Today I’d like to tell you all about my new BFF. His name is Charlie, and he may be the cutest thing that has ever lived!
Charlie is one of several dogs that lives at the Animal Care Center. For those of you unfamiliar with the Animal Care Center, it’s an organization that does a tremendous job caring for the island’s homeless cats and dogs. It has an extremely successful trap and spay/neuter program, as well as feline feeding stations throughout the island. (You can read story that we wrote about that here.)
I heard a few weeks back that the ACC was at capacity in terms of the number of dogs it was caring for. A great majority of the ACC’s dogs get adopted stateside, but the summer’s hot temps prohibit dogs from traveling up north this time of year, according to Ryan Moore, the ACC’s manager. Therefore it’s pretty typical that the shelter gets crowded during the summer and early fall.
Knowing this, I decided to help. I contacted the ACC and offered to foster one of its dogs for a week. I chose Charlie, an adorable little Pit Bull/Korgi mix.
(Disclaimer: Prior to me doing so, Mr. News of St. John said there was no way I could simply “foster” a dog for a week. Just tuck that in the back of your mind for a bit…)
So my new BFF Charlie and I palled around for the past week. We took walks, visited friends, made quick cameos at a few of our favorite island watering holes, delivered some St. Johnopoly games and took a nice little hike out near Leinster Bay. It was fabulous!
Now guess what… Guess who plans to get a new dog… This girl!!!
Yup, Mr. News of St. John was right. I fell in love with little Charlie, and hopefully within the next few weeks, he will be my little buddy permanently. How exciting is that?!
So why am I sharing this with all of you? Because you can help Charlie’s little friends over at the ACC. If you aren’t in the position to foster or adopt, that’s totally cool. The ACC is always looking for people to take the dogs for a walk, keep the kitties company or donate items or money to care for the animals. Every little bit helps. (You can learn more about how you can help by checking out the ACC’s website here.)
The ACC is also planing a few events of their own to raise funds for the animals.
- October 11th – Flea Market Clothing Sale – 10am-3pm @ the Marketplace next to STJ Hardware. All leftover clothing will be sold the following Saturday at the General Flea Market.
- October 18th- General Flea Market – 10am – 3pm @ the Winston Wells ball field. If you are interested in having a table to sell goods, you can stop by the shelter and fill out the paperwork. Tables are $30 (food and drink sales are prohibited).
- December 11th – ACC Holiday Open House (one of the ACC’s most fun nights) – 5:30 @ the shelter where they will have food and beverages available. This is a just a casual night at the shelter where you can hang out with the animals, staff, volunteers, board members and good friends.
- January 24th – Winter Gala – This year’s Gala will be held @ Edens Whim in Great Cruz Bay @ 6pm (Theme still to be decided.)
I volunteer at the ACC and Charlie is one of my favorites. I’m so happy he found a loving home with your family!
yay! I walked Charlie in July. What a cutie pie!
Congratulations! I’m so happy to consider you a foster failure! My husband won’t let me foster for fear I will become one!!
So excited that we will all get a News of St John mascot! I’m happy for all of us!!!!
Cinvests Jenn….I’ve walked dofs a few times this summer and EVERY SINGLE tine I took Charlie! I LOVE him! So happy for you both. Its awesome being a ‘failed foster parent’!!!!
Congrats! Maybe we can see him when were down in April?
oh YAY for you! and Yay for charlie!
We too are failed foster parents. We took Empress to foster 2 and a half years ago because the shelter was full. We didn’t even last 24 hours. She had heart worms and a skin ailment and the shelter helped us treat both. She has been Emma since the day she arrived in our home and we adore her. I volunteer for the ACC and Charlie is really special as are so many of the wonderful dogs and cats there. Ryan does a fantastic job. Thank you for promoting the shelter and benefiting it through StJohnopoly We have only purchased four games so far. The game is even better than Tom said. Well done!!
Welcome to the “Failed Fosters” and “Businesses with Mascots are Cool” Clubs!! It’s a wonderful exclusive business!! And Patches requests a play date soon!!
Congratulations Jenn on your new family member “Charlie” he look like he is a smart one besides being cute. My DH know he can’t let me go anywhere near any animal shelter otherwise we would be increasing our family count as well. If you need anything for Charlie that you can’t find or get down there please let me know and I can get it here in the upper 48 and send you off a Charlie care package or put it together and bring it down in Feb.
If a Ranger asks why Charlie is on a National Park beach just tell him he’s a mongoose.
We adopted a dog from the ACC and highly recommend it! Ryan and everyone involved with the ACC are amazing! Although I never met Charlie…I’m sure he will bring you years of love and happiness!! Can’t wait to get back down in March and walk the pups!
This is great news! Yay for Charlie…and you! We walked Charlie during our last visit to St John, and I talked about him the rest of the week. I think I took more pics of him from the walk then I did of my husband and I while there for over a week. He is one of a kind. So happy for you both.
Is this the Holly that adopted Lelu? If yes – how is she? She was one of the first off island adoptions.
So happy you decided to adopt Charlie! He will forever thank you for choosing him! I to, have an ACC alumni, Johnny Cakes Cruz, and I thank God that our paths crossed at the right time. There is nothing liking an ACC dog, congrats to all!
Welcome to the Foster Failure Club. Enjoy the unconditional love and good times. Read up on keeping your new pooch healthy without the use of drugs and toxic chemicals (there are so many new protocols out there). Thank you for using a harness on Charlie (better than a collar which can cause thyroid and spinal problems). He is certainly a cutie patootie.
I LOOOOVE Charlie! Walked with him in June and took lots of pics of him. What an awesome personality. So glad he found a great home with you!
Jenn you ROCK!!!!! Love that Charlie boy! Hope you have many wonderful years together!!!