Mother’s Nightmare Inspires Daughter’s Animal Love Legacy

Catherine Hubbard used to chase butterflies, trying to catch them before they flew away.  Then, she had an epiphany. Catherine decided she would stop chasing butterflies and just sit still, allowing them to come to her. She whispered to each one when they arrived “tell your friends that I am kind”, so more would pay her a visit. Catherine was six years old.

Catherine is no longer with us, as she was a school shooting victim on December 14, 2012, when a lone gunman entered Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.  Her mother, Jennifer Hubbard, wants something good to come from this horrific life-changing nightmare.

At the tender age of six, Catherine so very much loved animals that she had business cards made which read “Catherine’s Animal Shelter”; her chosen title was “Care Taker”. Catherine loved her dog and her rabbit and she dreamed of having a place for animals to come together and be loved and cared for.

Her dream is about to come true, and this is where Fidose of Reality readers can get involved.

Sanctuary

The Catherine Violet Hubbard Animal Sanctuary will open later this year. It will stand on a 32-acre plot of state park land. Animals will live at the sanctuary, be cared for, and children will visit to learn about ane interact with the animals. Little Catherine’s dream will come to fruition.

The journey to bring this plot of land to a realized dream is not an easy one, but through the “Tell Them I Am Kind” documentary, the public can share in and honor the memory and mission of little Catherine, tragically taken from us way too soon.

 Documentary and How You Can Help

This documentary is scheduled to air on Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) around June of 2015,  and they do anticipate national exposure, as well. There are several ways you can help. Donations can be made through CPTV and will receive a tax deduction. Donors can give through an Indiegogo page:  Tell Them I am Kind Kickstarter

or

Through the webpage: Tell Them I am Kind

The co-executive producers changed the air date to stay up to date with the story of the building of the sanctuary.  Having the land transferred from the state was a huge undertaking and took longer than anyone would have expected.   But that’s part of making a documentary like this: anything can change at a moment’s notice.

“It’s our hope, and the Hubbard’s hope,” said Judy Plavnick, Co-Executive Producer, ” that everything goes smoothly and that the groundbreaking happens by the end of the year. ”

 Dream Team

Co-executive producers of the “Tell Them I Was Kind” documentary include Dr. Katy J. Nelson, whom I had the pleasure of meeting recently and appearing on her weekly pet show in the Washington D.C. area. Dr. Katy is a certified veterinary journalist and emergency vet. She contributes to all-news radio and blogs for the WTOP website.

Judy Plavnick is a five-time Emmy award winning producer with over twenty years of production experience at broadcast networks including NBC, ESPN, Discovery Networks, PBS, NFL Films and Fox.

 In Her Own Words

 Here’s Dr. Katy explaining the project and why it’s so important to have this documentary made. Scroll to position 24:30 to listen in:

Links to Donate and Learn More

Donors can give through an Indiegogo  page:  Tell Them I am Kind Kickstarter

or

Through the webpage: Tell Them I am Kind