Edison Elementary School student Zora Schaffer read the picture book “Dragons Love Tacos” with her mother, Kate Schaffer, while petting Kentucky Fried Chicken, a cat up for adoption at Paws and Claws Cat Rescue Wednesday night. The mother-daughter duo were just two of roughly 30 community members who attended Evanston Public Library’s “Read to Cats” event at the shelter.
“We like reading and we like cats. We have a lot of cat books at home, so we thought it would be fun to read to some cats,” Kate Schaffer said.
Wednesday night was the library’s third event at Paws and Claws Cat Rescue. Robin Sindelar, a branch assistant at the Robert Crown Branch Library, said the event was aimed at elementary school students with the hope of bringing the community together and improving childhood literacy.
Sindelar said interest in the event outpaced what the cat shelter could accommodate, leading to a waitlist of around 25 families. She brought more than 20 cat-themed books from the library for the kids to read aloud.
“The event helps kids with their reading because the cats don’t judge the children,” Sindelar said. “And I think it’s also really important for the cats. It helps them get socialized.”
Paws and Claws Cat Rescue Founder and Executive Director Ashlynn Boyce said the rescue’s tagline is “saving lives, building community,” which she hopes to achieve through putting animals up for adoption and hosting events. The rescue has around 40 cats — all of which were brought in because they were at risk of euthanasia.
The shelter’s mission statement says it aims to help cats “mentally and physically heal and give them a chance to find love, a full life and a forever home.” Boyce said Paws and Claws achieves this goal in part through its partnership with Evanston Public Library.
“It’s been a really wonderful event,” Boyce said. “It’s the highlight of my staff’s month every time we do it.”
Attendee Anna Luce brought her daughter Ruby to the event after receiving an email about it from the library. She said her daughter loves animals and coming to the rescue was a perfect way for them to get their “cat fix,” since their two cats recently passed away.
Luce said she encourages reading at home and wanted to make the task fun for her daughter. The pair spent 20 minutes in a room with cats, some toys and a few books.
“We’re a very big book family,” Luce said. “We read every day together. Reading to cats is a fun way to do that.”
Sindelar hopes to continue hosting the event in the future as it has been popular among community members.
She said teaching children how to read out loud is just as important as teaching them to read in their heads, and her goal is to teach kids that reading is fun.
“Animals are a really good starting point to teach children empathy because they connect with them so easily,” Sindelar said. “That sort of civic mindedness and kindness can expand out.”
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