Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
IT’S PUPPY LOVE
WCU honors students go to the dogs to help victims of devastating inferno
A line of students snaked across the lobby of Sykes Student Union on the West Chester campus Thursday for the chance to hug a puppy while raising money for seniors displaced by the Barclay Friends fire.
Students from the West Chester University Honors College hosted the event, which brought 14 dogs from the Brandywine Valley SPCA to campus for a Winter Puppyland.
The 14 dogs, mostly puppies, are part of the SPCA’s second chance program, said Kristen Szwast, community engagement coordinator. They come from high-risk shelters in the south that BVSPCA works with to find homes for the animals. Szwast approached SPCA student volunteers Aria Swanson and Danielle Gendler with the idea. Danielle is also co-director of Traveling Across Generations (TAG), the Honors College’s community outreach program, which has been involved with Barclay Friends for more than 10 years. Both women volunteer at Barclay Friends and knew many of the residents, including the four residents who perished in the fire. They took the idea and, working with student treasurer Archie Chungapally, ran with it.
“It was hard,” said Danielle Gendler, who went out to the campus field house the night of the fire to help residents who sheltered there. “We had to help in
anyway we could.”
“It’s a great opportunity to get the animals out of the shelter and into the community and a great opportunity to recruit college kids to volunteer while raising money for Barclay Friends,” Szwast said.
Chungapally said the event had more than 500 visitors and raised $2,530 to replace personal items such as hearing aids, dentures and glasses.
“We really want to thank the SPCA for bringing the dogs to the University and helping us raise money for Barclay Friends,” said Chungapally. “It really means a lot.”
All the animals are available for adoption at BVSPCA (1212 Phoenixville Pike, West Chester, PA 19380)
”I love him, I’m about to call my mom and ask if we can adopt him,” said Chaeli McCay, a West Chester University sophomore from Chadds Ford who summed up the day as she hugged Dumbo, one of the puppies up for adoption. “I have a cat, but I want to get a dog!”