Authors for Catherine's Dream!

Catherine Hubbard

I have a confession to make: I am a dedicated People Magazine reader. Yes, it's my guilty pleasure.
One day a couple of months ago, I was indulging in my guilty pleasure when I came across an article spotlighting nine families who had lost children in the Sandy Hook Elementary shooting and how they are coping with this unimaginable loss.

One of those children was a beautiful little red haired girl named Catherine Violet Hubbard. Although she was only six years old, Catherine was a passionate animal lover. Her parents said, "She loved all animals. She would chase down strangers just to pet their dogs, squeal with delight as  butterflies landed on her arm, and sit for hours watching baby birds in a nest."

It was Catherine's dream to one day have her own animal sanctuary in Newtown where homeless animals could feel loved and safe. She even had a little business card she'd hand out that read Catherine's Animal Shelter and included her self-appointed title of Care Taker. Tragically, her life was cut short.


But not her dream. The Animal Center in Newtown, in partnership with Catherine's parents, have set up a fund for the Catherine Violet Hubbard Sanctuary, becoming the "Care Taker" of her dream. Although they've raised quite a bit of money, they have a ways to go before they can realize Catherine's dream.

I don't know about you, but I have felt so helpless and frustrated since the Sandy Hook shooting. I want so much to see things change, to feel that something positive could come out of this. When I read about little Catherine, I thought here's something I can do. 

Thus the idea for "Authors for Catherine's Dream" was born. Now, it would have been easy just to write a check and make a donation to the sanctuary fund, but no, I wanted to give as many people as possible to be a part of this. So here's what's happening:

 June 3rd through June 16th, I will be auctioning off hardback books signed by over 30 AMAZING authors! Thanks to the contacts I've made over the last two years from Fido and Friend in Five, people were eager to get on board and help Catherine's dream. Did I mention these are amazing authors? You tell me: Patricia MacLachlan, Sharon Creech, Kathi Appelt, Cynthia Lord, W. Bruce Cameron, Joan Bauer, Sarah Zarr, Clare Vanderpool, Katherine Erskine, Arthur A. Levine, Lin Oliver, Anita Silvey and many others! I have three in particular that are going to knock your socks off! Every day during that period, I'll post a pack of books you can bid on, and I'll also be posting what the top bids

are for each book. You'll be able to bid on ALL the books until midnight on the 16th. You can read more about how this works on my website link. ALL MONEY RAISED WILL GO DIRECTLY TO THE CATHERINE VIOLET HUBBARD SANCTUARY FUND!

Even if you're not a collector of books signed by the author like I am, these books would make great gift to the book lover in your life or to your local public or school library. Imagine having a signed copy of Sarah, Plain and Tall! And more importantly, imagine being a part of making one child's dream

come true...

So mark your calendar, watch for daily postings on Facebook, Twitter and the website, and bid! And if you really don't need or want a signed book but still want to help, you can donate to the Catherine Violet Hubbard Sanctuary here. Your donation will be tax deductible. We can all be "Care Takers" of Catherine's dream.