this project would not be half as difficult. Another donation that dog shelters appreciate is old towels and sheets for the dogs to use as beds. Those can be easier to collect than tennis balls and they are always needed at shelters.

Grading: The projects today will be listed separately, as the pledging project and the tennis ball collection.

Pledging Project
Efficiency: 10
Easiness: 10
Fun: 9

Tennis Ball Collection
Efficiency: 6
Easiness: 4
Fun: 7