How to Plan a Bar or Bat Mitzvah to Help an Animal Shelter

Very often when a Jewish boy or girl plans his or her bar or bat mitzvah celebration, they choose a theme and a mitzvah (good deed) project to tie in with the theme. A local animal shelter makes a worthy recipient, as well as something they would have fun with and feel good about. Here are ways to plan your child's coming of age celebration and help animals at the same time.

Instructions

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

1. Research local animal shelters online and visit a couple in person.
2. Once your child selects a shelter, find out what is on their “wish list” and organize a neighborhood collection drive. Your child can enlist the help of friends to solicit and pick up the donations, accompanied by you, of course.
3. Organize a community fund raising project such as a bake sale or car wash with proceeds going to the shelter. Ask friends and relatives to help out.
4. Ask the synagogue that will host the bar/bat mitzvah if you could coordinate a donation drive along with one of their events. For instance, some synagogues have pet blessings, which would be the perfect opportunity to ask attendees to bring a donation such as dog or cat food or a check for the shelter. You and your child can oversee the table for the donations and box them up to take to the shelter.
5. Inquire if the shelter allows their dogs to have treats, and if so, help your child find a recipe for healthy and tasty dog biscuits online. Invite relatives and friends to accompany you to the shelter to feed the dogs the biscuits. This is a good way to teach them to sit, which might help get them adopted faster.
6. Accompany your child to put in some time volunteering at the shelter. Most shelters allow volunteers to clean the cages and some allow underage children to walk the dogs if accompanied by a parent.
7. Help the bar/bat mitzvah boy or girl put together fun centerpieces for the tables at the reception, such as baskets filled with toys for the animals. You can wrap the baskets in cellophane and decorate with ribbon and balloons.
8. In the invitation, explain that the bar/bat mitzvah boy or girl’s mitzvah project is helping a local animal shelter and ask the guests to bring donations such as pet food, supplies and/or a check. Set up a box at the entrance of the reception so that they can drop their donations in.

Tips & Warnings

• Your child's project can involve more than one shelter.
• If you are set with your bar/bat mitzvah boy or girl’s college fund, you can always ask guests to bring a gift for the shelter in lieu of a gift for the honoree, or you can donate a percentage of the gift money to the shelter.
• If you and your child are volunteering at the shelter around Christmas, gather a group of Jewish people together to help out on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day so that Christian workers and volunteers can have time off with their families. This will be a chance for your child to perform a double mitzvah for both people and animals.

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