#1 Goal: Stopping Cruelty
As a hockey player for the Buffalo Sabres, Adam Mair has scored his share of goals on the ice. He's scoring big off the ice too, but with a different goal in mind: preventing cruelty to animals. Mair volunteers at the SPCA Serving Erie County, his local animal shelter. He and his wife talk to kids in the SPCA's Teaching Love and Compassion (TLC) program.

KIND News: How did you get involved with the SPCA Serving Erie County?

Adam Mair: About three years ago, my wife, Alli, and I decided to do something for the community in Buffalo. We're both animal lovers and knew the SPCA would be a great organization to get involved with. We want to make the SPCA and the good things they do better known to the community. The major program we're involved with at the SPCA is Teaching Love and Compassion.

KN: Tell us more about the Teaching Love and Compassion program.

AM: TLC targets inner-city youth between the ages of 11 and 13. Each group of students is bussed in after school for about four weeks. For the first hour of each class, they learn different skills, like leadership, communication, teamwork, and conflict resolution.

In the second hour, they apply what they've learned to working with the dogs at the shelter. They break up into groups of three or four and get to work with the same animal throughout the month. They humanely teach the dogs basic commands like sit and stay. At the end of the month, the students give a presentation on what they've learned.

KN: How do you think TLC helps kids and the community?

AM: It's really good for the kids and the SPCA. When people see the dogs at the shelter working with kids, it makes the dogs more adoptable. It gives the kids something meaningful to do after school. It also helps the SPCA reach communities where there may be problems with animal abuse. If we can help just one kid or one dog, it's worth it.

KN: Do you have any pets?

AM: We have a 3-year-old dog, Hailey, and a cat, Jersey, who's 1. Hailey is an 80-pound retriever and Jersey is a spunky little six-pound cat. They get to chasing each other around and Hailey will just lie down and let Jersey take control. It's so funny to watch because Hailey is about 15 times the size of Jersey!

KN: What do you think kids can learn from pets?

AM: Caring for a pet can teach you life skills you'll need when you grow up. Learning to properly take care of pets teaches responsibility, and training pets takes patience and understanding.