Humane Society Has A New Children’s Program

Hey, families! The Berkshire Humane Society has a new program for children ages 8 to 12, the Compassion Club. From the Official Berkshire Humane Society Press Release:

Exciting Things in a Box for Young Animal Lovers

Berkshire Humane Society has a new program for children ages 8 to 12, the Compassion Club. This monthly subscription is an educational box full of treasures for kids who love animals.

Each month the Compassion Club box has humane education activities such as a reading or writing assignment, coloring contest, craft with all the pieces, assignment to visit a place in the Berkshires, surprise gift and free book sponsored by Greylock Federal Credit Union.

Reagan, age 11 of Pittsfield loved her first box, saying “The Compassion Club box is full of cool stuff including crafts, activities and I really liked the book. It’s just cool!”

A subscription is $20 per month and signing up for multiple months is available. Enrolled families pick up the boxes at Berkshire Humane Society’s main shelter at 214 Barker Road in Pittsfield, Purradise satellite cat shelter and boarding facility at 301 Stockbridge Road in Great Barrington, or other locations by arrangement.

Berkshire Humane Society partners with other organizations to offer Compassion Club boxes. August featured Mass Audubon with buy one/get one passes to Pleasant Valley Sanctuary in Lenox, Nature Bingo, and a lightning bug activity.

Future boxes feature Berkshire Animal Dreams, Berkshire Wildlife Services, Nature Matters and Berkshire Natural Resources Council. “It’s a win-win for all the organizations involved. We are so pleased to have these nonprofits on board with this new idea,” said Humane Educator Elizabeth Filkins.

With the pandemic, Filkins, had to adapt the animal shelter’s community outreach and humane education to reach children safely without sitting them down behind another computer. “I really wanted children, and whole families, to see the beauty of Berkshires and get outside! The last thing I wanted to do was to create a ‘virtual camp’ where children spend more time in front of a screen.”

To register and for more information visit https://berkshirehumane.org/education/compassion-club/, or contact Filkins at 413-447-7878 extension 129 or efilkins@BerkshireHumane.org.