PRESS RELEASE

FOR INFORMATION CONTACT:

Melanie Norton, Director of Public Relations

(760) 839-7976 office/ (760) 505-9893 cell

MESA VERDE STUDENTS SUPPORT ESCONDIDO

HUMANE SOCIETY AT GRAPE DAY PARADE

ESCONDIDO, CA—September 17, 2002—An AVID (Advancement Via Individual Determination) class from Poway’s Mesa Verde Middle School showed their support for the Escondido Humane Society September 7, by donning EHS t-shirts and walking dogs alongside the humane society float. Escondido’s annual Grape Day Parade invited organizations to create floats with the theme, “Having Fun with Grape Books”. The humane society’s float, “All Creatures Grape and Small” was inspired by the James Herriot novel, “All Creatures Great and Small”, which depicts the memoirs of a Yorkshire country veterinarian.

When EHS had a shelter, Barbara Hensley, who teaches the AVID program at Mesa Verde, would periodically send her students to the shelter to walk dogs. “Without a shelter, we don’t have as many volunteer needs, but I thought the parade would be fun for the kids”, says EHS Director of Volunteer Services, Mary Lee Poremba. “We already had a group designing the float, so having the kids walking with their dogs was perfect.” The kids were also given cameras to take pictures with throughout the hour-long parade. Their photos can be seen on the EHS web site at www.escondidohumanesociety.org.

Escondido’s Historical Society has put on the Grape Day Parade since 1908. Following the parade was a Grape Day Festival which included a grape-stomping vat, amusement park rides, food and art. For more information about the Escondido Humane Society, call (760) 839-0293.

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