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Letter to the editor

Wrapped in good causes

Various groups wrap gifts to raise extra funds.

By KAREN DAVISON, Times Correspondent
Published December 14, 2007

CAROLWOOD 

Big cats and little cats. Greyhounds and Girl Scouts. School kids and canines. These are the reasons volunteers are wrapping gifts at the Barnes & Noble and Borders bookstores in Carrollwood this holiday season.

In the yearly programs, the bookstores donate floor space, gift wrap, tags and supplies. Volunteers from various groups wrap books and other goodies. They do it for free, but they hope for customers' donations. After all, they have wish lists of their own.

In the spring, the 12 Junior Girl Scouts in Troop 497 of Land O'Lakes want to go to Savannah, Ga., to visit the home of the founder of the Girl Scouts, now the Juliette Gordon Low Girl Scout National Center.

Not unexpectedly for Girl Scouts, they have already laid pretty specific plans. According to troop member Lexi Weich, 11, the girls will "be on a train at 6:30 in the morning."

The troop needs $2,000 for the five-day trip, which will include arts and crafts at the center and tours of Savannah highlights.

Lexi and her parents, Char and Rick, manned the table at Borders one evening the first week in December. On this second night for the troop, the gift wrapping business was slow. During a one-hour period, only customer Ron Cornell had a book wrapped. The first night the troop collected just $65.

The girls will raise money other ways, including cookie sales, from which they will get most of their funds.

Not so for GREAT (Greyhound Rescue & Adoptions of Tampa Bay), which counts on the holiday wrapping program at Barnes & Noble in Carrollwood and Brandon for a big portion of its budget.

Last year, GREAT raised $5,500 by gift wrapping, said president Kelly Faircloth. Every year the donations have increased, but she doesn't know if that will happen this year. Recognizing it is still early in the Christmas season, Faircloth said it has been slower than usual, despite a bump in donations with Hanukkah presents.

The all-volunteer organization, which works in Hillsborough, Pasco, Pinellas and Polk counties, rescues greyhounds from race tracks, breeding farms and animal shelters and places them for adoption. It uses the donations to spay and neuter the dogs and to pay for vet bills and food while they live in foster homes, where they await adoption and learn house manners.

Greyhounds coming off the track do not know how to climb stairs, nor have they seen dishwashers, ovens or other appliances. They run into sliding glass doors and have to learn a different way of eating.

"It's like training a puppy," said volunteer Rebecca Wilson. "They have no idea what's expected of them as a pet."

She adopted two greyhounds and fosters another. "They make wonderful pets," she said.

Wilson and volunteers from other groups get to share their enthusiasm about their programs or discreetly offer brochures to interested customers, a definite plus.

Carol Childs, president of the National Humane Society, 4039 Gunn Highway, views the promotions aspect as the reason for participating in the gift wrapping program on days with few donations.

As customer Amanda Buchanan walked up to the desk, Childs went into cat-marketing mode.

"Do you want an adult cat?"

Buchanan, a self-described animal lover, waffled. "You can give me some paperwork." As volunteer Carol Hume-King wrapped her book, Buchanan considered the idea. "If I went in there (the shelter) and I saw one I really liked, I would take one home."

As she left, she said, "I may stop by," nice words indeed, considering it takes three to eight months to get an adult cat adopted.

On the first of its eight days at Barnes & Noble in Carrollwood, the National Humane Society, which supports a shelter for cats, took in $26. That does not cover the $32 cost to spay or neuter a cat. Childs said last year's donations totaled $1,100. This year, she expects "$300 to $400 if we're lucky," due to limited hours at the store.

GREAT has dibs on the majority of hours at Barnes & Noble, with Kids and Canines, the National Humane Society and Reading to Empower African American People (REAP) filling the remaining times. At Borders, Big Cat Rescue, the Girl Scouts and various schools share hours.

The bookstores will offer the gift wrapping programs throughout the holiday season.

[Last modified December 13, 2007, 07:50:52]