Local political candidates rally together for a good cause

AMORY, Miss. (WCBI)- Monroe County political candidates and a few state-wide candidates rallied together for more than just their personal campaigns Saturday morning in Amory.

The event is called “Paws for Politics,” and in addition to having time on stage, the candidates helped to raise money for the Amory Humane Society.

When Butch Palmer thought of the idea for “Paws for Politics,” he wanted an event aimed at educating people on local politics, as well as informing them on a dire need in the community– the local humane society.

“We knew it was a big political season, and we’ve got a lot of state races and local races going on, so the idea was for them to pay to get on stage and we’ve got some silent auction items out there,” said Palmer.

Attendee Philip Lindsey owns “Healing Horses” ranch in Amory and said he has a soft spot for any animal in need.

“My heart goes out to any animals left and neglected in an abused situation where they’re hungry. In this heat where it’s just unbelievable what a lot of animals are going through right now,” said Lindsey.

He said when he first heard about the event, he knew he had to be there.

“This is something that I think would bring awareness to people and help people understand more about what they need to do to take care of their animals in a proper way,” said Lindsey.

In addition to seeing political candidates face-to-face, he said it’s nice to know they too share his love of animals.

“It’s an encouragement to me to see that these candidates will not only come out and support the Amory Humane Society but also take this opportunity to educate people about the decisions they need to make about truth and justice,” said Lindsey.

Event coordinators said stray animals are a big issue in Amory, and they hope the event will bring more awareness to that.

“There still is a population control problem with animals in Monroe County, but as Mitzi can tell you, the rescues that are done locally are well taken care of and they’re loved. They find forever homes for them,” said Palmer.

Although many attendees had never heard of an event quite like this before, they said they’re open to having more like it.

“Not only does the Amory Humane Society care about animals, they care about people. They care about how people can learn and how people can grow and how we can do all of this together,” said Lindsey.

For more information on the Amory Humane Society, click here.