by Nomi Berger
All paws up, way up, for Treats 4 Paws! Now in its third year, this unique, annual October event, created by Christy Riley to honor her late, beloved son Skyler, collects monetary and physical “treats” for carefully selected local animal rescues.
What originated as a word-of-mouth “reverse trick or treat” observance mushroomed into a much-anticipated Facebook page in 2023 with nearly 600 followers and growing daily. Last year, Treats 4 Paws not only raised $1,125.00, it received cat and dog supplies of every description, several hundred pounds of kitten and cat food and treats, and puppy and dog food and treats – all of which were distributed to four rescues and one shelter.
Please visit the official Treats 4 Paws fundraiser Facebook page to like, share and follow this charity event. But most importantly, please consider making a monetary donation or purchasing some of the many items listed there under “Featured.”
As Christy candidly admits, “I enjoy going ‘hard’ for this event. It’s definitely a labor of love, consuming every ounce of my energy and filling two rooms in my house. I especially enjoy doing whatever I can to secure donations of all kinds for local rescue groups. It truly does take a village!”
Quoting The Cat’s Meow Rescue, one of last year’s recipients: “The Treats 4 Paws October donation drive has been a wonderful way to get the community involved in supporting local animal rescue groups including TCMR. Not only does this humanitarian event help provide the kitties in our care with food and essential supplies, the monetary donations collected have helped us to pay our extremely high vet bills.”
Included again this year, The Cat’s Meow Rescue is joined by Regard 4 Life Animal Rescue, Hope for Pets Rescue, Yellow Brick Road Rescue - Longview arm, Animal Protection League and Rosie the Rehabber.
All paws up, way up, for Treats 4 Paws! Now in its third year, this unique, annual October event, created by Christy Riley to honor her late, beloved son Skyler, collects monetary and physical “treats” for carefully selected local animal rescues.
What originated as a word-of-mouth “reverse trick or treat” observance mushroomed into a much-anticipated Facebook page in 2023 with nearly 600 followers and growing daily. Last year, Treats 4 Paws not only raised $1,125.00, it received cat and dog supplies of every description, several hundred pounds of kitten and cat food and treats, and puppy and dog food and treats – all of which were distributed to four rescues and one shelter.
Please visit the official Treats 4 Paws fundraiser Facebook page to like, share and follow this charity event. But most importantly, please consider making a monetary donation or purchasing some of the many items listed there under “Featured.”
As Christy candidly admits, “I enjoy going ‘hard’ for this event. It’s definitely a labor of love, consuming every ounce of my energy and filling two rooms in my house. I especially enjoy doing whatever I can to secure donations of all kinds for local rescue groups. It truly does take a village!”
Quoting The Cat’s Meow Rescue, one of last year’s recipients: “The Treats 4 Paws October donation drive has been a wonderful way to get the community involved in supporting local animal rescue groups including TCMR. Not only does this humanitarian event help provide the kitties in our care with food and essential supplies, the monetary donations collected have helped us to pay our extremely high vet bills.”
Included again this year, The Cat’s Meow Rescue is joined by Regard 4 Life Animal Rescue, Hope for Pets Rescue, Yellow Brick Road Rescue - Longview arm, Animal Protection League and Rosie the Rehabber.
Who, then was Skyler? Born on October 6, 1998 and gone too soon on July 4, 2019, Skyler was the soul of empathy and compassion who was particularly passionate about the fall, holidays and animals. Raised in a pet-loving family with animals of all kinds, he made it his mission as a Cub Scout to take care of them since they couldn’t take care of themselves. He even organized several donation drives to collect pet supplies for the local animal shelter.
A gifted musician, he played drums, piano, guitar and bass, mostly by ear, but he read music as well. Highly intelligent with a wide range of interests, he not only loved the writings and thoughts of such visionaries as Stephen Hawking and Neil deGrasse Tyson, he loved cooking, playing baseball and basketball, swimming and riding four-wheelers.
In 2022, three years after his passing, his mom, who wanted to stay involved in Halloween and missed children stopping by to “trick or treat,” hosted what was then called Christy’s Reverse Trick-or-Treat. Running from October 1 to October 31, the event is devoted to helping animals. She creates a GoFundMe account (the link will be posted on FB the morning of October 1), cleans out several rooms in her house to store the items she receives, festively decorates her yard and sets up a “donation area” at the end of the walkway.
She accepts cash, all animal-appropriate items, gift cards and deliveries from Amazon, Chewy and Walmart, to name a few. Her “event” address this year is Treats 4 Paws, 104 Larkspur Street, White Oak, TX 75693. On weekdays Christy, who works outside the home, will check the donation box in the morning, at 6PM when she returns, before going to bed, and as needed over the weekend. (In case of inclement weather, she asks that donors message her on the FB page to ensure she’s home beforehand).
She will faithfully photograph and meticulously record everything she receives and post the exciting results, along with her appreciative “thank you’s” on the Treats 4 Paws FB page and two other social media platforms daily throughout October. She will close the GoFundMe account and remove the designated donation area on November 1.
The grand finale: All of the money and donations will then be distributed among 2024’s six extremely fortunate and exceptionally grateful animal organizations!
As for 2025? Stay tuned.
A gifted musician, he played drums, piano, guitar and bass, mostly by ear, but he read music as well. Highly intelligent with a wide range of interests, he not only loved the writings and thoughts of such visionaries as Stephen Hawking and Neil deGrasse Tyson, he loved cooking, playing baseball and basketball, swimming and riding four-wheelers.
In 2022, three years after his passing, his mom, who wanted to stay involved in Halloween and missed children stopping by to “trick or treat,” hosted what was then called Christy’s Reverse Trick-or-Treat. Running from October 1 to October 31, the event is devoted to helping animals. She creates a GoFundMe account (the link will be posted on FB the morning of October 1), cleans out several rooms in her house to store the items she receives, festively decorates her yard and sets up a “donation area” at the end of the walkway.
She accepts cash, all animal-appropriate items, gift cards and deliveries from Amazon, Chewy and Walmart, to name a few. Her “event” address this year is Treats 4 Paws, 104 Larkspur Street, White Oak, TX 75693. On weekdays Christy, who works outside the home, will check the donation box in the morning, at 6PM when she returns, before going to bed, and as needed over the weekend. (In case of inclement weather, she asks that donors message her on the FB page to ensure she’s home beforehand).
She will faithfully photograph and meticulously record everything she receives and post the exciting results, along with her appreciative “thank you’s” on the Treats 4 Paws FB page and two other social media platforms daily throughout October. She will close the GoFundMe account and remove the designated donation area on November 1.
The grand finale: All of the money and donations will then be distributed among 2024’s six extremely fortunate and exceptionally grateful animal organizations!
As for 2025? Stay tuned.
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