Meridian Kiwanis Club of Columbus is asking local residents, and their dogs and cats, to help raise money for local, state and national efforts to reduce infant mortality.
The contest, called “The Coolest Pet in Columbus,” launches at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Upland Columbus Pump House, 148 Lindsey St. The goal of the contest is to raise at least $7,500 for infant mortality initiatives at March of Dimes, Riley Kids and Healthy Communities’ Infant Mortality Prevention Team, said Dick Boyce, Meridian Kiwanis Club of Columbus member.
Representatives from March of Dimes, Riley Kids and Healthy Communities will speak briefly about their organizations at the event, and contest organizers will showcase the contest website for those in attendance, Boyce said.
The contest will be conducted online at gogophotocontest.com/meridiankiwanis. Contestants will go to the website and upload a photo of their cat or dog and write a few brief sentences about why their pet is the coolest pet in Columbus. The contest is only open for dogs and cats, and those entering their pets must be at least 21 years old to participate.
It costs $10 to enter the contest, and contestants receive 10 votes that they can use to vote for their pet or other pets. Members of the public can purchase votes for $1. Voting is done through the contest’s website. The dogs and cats that receive the most votes will be declared winners and their owners will receive prizes.
The dog and cat that gets the most votes will be featured on the label of a special beer glass by Upland Brewing Co. Additionally, the winning pets will be professionally photographed and featured on the websites of White River Broadcasting Company’s radio stations, WCSI, WKKG, WIN 104.9 and 106.1 The River, as well as the websites of Meridian Kiwanis Club of Columbus and other partners.
Second and third-place pets will be featured in a smaller logo on the front label of the Upland Brewing beer glass and also will be featured on White River Broadcasting Company’s radio stations and the websites of Meridian Kiwanis Club of Columbus and other partners. The top pet winners will be honored at the Upland Columbus Pump House on July 18.
“We’re hoping to do two things — have a little fun in terms of putting dog and cat lovers against each other and seeing if they can have a good time promoting their animals, and raising money at the same time,” Boyce said.
The contest was inspired by a similar event held by the Kiwanis Club in Columbus, Ohio last year that raised $54,000 for similar infant mortality initiatives in Ohio, Boyce said.
The infant mortality rate is the ratio of infant deaths per 1,000 live births. For the purposes of calculating the rate, an infant is defined as a baby younger than 1 year old. Researchers and policymakers often consider the infant mortality rate to be a barometer of the overall health of a community.
Indiana has a high infant mortality rate compared to other U.S. states. In 2017, the rate was 7.3 deaths per 1,000 live births — the seventh highest rate in the country. Only Mississippi, Arkansas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Alabama and Tennessee had higher rates. The rate in Indiana was 7.5 in 2000.
The national average was 5.8 deaths per 1,000 live births, which was tied with Serbia for 55th-lowest in the world, according to the Central Intelligence Agency’s World Factbook, which compiles a wide range of data on countries around the world for use by U.S. government officials.
The infant mortality rate in most developed countries in 2017 — such as Japan, Iceland, Sweden, Austria, South Korea, Italy, France, Sweden, among several others — tended to hover at around 2 to 3.5 deaths per 1,000 live births, or approximately two to three times less than the U.S. rate.
“Both the states of Ohio and Indiana have worse infant mortality than many Third World countries,” Boyce said. “This is really what prompted the need to go ahead and come up with a fundraiser to address it. When you’re that remiss when helping young mothers give birth and taking care of them afterwards, you need to come up with something to address it.”
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Visit gogophotocontest.com/meridiankiwanis for more information about the Coolest Pet in Columbus contest.
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