Maui Woman Wins $10,000 Petco Grant for Maui Humane Society

Maui resident Josephine Tempongko’s was selected as a winner for the Petco Foundation’s 2018 Holiday Wishes campaign, earning the Maui Humane Society a $10,000 grant.

For a chance to win the Maui Humane Society a grant, Josephine Tempongko submitted a story about how her dog Dottie helped Josephine’s family get through a harrowing ordeal after the birth of their son.

Complications arose after the birth of Josephine Tempongko’s son, Wally. The newborn, accompanied by Josephine’s husband, was airlifted to another Hawaiian island more equipped to deal with his life-threatening bacterial meningitis.

Josephine, who suffered from delivery complications of her own, was left on Maui to worry endlessly as she tried to recover. The turning point was when her neighbor brought her beloved dog Dottie to visit in the hospital.

“I don’t know if I fully realized just how important Dottie was to me until the moment I saw her running toward my wheelchair, her whole body shaking with excitement. I cannot describe the joy and relief I felt. I sobbed while she licked my tears away. She healed me in a way no hospital ever could. Being able to hold her again gave me strength and comfort and my condition started to improve.”

Soon Josephine was reunited with her newborn son and today the family is healthy and happy, with Dottie by their side.

This year, the Petco Foundation announced 51 Holiday Wishes grant recipients from across the country for a total of $755,000 in grant awards to support the year-round lifesaving efforts of these animal welfare organizations.

The public can help make even more Holiday Wishes come true by voting for their favorite Holiday Wishes story at www.petcofoundation.org/holidaywishes. From now until Dec. 19, 2018, the “People’s Choice Award” will allow animal lovers to vote for their favorite winning story and give the top five organizations the chance to receive additional grant funding from $5,000 to $25,000. Results of “The People’s Choice Award” will be revealed before Christmas.