The Collegian
Thursday, March 28, 2024

BARK gets leg up in planning of fundraisers

The BARK Club visited the Bandit's Adoption and Rescue of K-9's (BARK) on Friday, Feb. 3, its first visit of the semester to volunteer and play with the shelter's dogs.

On Jan. 31, the club met to discuss its plans for its fundraiser on St. Patrick's Day and to organize the rest of its agenda for the semester.

The BARK Club was founded last semester and travels to BARK, a non-euthanizing shelter with over 100 dogs in Ashland, Va., weekly to volunteer, Rebecca Stansbury the president of BARK Club said. There the students' help to walk and play with the dogs while members of BARK clean the dogs' cages, she said.

"It's muddy and gross sometimes when we're playing with the dogs," Stansbury said. "But it's fun and you know that the dogs are enjoying it as well."

BARK Club meets weekly at 7:30 p.m. in Gottwald D308 as well as makes weekly visits to BARK. This semester, the members plan to travel to BARK from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays leaving from the Heilman Dining Center.

"Anyone who wants to come have fun hanging out with dogs is welcome to join us this Friday and any other Friday afterwards," Amanda Haislip, the new vice president of BARK club elected this semester said.

During the fall semester, the club held its first fundraiser called Howl-o-ween on Halloween where they raised over $300 and over $100 from tabling, Stansbury said.

"We weren't expecting the positive outcome we received because we were a new club," Stansbury said. "But lots of people in the community brought their dogs and the whole event turned out great."

The club members decided that this semester's fundraiser will be held on St. Patrick's Day and will be themed accordingly to the festive holiday, Stansbury said. Although planning for the fundraiser has barely begun, Stansbury and Haislip said they hoped to have a table with flyers by the lake and possibly have some of the BARK dogs from Ashland come out for the outdoor-themed event.

The turnout for the new club was a success the first semester and members of the club predict that its numbers will grow now that the club has been established on campus, Haislip said.

"We're able to help animals that aren't able to help themselves through our club," Haislip said. "I think other people should be aware that dogs from shelters can be very good pets and that they deserve homes too."

The club will also have two committees this semester to handle raising awareness for the newly created club and to help coordinate the fundraiser in mid-March, Stansbury said.

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"If you miss your dog at home or just love dogs, the BARK Club would love to have another person to help out," Stansbury said.

Contact reporter Ryann Dannelly at ryann.dannelly@richmond.edu

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