Boy's birthday party becomes a benefit for needy animals
Animal lover Nick Brester cuddles with a cat at the Humane Society of Northwest Montana. At Brester’s recent 11th birthday party, guests brought 64 pounds of dog and cat food to be donated to the shelter.
It’s no secret that Nick Brester loves animals.
His family has a golden retriever named Sunny. They’ve owned cats in the past. The television commercial featuring abused pets and a plaintive Sarah McLaughlan song has moved him to tears and ultimately led to his family’s membership in the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
Even so, it was a little hard for Nick to swallow a suggestion from his mother, Sherry, that instead of having a normal birthday party with presents, he ask his friends to bring pet food they could donate to the Humane Society.
Understandably, Nick was a little hesitant at first. You only turn 11 once, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to sacrifice all his birthday presents, Sherry Brester said. Then Nick came up with a compromise: The girls he was inviting could bring pet food instead of gifts.
“I knew they probably wouldn’t know what I would want anyway,” he said.
The boys he had invited showed up to the party with presents: Montana Grizzlies gear, magic kits, games. The girls brought 64 pounds of dog and cat food, which Nick donated earlier this month to the Humane Society of Northwest Montana.
“I was just really happy to see that I could help out,” he said.
While he was glad he could do something to help homeless animals, the trip to the shelter wasn’t easy, he said.
“Going to the shelter was really sad, seeing all those cats and dogs that don’t have homes like Sunny does,” Nick said. “I didn’t really like seeing all the animals without homes.”
He said when he’s older, he will volunteer there. Volunteers must be at least 16 years old.
He had high praise for the workers at the shelter.
“I’m happy to know they have good staff there, not ones who just feed [the animals] and don’t take care of them,” he said.
He urged others to take greater care of their furry friends — or to find a new four-legged buddy.
“These animals have suffered, been abandoned,” he said. “Maybe they could find it in their heart to treat [animals] with more respect, and hopefully come down and adopt one.”
For further information about the Humane Society of Northwest Montana, visit www.hsnwmt.com.
Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.