Putting the fun in firestarting

Fifty-nine years ago today, my parents were married in London, Ontario.  The day did double duty as Mom's release date from the Air Force .. but that is a separate subject that my feminist self has already (repeatedly) discussed here.
It was a tiny ceremony ... everyone involved had lived through the depression and sensibly spent any spare cash (and no credit)  on furniture for their first little bedsit.   Happily the proof of the pudding is never in the bells and whistles ... that simple little service 'stuck' until the day Dad drew his last breath.
To be perfectly honest, I was an adult before I realized what a gift my childhood had been.  
Does that mean that everything was perfect and peachy keen?  Of course not!   Does anybody ever really get it absolutely perfect the first time?   Is that not why grandparents find their own redemption from all those lessons learned?
Then what made it so special?  It was all bits we were never handcuffed with!   I grew up believing that I should get a skill.  Have a job.  Have a career.  To be perfectly honest, it never once occurred to me to get married and have children. 
Best of all, my parents walked the walk.   They didn't just talk about being kind to animals.   Our pets were spayed ( except the budgies and the turtles ...lol ).  They lived in the house, went to the vets for checkups and came with us on postings.
Do I do everything the way my folks did?  Of course not!  There are so many lovely bits and ideas available now, eh?
The point I am making in my meandering way is that I can credit my parents for instilling the core values of compassion and commitment into this thick skull :)   Back in the day, when I was in the military, my pets moved around the country with me.    They live in the house and get any and all vet care that they need.
How can these lessons be instilled when they weren't learned at mother's knee?   (the topic of the long range potential for great programs like Pawprints on Your Heart is a separate subject that has, and will again, deserve its' own post on another day)
How to reach folks when school is already out?  Why with fun of course!  My dear Dad used to say that when you start scolding people they just roll up their ears.   
A month from tomorrow there will be lots of opportunity for fun!  The First Annual Rescue Dog Show will be out there for all the world to see and enjoy! 
If you want to warm up for all that fun, on Aug 14th, the funloving folks at GPAC are hosting their Annual Dog Days of Summer All Breed Dog Extravangza!
Events like these provide the opportunity for folks to wake up to the delights of pet adoption.   They create a climate that encourages responsible pet ownership.  Best of all, every person who attends becomes an ambassador when they start talking about it around the water cooler.
What time is it?   It is always time to remember that rescues will catch more adopters with sugar than with the smelly stuff we scoop into bags.
Education is not the filling of a pail but the lighting of a fire.   W.B Yeats