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Pa ge 8 T hu rs da y, O ct ob er 8 , 2 01 5 - T he IF P - H al to n H ill s - w w w .th ei fp .c a Authorized by the Official Agent for Michael Chong. Photo by: © Couvrette 1-800-837-7075 | michael@chong.ca | www.chong.ca GreenPAC Endorses Chong for Re-Election as a Strong Environmental Leader Chong one of only eighteen candidates across Canada endorsed Find out more at GreenPAC.ca NEWS Acton woman raffling home to open a specialty dog shelter It's no secret that Cheryle Greenly is passion- ate about helping animals. The Acton woman is known to routinely open up her home to rescue dogs and nur- ture them until they can find a new owner. But she's about to take her love of four-legged friends one major step further-- and she's giving her house away to accomplish it. Greenly is currently running an essay contest, with the grand prize being her cen- tury brick home at 27 Park Ave. in Acton, near Fairy Lake. All funds raised by the $125 entry fee will go towards Greenly's dream of open- ing a dog shelter for senior and traumatized dogs. "As much as I love this house, my heart needs to do the rescue," she said. "I feel like I'm failing by not being able to bring more dogs in. My heart lies with those who've been traumatized; I'm very good at bringing them out of their shell." While giving away your home may sound a bit scary to some, Greenly said she's noth- ing but excited about the prospect of raising enough money to follow her dreams. "I've been saying for years that I want to open a sanctuary, but that takes money. The only asset I've got is my house-- a beautiful house in a beautiful area. I just really want this to work out for the sanctuary." Greenly's three-bedroom house, which was built in 1903, has been completely updat- ed with a new kitchen, two new bathrooms, dark oak flooring and more. The Acton native has her sights set on the perfect property for a shelter-- a 60-acre farm in Erin that already has outbuildings that can easily be converted into rescue kennels. She also plans to create a common living room- type area in each building so that the dogs can spend time together. She intends to name the operation Kiera's Hope in honour of her beloved Alaskan mala- mute that passed away earlier this year at the age of 10. Greenly fondly recalls Kiera as her "mir- acle girl" who survived an adverse vaccine reaction when she was 18 months old that left her badly brain damaged. She defied the predictions made by veterinarians and went on to live a full life. "She proved everybody wrong and taught me so much. She showed me that you never give up. You have a goal and you've got to go get it," Greenly said as she fondly looked By Melanie Hennessey Special to The IFP through pictures of Kiera. As she coped with her grief on the day that Kiera died, Greenly said she happened to see a story on TV about a senior dog that had been dumped by his owner. This was the final push she needed to get the ball rolling on her own dog shelter. "All this dog wanted was love from his fam- ily, and instead they dumped him like he was nothing," she said through tears. "Part of me thinks that Kiera put that on TV to get me mo- tivated and say, 'Mom, you've got to get on this.'" Greenly then launched her contest, based on the premise of another essay contest she heard about where the winner was awarded the Centre Lovell Inn in Maine. The first step was to ensure that her con- test follows the rules laid out in the Criminal Code of Canada, which dictates her home can't be given away by chance and she can't predetermine the winner. Contest entries are mailed to a P.O. box that's accessed by her trustee, who reviews them and blacks out any identifying infor- mation before allowing Greenly to see them. Once she has selected the top 25 essays, they will be forwarded on to a panel of three judg- es for a final decision. Those who enter have the option to write about one of two topics: either why they would love to live in Acton, or why animal rescue is important to them. While she's not revealing how many en- tries have been received so far, Greenly said there are many great submissions, with about 60 per cent of them focused on living in Ac- ton. "They're really heartfelt essays from good, caring people," she said. Contest entries are still being accepted and must be postmarked by Dec. 15. The win- ner will be announced on Jan. 1, 2016. Visit win27parkavenue.com for more in- formation. Greenly also started a crowd-funding page to raise further funds for her shelter. It can be found at www.gofundme.com/tz3bgyk. Cheryle Greenly, pictured with her Alaskan malamutes Easton and Nooka, is giving away her Acton home as the grand prize in an essay contest to raise funds and open a dog shelter. Photo by Melanie Hennessey Simon and Toronto Premium Outlets on Steeles Ave. in Halton Hills are ready to fight breast cancer with 'Think Pink' throughout the month of October. The shopping centre has partnered with the After Breast Cancer Foundation, and all the proceeds from coupon book purchases during the weekend in October will be donated to the After Breast Cancer Foun- dation (www.afterbreastcancer.ca). Also, participating retailers will be donating one 'pink-themed' item for a weekly drawing! Shoppers who purchase a coupon book on Sat- urdays and Sundays throughout the month will receive one entry and a chance to win one of the donated items. 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