Holmdel Boy Asks for Animal Shelter Donations for Past 7 Birthdays

HOLMDEL, NJ - Lincoln Maikos is nine years old, and a third grader at the Village School in Holmdel. And for the past seven years, this young man has asked his Holmdel classmates to donate to local animal shelters instead of giving him birthday gifts.

"We started asking for donations for the shelter for Lincoln's first birthday," said his mother, Patricia Teffenhart. "On his second and third birthdays, he received gifts. For every other birthday, he asked the friends attending his party to bring donations to the shelter."

The shelter she's referring to is Second Chance for Animals, a rescue group that works with Franklin Township Animal Shelter in Somerset County.

"As his parents, we still give him gifts, but the 20-25 kids who attend his party annually all bring donations for the shelter," said Teffenhart. "Donations range from cash, gift cards, cleaning supplies, blankets, toys, food, etc. Everyone is incredibly generous and most families report that their children were really excited to shop for the animals and put a lot of thought into their purchases."

This year, local Holmdel kids gave Lincoln enough toys and dog food to fill up the back of his mom's SUV, which she will drive out to Somerset County to drop off the donations. Lincoln chose Second Chance for Animals because that's where the family got his first dog, a rescue Rottweiler with "special" legs. Specialists believe that Jeter (Lincoln is a Yankees fan) was a bait dog in a dog-fighting ring in NYC and that she was kept in a cage that was too small for her as she was growing. Her legs were bow-legged, which meant she could run and walk, but tired easily. Jeter passed away in 2013, but Lincoln still chooses to show his appreciation by donating in her memory.

Attached is a picture of Lincoln and his new rescue dog, Shortstop, with the donation gifts he received for his birthday this year. Nice job, Lincoln, and all his Holmdel friends who donated!