Two young animal advocates, Maddie Boroskey and Ellie Bepko, set up a table at NYA Sports & Fitness Center Friday, August 12, from 9 am to 12:30 pm, to raise money for the Animal Welfare Institute.

The two best friends have been working together all summer during play dates and sleepovers to find creative ways to raise money to help animals.

"I'm so proud of both of them," said Maddie's mother, Kirsten Boroskey. "They have been working really, really hard on this. I think it is absolutely wonderful that they are putting all their free time and efforts into something so worthwhile."

Earlier this summer, the pair sold freeze pops for a dollar each and raised more than $30 to put toward their donation to the Animal Welfare Institute.

The girls specifically chose the Animal Welfare Institute because the organization helps a variety of animals, including companion animals, farm animals, wildlife, marine life, and animals tested in laboratories.

Maddie explained, "Ellie did a lot of research on animal shelters, and she really liked the Animal Welfare Institute. They help animals that are sick and hurt."

Kim Bepko, Ellie's mother, said her daughter researched about six different organizations and wanted to make sure she found a group that gave the most money directly to helping animals. Ellie chose the Animal Welfare Institute, because 97 cents of every dollar donated goes directly to help the animals.

After reaching out to a number of locations to hold the main fundraiser, the NYA allowed them to set up a table inside its building.

"The girls were so excited to finally get to do this," said Ms Bepko.

To prepare for the big day, the girls had what Maddie calls a "double sleepover," during which they went to each other's houses and worked diligently on various elements of the sale.

The compassionate duo sold a selection of homemade baked goods including cookies, brownies, cupcakes, and even dog biscuits. The dog biscuits were such a hit that they only had one left by the end of their fundraiser. Ms Bepko explained that the girls made the dog biscuits at her home, and that they used ingredients like wheat germ, powdered milk, bacon grease, and eggs. Then they used a dog bone-shaped cookie cutter to create the treats.

"Our dogs really like them!" said Maddie with a huge smile. The girls made sure the biscuits were dog tested and dog approved by their own pets before selling them.

They also made rainbow loom bracelets to sell and went through their rooms to find books they wanted to donate toward the fundraiser. They sorted the books and priced them depending on the condition they were in; some books were 50 cents, while others were one or two dollars.

Along with selling different items, Maddie and Ellie printed out the logo for the Animal Welfare Institute and educated people about the group's mission to save animals.

Ms Bepko said she is "so proud of them" for all their hard work. They are both just 10 years old and showed that "they are very mature."

The fundraiser at NYA brought them more than $100 for the Animal Welfare Institute, and the girls hope to continue to raise more money before the summer ends. They are planning to have for another freeze pop or lemonade stand soon, and Ms Bepko recently got in contact with Your Healthy Pet to set up a fundraising table at the store.

"We really love animals," said Maddie. "It makes me and Ellie feel really good, because we know the money is going to help a lot of animals."