Canine Advocates of Newtown, Inc, has been helping homeless animals for nearly two decades. The group's legacy of compassion has made a positive impact on the town's cats and dogs, more than most may realize.

Since the organization's inception, every newspaper article, event flyer, and adoptable animal photo has been archived by its members in customized scrapbooks to chronicle Canine Advocates' work throughout the years.

After creating nearly a dozen albums, Canine Advocates decided to give them all to Newtown's Brian J. Silverlieb Animal Care & Control Center, 21 Old Farm Road, on Wednesday, August 2.

Those who are interested in learning about the work the group has done and the animals they have helped will be able to access this information-rich resource. The books will reside on a large wooden bookshelf, donated by Newtown Color Center, in the entrance of the animal control center.

Virginia Jess, founder and president of Canine Advocates, explained that the first scrapbook project was originally made by member Kelly Walker, but once she moved, Judith Caracciolo took over the duties.

Now considered the Canine Advocate historian, 2017 will be Ms Caracciolo's 12th (and final) year making the scrapbooks.

She has gone above and beyond simple archiving and labeling. Each page is meticulously designed to incorporate personal touches of color, unique backgrounds, detailed boarders, and various artistic embellishments.

Unsure just how many hours she has invested into the project - estimating two pages could take two hours - she made sure the work done was preserved for future generations to enjoy.

"Everything is acid-free: the books, the paper, anything I had to write with, like a pen," Ms Caracciolo said. Each page is also placed in a plastic protective sheet within the book.

Ms Caracciolo even designed a special plaque, which hangs on the wall nearby, to encourage people to handle the scrapbooks with care and not remove any of the books' contents.

A Champion For The Animals

Ms Jess was originally inspired to start Canine Advocates after finding out a devastating piece of information.

"I learned that the town was killing more dogs than it was adopting out. That's what started it all," Ms Jess said.

Unable to just sit and let that continue to go on, her first method of spreading the word was to write a Letter to the Editor in The Newtown Bee to lend her voice to the community on the subject.

The letter was published around Thanksgiving 1998, and afterward she was approached by two local women who encouraged her to put action to her words to help make a bigger impact.

Ms Jess decided to host a Christmas party at her house later that year and assembled a group of people who shared her passion for wanting to create a no-kill animal shelter for Newtown.

"We all went to the police commission meeting in January," Ms Jess said. "I got all my friends to go and we crowded the whole room... [the commission members] were absolutely astounded, because there was so much of us; we couldn't fit in the room."

The group fought for not just for a no-kill shelter, but a place where the dogs could be walked, given shots, and spayed/neutered.

Having such strong support from so many members of the town, Ms Jess established Canine Advocates of Newtown as a nonprofit group, incorporated in September 1999.

As a result of the publicity they received in town, Ms Jess said that Canine Advocates was later approached by a local supporter wanting to donate roughly a million dollars to go toward creating a facility.

"Our purpose is to help cats and dogs at the town shelter. We never wanted to build our own shelter," Ms Jess explained.

So the money, along with about a quarter of a million dollars of their own fundraising, was put toward building the new animal control shelter many residents know today.

Having accomplished so much throughout the years, Ms Jess says that Canine Advocates continues to help the Newtown Animal Control Center, but has taken a step back with some previous duties.

Now there is even an animal advisory board in town, she says, which has taken on a lot of Canine Advocate's roles.

"We are more in the background now," Ms Jess said.

As for the future, she says Canine Advocates will continue to support the town's shelter and its animals, but finds the community is no longer in desperate need of their services as they once were.

Ms Jess said, "Now everything is changed, and we don't have that battle anymore."

As Ms Jess and Ms Caracciolo stand beside Newtown Animal Control Officer Carolee Mason and Assistant Animal Control Office Matt Schaub, flipping through one of the scrapbooks' pages, reminiscing and looking at the faces of all the different animals they have helped, it is clear Canine Advocates' work has made a positive difference in the town - and they have the books to prove it.

To learn more about Canine Advocates of Newtown, visit canineadvocates.org. The Animal Control Center is open Monday through Saturday, 9 am to 3 pm. Those looking to adopt or volunteer with the shelter can call 203-426-6900.

Wish List For The Brian J. Silverlieb Animal Care & Control Center:

Food: Classic lamb and rice dry dog food, freeze-dried liver treats, doggie toothpaste (poultry flavored), soft toothbrushes, and pig's ears.

Equipment: Choke chain collars and sturdy slide leads.

Toys: Large rubber Kong toys, air Kongs, large rope toys, Frisbees, and squeak toys.

Cleaning supplies: Bleach, ammonia, paper towels, laundry detergent, drier sheets, towels, and large black garbage bags.

Gift certificates to: Petco, Choice Pet Supplies, and Your Healthy Pet.

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