"You're asking the city to invest in us." "We have to be financially ready," member Rick Farley said. They are seeking non-profit status to begin raising funds for the project. They are comprised of concerned citizens, shelter volunteers and past Moses Lake/Grant County Humane Society board members Paula Stout and White. The group calls themselves Grant County Animal Outreach. The group held their first meeting Saturday to formulate themselves and to come up with a plan to present to the city. The idea of creating a new group to replace the humane society was presented to the Moses Lake City Council last week by group leaders Harmony White and Peny Archer.Ĭouncil did not make a decision due to lack of information. Last week the Grant County Humane Society sought to end contracts with Moses Lake and Grant County, releasing them as the controlling entity of the shelter. MOSES LAKE - Citizens are forming a group in hopes of taking control of the Moses Lake/Grant County Humane Society animal shelter. We found that they were washing their clothes in the bathtub and so we thought we should try to get a washer and dryer and offer a place for the kids to come to,” Wilkinson said.Outreach hopes to replace current shelter board “We had a group of children that came to us one day and they didn’t have food at their house and they didn’t have much clothes. The Well also has a pair of washers and dryers available for us after reaching out to the community to aid a group of children. The Well collects clothing and household items and sells them for $1. That check helped us get started and now every year on Petersburg Day we get to meet more people and build step by step,” Wilkinson said.Īlong with the food pantry, The Well has multiple functions for the community to use. When he heard about what we were doing here he was so excited and then he later sent us a $1,500 check. “I met a guy from Houston on Petersburg Day and he had lived in Petersburg a long time ago. They were not approved for the Arrington grant due to not being established for three years at the time of the grant application, but they plan to reapply when they reach that milestone.ĭespite not receiving the grant, members of the Petersburg community and surrounding communities stop by The Well to give donations when they can. According to Wilkinson, the Arrington grant is for $300,000 over three years. Mark has reached out to area cities and Texas representative Jodey Arrington to apply for grants. “When trying to find resources and applying for grants, we have found that we are too far north for Lubbock and too far south for Amarillo. One of the problems they face though as a new entity is receiving consistent donations and grants. Mark and Nancy look to fill the pantry with every opportunity they get.
We want to be a community pantry for all of the neighboring communities between Plainview and Lubbock,” Wilkinson said. “We don’t want to be a Petersburg pantry. Wilkinson told the Herald they were able to feed over 220 families last year and are looking to continually increase that number. “We try to give people a good balance of food when they come in.” People just stop in and we share what we have,” Wilkinson said. “The pantry is available from Tuesday through Thursday. One of the first things they did was partner with the South Plains Food Bank to provide a food bank for those in need. Over the past couple years, Mark, along with his daughter Nancy Wilkinson, have worked together to renovate the church and add new ways to be of service to the community.
Grant county animal outreach for free#
Wilkinson received the old Methodist church for free and with the building he established a 501 c3 non-profit – The Well at Petersburg. We’ll pay for everything,’” Wilkinson said. “I contacted them, but I told them that I didn’t have any money to buy the building. Nearly three years ago, Mark said he attended a funeral and was told of a church in Petersburg that was looking donate their building that had been empty for three years to that point. Over the past couple years, he has served the city of Petersburg and the surrounding areas with his own community outreach through a program called The Well.
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