Page 3 - Kind News, September October 2020
P. 3

Ethan                                                                  HU
                                                                                  HUMANE HEROMANE HERO






          SPEAKS UP































           Most states have their own special              passed the House of Representatives in January.
     opposite page, from top: zsuzsanna tóth/pixabay; redrover; raja app images: bryan huff. this page, redrover.
           flowers, songs, and nicknames.                  The bill was stopped when the Senate had to turn
           Some have their own state pets,                 to human health and money matters. But in the
           like the malamute in Alaska and                 process of making shelter pets official, Ethan did
                                                           what he set out to do: shine a spotlight on homeless
           the Boston terrier in Massachusetts.            animals. He did interviews for his local TV stations
           After Ohio chose as its official pet            and gave a speech at a rally in front of the statehouse.
           any animal adopted from a shelter,                 Ethan said, “I just want to say to all the kids out
           7-year-old Kentucky resident Ethan              there, don’t think [that] just because you’re a kid you
           Branscum got an idea.                           can’t make a difference.”

           Ethan wrote a letter to his State Representative,
           Joe Graviss. Representative Graviss introduced     You have a voice, too!
           the idea as House Bill 27, “An act relating to state
           symbols.” A bill is language that gets voted on by   Each American has lawmakers representing them
           each group of lawmakers in a state or country. In   at the local, state, and national (country) levels of
           a state, these groups of lawmakers are the House   government. Their job is to hear about problems
           of Representatives and the Senate. Once these    you care about. If you have an idea for a bill, let
           lawmakers pass a bill, it then has to be signed by   your lawmakers know! You can find representatives
           the governor to become law. If passed, House Bill   at usa.gov/elected-officials. Have your address ready,
           27 would make cats and dogs living in or adopted   and ask an adult for help.
           from Kentucky animal shelters or rescues the
           official pets of Kentucky.                                     Have a story of how you’ve
             Ethan and Representative Graviss high-fived              helped animals? We’d love to hear it!
           each other at the state house when House Bill 27                 Share your story at
                                                                       redrover.org/shareyourstory.


                                WHY DO BIRDS FLY SOUTH IN THE FALL?
                 RIDDLE RAT!
                 R I DDL E  R A T !  (answer on p. 7)                                         Sept/Oct 2020 | 3
   1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8