City Announces “Be Kind to Animals” Children’s Essay and Poster Contest

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 4, 2011

For additional information, please contact:
Laurie Ringquist, Director of Animal Care & Control, City of Bloomington, 349.3492
Jared Schlemmer, Communications Director, City of Bloomington, 349.3406, [mailto:schlemmj@bloomington.in.gov]

Bloomington, IN - The City of Bloomington has announced its participation in Be Kind to Animals Week from May 1 to May 7. The week is sponsored nationally by the American Humane Association and is celebrated annually to recognize the role animals play in our lives and to promote ways to treat them humanely.

To help raise awareness among children, the City Animal Care and Control department, which manages the City's animal shelter, is holding a children's essay and poster contest for children in grades 1 through 6. Children may submit either an essay or a poster addressing the theme "How I Will Be Kind to Animals When I Grow Up." Essays should be 200-500 words long. Posters can be any size and in any medium. Deadline for entries is Monday, April 25. More information on contest guidelines and entry forms can be found on the Shelter website at [www.bloomington.in.gov/animalshelter|www.bloomington.in.gov/animalshelter].

A winner will be chosen from each grade level. Winning entries will be displayed at the Animal Shelter and on the Shelter website. Winners and their parents will be treated to a private "behind-the-scenes" tour of the shelter and will be given the honor of naming a special animal that is going up for adoption.

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