Students at West Ranch High School are participating in a heartwarming initiative that combines fitness with philanthropy. Amber Frias reports for the NBC4 News at 3 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 16, 2024.
Student athletes from the Santa Clarita Valley using their athletic skills to help shelter dogs in Castaic and to promote their adoption via social media.
Track and field athletes at West Ranch High School in Stevenson Ranch have been supporting the “Run with Dogs” initiative since their coach Karen Cirricione started the campaign this year.
As the high school runners hit the trail for their morning run, they run alongside shelter dogs that are ready for adoption from the Castaic Animal Care Center. Then the teens share the information and/or pictures of dogs they ran with.
“They're great runners, great athletes. They're also good with social media, so I thought, let's bring that together,” the cross county coach at West Ranch High School said.
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Based on their interactions with the dogs, the student volunteers write what they know about the animals on social media, and their posts are often shared dozens, if not hundreds, of times.
“ I don't have a dog of my own so I don't necessarily know what it's like but it was really nice to have that bond with the dogs running with each other,” Braulio Castillo, a West Ranch High junior who volunteers for the program said.
The “Run with Dogs” initiative held three events, and Cirricione said he hopes to host more.
“I hope this event is shown as many times as possible, shared as many times as possible, to help clear the Castaic shelter.”
