I Left My Bark In San Francisco

Hey to all you blog readers!

My name is Sundance and I am THE West Coast Canine for Kids!
I live in San Francisco which is cool on so many levels that I’ll not even start to list them.

However, the fact that the Ocean is right here is perhaps the best part of San Fran and I love walking on the beach!

As a matter of fact, that is why Bismark (my cousin) has allowed me to post this entry. My dads and I are doing our Canines For Kids Walk on July 12th and we are totally pumped about this! I am really excited about the Walk this year... not just raising bunches of money, but we are also trying to get another pooch or two to join me on this totally rad enterprise.

So, if you are reading this and missed the chance to donate money to the Albany Canines For Kids Walk (which raised over $3,000!!), you can certainly support me in my efforts!!!!!! After all, there are two coasts to this country (just like Costa Rica!!) and July will be the West Coast shot at doing some really great things for the children of Costa Rica.

Want to support me? Just e-mail cousin Bismark at k94kids@aol.com and he will fill you in on what you need to do. Other than taking me for walks, I rarely ask humans for anything since I’m a pretty cool canine. But hey, this is for a great cause, so, if you are reading this and if you are human, feel free to join in dude!

Consider yourself licked,

Sundance

Second Annual Canines4Kids Dog Walk!

I really like walking in the rain, so the weather forecast did not bother me one bit, but mom & dad were pretty concerned. They had left the TV on and I heard that there were going to be a few hours on Saturday, May 17th, where the sun would shine and it would be warm. When dad came back into the room, I tried to tell him that it would all be okay, but when I speak (he calls it barking, I call it talking) he always tells me to “be quiet,” so I just shut up and let him worry.

But the Weather Channel was right-it was a perfect day for our Second Annual Canines For Kids Walk. We had one Golden, one Chihuahua, two Beagles and three Dachshunds (the most beautiful of all species, and I truly did look marvelous). After the Walk everyone, humans and canines alike, came back to my house and we had a great time playing, sniffing each other and pooping in the back yard. Our handlers took a million pictures of us and ate all the goodies that my brother Jeff had made. The favorite menu item was something called a “nine layer dip", which confused me since I swear that was also dad’s nickname in High School.

We all had a really great time.

And, not to forget the main purpose of the Walk, we raised over $3,100 for EcoTeach and the Costa Rican Humanitarian Foundation, so far, with more money still coming in and the San Francisco Walk not even scheduled until late June. Sundance is working hard out there, trying to get another canine or two to join him this year, so dad is pretty excited about that.

Brother Jeff, my “Blog Master,” will soon be posting pictures of the 2008 Walk so be sure to check them out (then you too will agree, I truly did look marvelous). Also check out the links to EcoTeach and CRHF as those humans are amazing in all the work they do in Costa Rica.

That’s it for now. Dad will be holding our donations until all of them are in and then sending the money to our friends in Costa Rica. I’ll make sure I write another entry after we have a final total as well as the decisions as to how our two organizations will be spending it. Raising the money is fun, but seeing how it is spent is really the best part.

Tail Wags and Licks,
Bismark

The Second Annual Canines for Kids Walk!

The Second Annual Canines For Kids Walk is really starting to take shape. (I think I can officially call it that since this is the second year and it is an annual thing-seems good enough to me). We are getting some new pooches who are showing interest and that is really fun since I like to meet new dogs. There is even increased interest in San Francisco and we may be getting a couple of those West Coast Canines to take part. I know Sundance is way too cool to admit he’d like the company, but looking at last year’s pictures of him walking on the beach by the Pacific Ocean would make any self respecting dog want to join him on this walk!

Dad is communicating a lot with his contacts at EcoTeach and the Costa Rica Humanitarian Foundation regarding specific projects where our money can be applied. So, it is all starting to come together. The real pressure is on me though since I’m the one who has to pee all over the back yard and stake out my turf before the Walk. It’s not that I mind having all the canines over afterwards, but a dog has to claim what is rightfully his, ya know?!? I never realized how big this yard is and it really is quite draining, in more ways than one. It ain’t easy being me.

I can’t write much more since I’m busy raising money from my sponsors for the Walk. I have reviewed dad’s list of who he wants to ask for money and had to make a few corrections. He keeps forgetting that the three Presidential Candidates are trying to raise money, not donate it-poor dad.

Oh, and if you are reading this and want to be a part of this year’s Walk without actually walking, you can sponsor ME! All you need to do is e-mail dad (k9fkids@aol.com). He’ll let you know how to make out the check (tax deductible) and where to mail it. Dad also wanted me to add that 100% of all money raised goes to one of our Non Profits.

Tail Wags and Licks,

Bismark

I Really Like the Spring! (This is me...cute, huh?)

Since my legs are only about 3 inches long, the winter with its 2-3 feet of snow, creates some issues for me that big dogs and people just don’t get. Not that I hate the snow. I love to make tunnels and run through them, driving dad nuts with my "snow droppings" once I come inside. But when it is time to go outside to do my business and the snow is over my head, well... I really like Spring.

Mom and dad are starting to get pretty pumped up about this year’s Canines For Kids Walk scheduled for May 17th. Last year’s Walk resulted in a new roof being put on the school in Tortuguero, Costa Rica -an entire roof for the school! This year dad has latched on to two Costa Rican non-profits which are turning out to be incredibly responsive.

The first, Costa Rican Humanitarian Foundation, is a small, but exceedingly active organization founded by an American woman (Gail) back in the nineties. Her love and devotion to Costa Rica is evident in her Web Site (http://www.crhf.org/). While she is involved in many aspects of the Costa Rican society, she and dad have agreed that all money received by Canines For Kids will be used exclusively for schools and school kids.

The second non-profit, which dad has fallen in love with, is EcoTeach. They are a larger, more established organization, involved with various aspects of education and conservation. Mom and dad were introduced to EcoTeach by a Tico they met in Costa Rica, named Pika, who has been a wonderful friend and resource in this process. Here it is - two years later - and Pika has just been hired by EcoTeach, which will further the already strong ties between EcoTeach and Canines For Kids.

The EcoTeach Web Site (http://www.ecoteach.org/) has a link to projects that can be adopted. These are the areas on which Canines For Kids wants to focus.

Two great organizations, with people and programs already in place, just waiting for any additional resources they can get from a bunch of 4-legged Yankee dogs going for a Walk.

Sounds easy enough to me.

Time for me to wrap this up and start bugging my family for pledges for our upcoming event!

(Anyone reading this that wants to sponsor me on the 2008 Canines For kids Walk, just drop me a note at k94kids@aol.com ).

Tails and Wags,

Bismark