For the Junior Writer Team’s February meeting, we visited the Middleburg Humane Foundation, an animal shelter in Marshall. There, we discussed writing tips and tricks, before learning about the shelter, and then we took a tour throughout the facility. We were able to meet a young puppy with a harrowing tale of abandonment, who, through the efforts of the team at Middleburg Humane Foundation, is on her way to recovery. We also were allowed into the cat room to interact with some smaller furry friends, who gradually warmed up to us. As a thank you to the foundation for giving us such a fantastic tour and teaching us about their work, Junior Writers collected a generous donation of items such as cleaning supplies and cat food that was at the top of shelter's "most-needed" list.

Middleburg Humane Foundation is a privately funded shelter, which has been in its current location in Marshall since 2019. Their Board of Directors provides a majority of the funding for the shelter, outside of donations, which are all used to take care of the animals. Throughout the year there are a few large fundraising events including their annual gala in April.

While the foundation does have full-time staff members, a majority of the primary care for the animals comes from their volunteer team. The shelter is always in need of volunteers. Anyone sixteen or older, or a younger child alongside a parent or guardian, can be trained as a volunteer to walk dogs, do laundry, socialize the cats, and other necessary volunteer jobs. They also have a unique and fun short-term fostering program called Snout and About!  If you and your family would like to help out animals in need, visit the shelter’s website to learn more about adopting, becoming part of their foster program, or look into volunteering at Middleburg Humane Foundation: https://www.middleburghumane.org.