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Helping animals aim of Wishful Thinking website

Belcarra youth fundraising for tools for wildlife rehabilitation agency, animal shelter and Mossom hatchery
Animal website
Griffin Andersen (lower left) with other Mossom Creek Hatchery volunteers — Kyle Pilon, Kevin Ryan and Mel Steenson — cleans out out a water intake tank. Andersen has started a website (www.wishfulthinking.community) to connect donors with local charities dedicated to the welfare of pets and wildlife.

When he was a curly-haired child, Griffin Andersen was always game to help Mossom Creek Hatchery with odd jobs or to fundraise when its building burned down.

Now a Grade 11 student, the Belcarra resident hopes to help in an even bigger way with a new website called Wishful Thinking (www.wishfulthinking.community) that aims to generate donations of tools and cash for agencies that support animals and wildlife.

“When I started this project, I wanted to give back to groups I’ve admired and known about for years,” said Anderson told The Tri-City News.

An avid environmentalist who hopes to have a future in biology or other sciences, he chose Mossom Creek Hatchery in Port Moody, the Coquitlam Animal Shelter and the Wildlife Rescue Association in Burnaby as his charities.

With the website he launched earlier this month, Anderson describes the efforts of the non-profits and posts the “wish lists” of each group to aid them in obtaining necessary equipment or food for animals. He also describes his connection to the group and why it’s important that people support them.

“This is something I decided to do on my own,” said Andersen, 16, who attends Burnaby Mountain and is a competitive swimmer with the Simon Fraser Aquatics.

He has been campaigning for support, and obtained tools from the Sasamat Volunteer Fire Department, a gift certificate for tools from the Home Depot and is hoping to hear good news from the Lee Valley Tools donation committee.

If there is any excess equipment that Mossom can’t use, he plans to donate it to nearby Noons Creek Hatchery.

It all adds up to a good deed to help creatures that can’t speak for themselves, and Anderson said he hopes his own small contribution can make a difference.