School teacher wants to lead the way when it comes to giving back

Cape Town, 11 August 2017 - Grade 2 school teacher, Michelle Coyne is a woman on a mission. Last year at the annual TEARS Sleepathon, she came home with the dog in whose kennel she spent the night. This year, she has promised husband Dennis, that she won’t add to their already extensive menagerie, but she does want to raise significant monies for the deserving animal welfare organisation.

There is TEARS Located?

TEARS Animal Shelter, located in the Kommetjie area and with charity shops in Tokai and FishHoek, is a non-profit pro-life organisation that provides essential support for the animals in some of the poorest communities in the deep South (and beyond). It supplies food, medication, vaccinations and sterilisations at little or no cost to the owners. South Africa’s current economic climate has hit retail and other industries hard, but it has also had a profound effect of organisations like TEARS – the less money there is to go around to support human beings, the less likely it is for animals to receive the care, nourishment and even love, they need to survive.

Michelle the Loving and Caring Teacher

Michelle Coyne aims to help change that. “As a teacher, I believe it’s vital that I help young people learn more than just their ABCs and 1,2,3s. Through this campaign, I would like to reach out to as many young people and their parents as possible, to understand that it is our human right to help those who cannot speak for themselves. I would like to show them that by practising what we preach, we can make change happen.

What does Michelle think about owning and caring for a pet?

“We need to encourage caring for animals among our youth, who are increasingly locked into their online worlds from ever younger years of age. While digital is an intrinsic part of our everyday lives now, and for the future, there are countless studies that show how owning and caring for a pet can have important benefits for children – their emotional, physical, social and cognitive development. Reading aloud to a dog for example, can help children learn to read faster, it is believed that a dog’s non-judgemental listening is less stressful, than the child reading to an adult.”

"Monkey See Monkey Do" says Michelle!

Michelle hopes that by raising the funds for TEARS, and the public campaign she is mounting, can also shine a light on the abuse that animals often suffer at the hands of people. “The more money we raise, the more animals TEARS can rescue and find them loving homes” she says emphatically. She would also encourage parents sleep-out for TEARS and for their children – be the person, they would like their children to be.