Joe Kirkham - A 10 year old of Ft. Worth, Texas held a Fundraising event on December 23, 2008 where he raised over a $1,000 for the Big Cats of CARE. Joe sold small specialty items such as tiger-striped balloons and leopard-spotted mini-notepads in return for small donations.

Joe visited the facility in 2007 and he decided at that time that perhaps he could help the big cats. He held a similar fundraising event for the World Wildlife Fund in the past but decided to concentrate on C.A.R.E. because in his words “they are close to home (right here in Texas), and they are a smaller operation that really needs my help.”  

Joe’s fundraising goes beyond a simple “bake sale” mentality. He has also produced his own power point presentation to garner corporate support. Joe visited several companies and  received donations and matching funds. By adding small corporate contributions to his repertoire, Joe hoped to double or more the amount of money he planned to collect for C.A.R.E.

Joe likes the idea of earning money for worthy causes like C.A.R.E., especially to help support animals. He feels it is “cool” for kids to get involved in projects like this. “Doing stuff like this makes you a better person, and it helps people or animals, too,” said Joe. “I have a home and enough food, but there are lots of guys or animals who don’t have as much as I do, so if I can help them I will.”