craigdailypress.com

Finding homes for wayward pets can be a thankless job.

There's usually an endless stream of unwanted, lost or abandoned animals, and often the only bit of reward volunteers get comes in the form of self-satisfaction from doing a good deed of uniting these animals with new owners.

And that's why the Editorial Board chose this opinion piece to recognize the selfless volunteers of the Humane Society of Moffat County.

The organization recently hosted a pet adoption day at the Craig Animal Shelter, where strays dogs and cats are housed until a more permanent home can be found.

The Humane Society found homes for several pets on the adoption day, as well as the days leading up to it.

That's a solution much more favorable than putting animals down. Putting animals down is a remedy no one likes, and yet Humane Society members are willing to do something about it.

They sacrifice their own time to ensure that an inhumane solution happens as little as possible.

Their efforts are particularly important in a time like today, when a difficult economy and financial restraints have made continued ownership of an animal unaffordable for some people.

In these circumstances, the Humane Society has stepped in to accept the animals without judging the people who had to give them up.

That's commendable, the Editorial Board believes.

Without their intervention, the animals' fate wouldn't be nearly as heartwarming as it was for those accepted into new families during the pet adoption.

Although their efforts aren't often publicly lauded, the Editorial Board, for one, recognizes this oversight and is thankful for their effort and hard work.

But they aren't the only group board members spoke highly of during their Monday meeting.

Organizers of the 10th annual Yahoo Golf Tournament recently capped another successful fundraising effort, this time raising $16,500 on behalf of Communities Overcoming Meth Abuse.

COMA, in turn, donated $2,500 of the proceeds to the Interfaith Food Bank. Remaining money will pay for educational efforts.

The tournament brought more than 120 golfers to Yampa Valley Golf Course and included several expensive prizes for participants, including a six-wheeler, 60-inch high-definition television, and a Traeger grill, among others.

COMA, with its stated mission of trying to eradicate meth use in our community, helped orchestrate the tournament, as did the Knez and Severson families.

Thanks to them, and the tournament participants, a good chunk of money is now available for anti-drug efforts that might prevent someone in the future from making a terrible decision to dabble in meth.

These groups provide further evidence of what many people know already but which is sometimes taken for granted - that Craig and Moffat County are full of generous, caring people, and it's because of them that we have such a positive community.