The BSLWorkshop
Responsible Dog Ownership & Legislation
Kris Crawford of For Pits' Sake Honored with Prestigious National Award
San Jose, CA, September 02, 2009 --(PR.com)-- For Pits' Sake, Inc. announced today that Kris Crawford and her pit bull dogs - Cheyenne, Dakota & Tahoe - have been awarded the President's Volunteer Lifetime of Service Award for over a decade of service to the community. The President's Volunteer Service Award is a prestigious national award given by the President of the United States to recognize the valuable contributions made by volunteers across the nation. Since 1997, Crawford and her dogs have been saving and changing lives through their search and rescue work, safety and humane educational programs for children, and their therapy/rehabilitation work with disabled and battered/abused children.
The President's Volunteer Service Awards is a national program created to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated sustained commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service.
Established in 2003, the award was created by President George W. Bush, and continued by President Barack Obama to give Presidential recognition to people and organizations who meet certain requirements for volunteer service. The award is a Presidential honor that recognizes the valuable contributions of volunteers nationwide who are answering Barack Obama's call to serve others. Lifetime Awards are given to people who have volunteered over 5,000 hours to their communities. The number of hours that Crawford and her dogs have devoted to volunteer community service through their search and rescue efforts, safety and humane educational programs and their work with disabled, battered and abused, and at-risk children far exceed that.
"It is indeed a privilege and an honor to accept the President's Volunteer Lifetime Service Award," said Kris Crawford, founder of For Pits' Sake. "One doesn't engage in volunteer activity in order to get recognition. One does it to help make life just a little bit easier for someone else -- whether that be human or animal. I have learned that wishing for change doesn't produce change. We can't just sit around hoping someone will do something because more often than not, everyone else is sitting around hoping someone else will do something too!"
The award came with a letter from the President's Council on Service & Civic Participation. One of the paragraphs say, "This award recognizes your dedication to volunteer service and signifies that you have served your community. Through your volunteer efforts, you are demonstrating values that make our nation strong and you are helping build a culture of citizenship, service and responsibility in America and your country with distinction. You have joined a remarkable team whose everyday acts of kindness and decency make our country a better place. Congratulations again on receiving this Presidential Volunteer Service Award. And thank you for demonstrating the best of the American spirit."
A congratulatory letter from President Barack Obama was also presented with the award. It says, among other things:
"Congratulations on receiving the President's Volunteer Service Award, and thank you for helping address the most pressing needs in your community and your country. I am extremely proud to recognize your most outstanding volunteer efforts with this award. In my Inaugural address, I stated that we need a new era of responsibility -- a recognition on the part of every American that we have duties to ourselves, our Nation, and the World. These are duties that we do not grudgingly accept, but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit than giving our all to a difficult task. Your volunteer service demonstrates the kind of commitment that moves America a step closer to it's great promise. Thank you for your devotion to service and for doing all you can to shape a better tomorrow for our great nation."
This award not only recognizes Crawford for her work and her commitment to helping others, it also recognizes the contributions of her three pit bull dogs - Cheyenne, Dakota & Tahoe - who change minds, touch hearts, and save lives.
About For Pits' Sake, Inc. (www.ForPitsSake.org)
Founded in 1997, For Pits' Sake, Inc. is a leader in the community for both human and animal rescue, humane education, safety programs and therapy work with battered/abused and disabled and special needs children. As world-famous search and rescue dogs, the For Pits' Sake pit bulls responded to over 200 search missions including high profile cases such as the search for Laci Peterson and the Space Shuttle Columbia disaster. Their Safety Around Dogs program (www.SafetyAroundDogs.org) is an award-winning program dog bite prevention program for elementary schools. For Pits Sake also has an award-winning anti-dog fighting campaign (www.KnockOutDogFighting.org) that has formed partnerships with community organizations and law enforcement agencies to stop cruelty to both animals and children. For Pits' Sake, Inc. has received numerous awards including a Jefferson Award - The Nobel Prize for Community Service, the American Red Cross Real Hero Award, the President of the United States Volunteer Service Award, the United Animal Nations Animals Choice Award, the NSAL Heroism Award, a Certificate and Letter of Achievement from the FBI, Certificates of Appreciation from County Supervisors, Senators and Assembly members, and a letter from the Governor of CA stating they "demonstrate the best of the best and ...the true strength of California."
