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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
Contact: Elizabeth Mullen |
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ONE CATHEDRAL, TWO BLESSING OF THE ANIMALS Cathedral Clergy Bless Animals in a D.C. shelter at 11 am;
WASHINGTON, D.C. — In celebration of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, Washington National Cathedral will participate in two Blessing of the Animals events on Thursday, October 4. For those animals who are housed in a local shelter, Cathedral senior clergy will travel to Washington Animal Rescue League (WARL) to bless adoptable dogs, cats, puppies and kittens. Canons Carol Wade, Eugene Sutton and Christie Olsen will also bless injured and sick animals in WARL’s medical facility. The WARL blessing takes place from 11 am–noon at WARL, 71 Oglethorpe Street, N.W. Beginning at 5 pm, adoptable dogs from WARL and Washington Humane Society will be on Cathedral grounds with representatives from both organizations. The public and their pets are welcome to meet the dogs and attend the Annual Blessing of the Animals service which occurs on the west front steps of the Cathedral beginning at 6:15 pm. Individual blessings of each animal follow. Special escorts of homeless dogs during the evening blessing include U.S. Congressmen Rep. Tom Lantos (D-CA) and Rep. Ed Whitfield (R-KY), both members of the Congressional Friends of the Animal Caucus, a bi-partisan group dedicated to the advancement of animal protection legislation. # # # | |