Letters to the Editors

Bird, owner thankful for help

© St. Petersburg Times, published July 4, 2000

Editor: Recently, I had the unique opportunity to have my faith in human compassion restored! I was under the impression that all compassion in humanity had died. I was wrong, I am so very glad to be wrong in this instance!

Yanni, my orange-necked conure, had been attacked by my 5-year-old, ferocious dachshund named Gimpey. After the incident, I scooped Yanni up and held his quivering little body in my hand. I soon realized that Yanni had lost the use of his legs and had absolutely no balance. Terrified, I called a friend for help. I contacted a friend who works in a local pet shop for help. She felt as though his legs might be broken and assisted me with taping up his tiny legs. She later informed me that he may not recover and that he may have to have his legs amputated.

Completely distraught, I phoned a local veterinarian for help. I explained the situation and asked him to help us. Not only did he refuse to help but also, he proceeded to insult and humiliate me. By the time the conversation ended, I had lost all hope of finding help for Yanni. Desperate, I called the Humane Society for some assistance. Although they were unable to help, the woman offered the name of a non-profit organization that assisted people with the cost of veterinarian expenses. She gave me the location and I immediately went for help.

With my tear stained face and my broken spirit, I entered the store. "Pet Aid Service Society (PASS)" is the name. Without knowing the procedure, I could only cry and begin to tell my story. A very nice woman by the name of Marge listened diligently. She picked up the phone without any hesitation and contacted a local vet. Within moments, Yanni had an appointment and PASS was going to pay for the bill! I was completely amazed that these people were only too wiling to help.

Yanni was seen by Dr. Susan Sattler at the Bayonet Point Animal Clinic that very day. Dr. Sattler was not only kind and compassionate; it was obvious that she really cared for the animals that she treated. She doesn't appear to only be in this field for a paycheck, but to make a difference for these animals. She gave Yanni some medication and sent us home, with the reassurance that Yanni had a great chance of a full recovery.

Today, Yanni is able to sit on my shoulder again, perch, and even dance! Though he is not 100 percent recovered, I have no doubts that he will fully recover, thanks to the generous efforts of all those who volunteer at PASS and the staff at the Bayonet Point Animal Clinic.

I would like to invite all those in Pasco County to join with me in assisting this wonderful organization to continue helping animals. They operate solely on donated items and volunteers and are always in need of one or the other. You never know, the next pet they help could be yours.
-- Denise E. Gray

PASS thanks kids for "Pennies for Pets'

Editor: We at Pet Aid Service Society Inc. (PASS) wish to thank the children of King of Kings Lutheran Church in Port Richey for the donation of $70 they made to PASS to help animals. The children had a "Pennies for Pets" drive at Vacation Bible School. Dr. Paul Wysock of Pasco Animal Hospital visited the children and spoke on animal care.

The future of overpopulation control is educating our children to be responsible pet owners by teaching the importance of spaying or neutering and giving vaccines. Scientific studies have shown that adults that had pets when they were children make more loving responsible parents.

PASS is a volunteer fundraising organization providing funds for emergency veterinarian care, food, adoptions and any service needed by pet owners.
-- Marj McConkey, president, PASS

Brain injury group thanks bowling alley

Editor: The West Pasco and Hernando Brain Injury Support Group would like to thank the owners of Leisure Bowling Lanes of Hudson and their wonderful staff for being so kind to allow our support group to use their meeting room (at no charge) for our support group meetings. Also for accommodating our brain injury survivors, their family and friends every Saturday for fun bowling at a very affordable price. This affordable bowling allows some of the survivors entertainment and socializing that they would not have otherwise. A special thank you to Nadine who goes out of her way to help our brain injury survivors. She has shown the utmost kindness to our group and makes a special effort to make Saturday's (an ordinary day) very special to our survivors.

Brain injury is the No. 1 killer of persons under the age of 44. It kills more young people in the state of Florida under the age of 34 than all diseases combined. Only one person in 20 receives the rehabilitation necessary to improve the quality of life. We need more awareness of brain injury and more people like those at Leisure Lanes to help and understand our Brain Injury Survivors.

Thank you from all the survivors, family and friends of the West Pasco and Hernando Brain Injury Support Group.
-- Sue Feldkamp, New Port Richey

Many letters to the editor we receive at the Pasco Times are expressions of gratitude and do not belong on the editorial page, where our goal is to foster discussion of issues and news events. Letters of thanks is an occasional column to accommodate such letters. Please mail to 11321 U.S. 19, Port Richey, FL 34668, or e-mail to Pasco@sptimes.com.
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