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NEH third grader sews for shelter dogs

Rylee Keehn’s visit last Friday to the Animal Rescue League is no doubt the first installment of many good things to come from an inspired Northeast Hamilton third grader.

Rylee travelled to Des Moines accompanied by her mother Leslie Pralle Keehn to deliver seven dog shirts that she made for disadvantaged canines.

The dog shirts were designed by Rylee after she was inspired by an author who visited her school last fall. Jena Ball spoke to the children in Tammy Massman’s Third Grade class at Northeast Hamilton Elementary School.

Ball, the founder of “The Not Perfect Hat Club” encouraged and motivated the children to dream and then pursue those dreams.

“Jena helped the kids know that they could do amazing things without being perfect,” explained Rylee’s mother, Leslie. “Rylee really took that to heart.”

Rylee combined her love of animals and her knack for fashion design in coming up with the idea for the shirts. She and her mother learned how to sew after receiving a sewing machine for Christmas. Then from the outgrown clothes of her baby brother, Rylee constructed the dog shirts.

Rylee shared her project on her blog and it was picked up as a favorite thing by the Ellen Degeneres Show website in March.

In accepting the shirts, the staff at the ARL in Des Moines noted that “they were really cute,” said Rylee.

The shirts will be used in the ARL’s outreach program which assists people who are struggling to provide for their pets, explained Leslie Pralle Keehn.

The ARL helps people who through a sudden or unexpected hardship are having a hard time feeding and caring for their pet, explained Pralle Keehn.

After delivering the shirts, Rylee and her mom were treated to a tour of the rescue shelter and the experience opened the youngster’s eyes to the sad situation of pet over-population.

“Adopt animals, don’t shop,” said Rylee of the need for people to adopt rescue dogs rather than buy from breeders or pet shops.

Now that the shirts are delivered, Rylee is looking forward to her next project on her To-Do List – making fleece blankets for rescue animals.

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