Spooky season is here, and what better way to showcase the spirit of Halloween than with a pet costume contest? Held in downtown Tifton, Georgia, at the farmer’s market, this pet costume contest brought out several contestants to showcase their pet’s costume and featured sponsors like Pampered Paws, Pawlished Pooch, Pawfection, Tifton Pet Center,
and Petsense.
This contest was also created by 11-year-old Brinley Elizondo of Bean’s Biscuit, which she created to raise money for Tift County’s Animal Shelter. Elizondo was able to raise around 400 dollars for the animal shelter, which involved entrance fees for the contest, a raffle, and sales from her treats.
One thing that I admire about Elizondo is that she’s young, but she doesn’t allow that to stop her from doing something great and helping towards a cause.
Elizondo felt like it was an amazing opportunity to showcase this event, and she was excited to talk about what it meant to her. Elizondo said, “This event meant helping the animals at the shelter and showing people you’re never too young or too small to do something
like this. This shelter and animals mean so much to me, and I’m very grateful that I could do this.”
Being so young and creating an event like this takes bravery and encouragement. Elizondo’s parents, Rachel and Ronald, spoke about what an event like this means to them.
Rachel said, “We are so proud of Brinley and all her hard work for this event. She is an amazing young woman, and she is proof that you’re never too young to make a difference.”
Ronald said, “Having this event succeed confirms for me that Brinley has a genuine drive and passion for animals. It shows that one day she may be able to build a fulfilling career
doing what she loves.”
As for the contest itself, four pets were recognized with three being given prizes for coming in first, second, and third place, and fourth place was an honorable mention.
The honorable mention went to Laurel Rogers and her dog, who came dressed as a fabulous minnie cow. Third place was Jacqueline Faith and her dog Noah, who came dressed as one of the triplets from the Pixar movie “Brave.”
Second place was Ashley Mobley who came dressed as The Cat in the Hat with her dogs Archie, Alice, and Emi dressed as Thing One, Thing Two, and Thing Three.
Finally, first place went to Joyce Woosley and her cat Colonel, who came dressed as KFC’s Colonel Sanders.
Woosley and Colonel also donated their prize of 100 dollars back to the animal shelter, which resulted in 500 dollars being raised overall.
This was also the first time that Elizondo created an event like this, but I hope she’s able to make it something annual because the support that was shown by the sponsors, the community, and her parents is something that a person never forgets.
Elizondo’s support of the animal shelter is what I viewed as a reminder that respect goes beyond human existence, which was supported by a quote shared by Elizondo from Jane Goodall that says, “Respect for animals makes us all better humans.” Elizondo’s drive not only provided an event that contributed to the cause of becoming a better human by respecting animals, but she was able to gather friends, family, and the community of Tifton together to support something that meant so dear to her.
Encouragement can be taken from Elizondo to show that you’re never too young to do something you love.
PHOTOS| ANTHONY BAISDEN