Friends Involved in Dog Outreach, an Oregon-based nonprofit devoted to the needs of dogs and cats in Clackamas County, has been selected by the National Association of Counties as a recipient of a 2006 Acts of Caring Award.
FIDOs president, Mike Moises, and vice president, Chip Sammons, will be presented with an award at a breakfast meeting on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on May 4. The Acts of Caring Awards recognize the top county volunteer programs in the country.
FIDO was founded in June 2004 to respond to the increasing financial needs of the countys small 53-year-old dog shelter.
Mike Moises, a county employee, and I started FIDO as a private business-government partnership because that seemed to be the best model for accomplishing the long term needs of helping dogs and cats here in Clackamas County, Sammons says.
The organization, which has about 10 staff members and 130 volunteers, raises funds and carries out public programs to create community awareness and support for FIDO and the shelter. Current services include providing enhancements and equipment to the shelter, low-cost microchipping and emergency veterinary services.
Under its Ani-Meals program, FIDO also provides meals for the dogs and cats of senior citizens who receive Meals on Wheels.
This is my county. I live and work here, and I want to make sure that, not only dangerous dogs are kept off the street, but also that all dogs and cats will be cared for properly, and that we provide the very best adoptive services, Sammons says.
And right now, all of that must be coordinated with the county. Hopefully, the stronger and more active our nonprofit FIDO becomes, the more services we will be able to provide, he says.
The key here is the economic development of our county based on the model of private business and county employees working together. It's a great model, and one that maybe other communities can also get their arms around.
Posted: April 29, 2006, 5 a.m. EST