{"id":63750,"date":"2026-04-14T10:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T13:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thelaker.ca\/?p=63750"},"modified":"2026-04-14T10:30:00","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T13:30:00","slug":"puppies-people-power-fundraiser-success-in-elmsdale","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/?p=63750","title":{"rendered":"Puppies, people power fundraiser success in Elmsdale"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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ELMSDALE:<\/strong> Who knew that puppies and moving together could make a meaningful difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That was the case Saturday as a tail-wagging good time turned into meaningful support for local rescue efforts as a unique fitness fundraiser brought the community together in the Elmsdale Business Park.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMobility with Puppies\u201d sessions held at Flex Fit Elmsdale raised $1,500 total in support of South Paw Conservation Association\u2014this includes matching by both the gym and sponsor Cooperators Irving Investments, thanks to Glynn Irving.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Cuteness overload. (Healey photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

The initiative was spearheaded by South Paw volunteer and Flex Fit member Lauren Nickerson, who said the turnout was inspiring.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really heartwarming to see,\u201d she said, noting the rescue is currently dealing with mounting veterinary bills, including surgeries that can cost between $6,000 and $8,000, along with ongoing care for foster animals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnything that we can do to help lessen that load is great.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The idea for the class came about organically during a mobility session last fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe were just kind of sitting there and I said, \u2018this would be so much better with puppies,\u2019\u201d Nickerson said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With support from instructor Christina and gym owner Owen Myers, the concept quickly took off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An initial round of classes in December raised just over $1,000, paving the way for this weekend\u2019s expanded effort.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saturday\u2019s sessions featured adoptable puppies\u2014including Chompa, Tia, Tamara and Emaline\u2014giving participants both a workout and the chance to connect with dogs looking for forever homes.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Puppy love at the puppy mobility session at Flex Fit. (Healey photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

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Nickerson said the event reflects the gym\u2019s deeper focus on connection.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis gym is all about community. It\u2019s not even just physical strength,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s building a strong community of people as well,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She added her thanks to Flex Fit, the instructor, sponsor, and everyone who came out to support the cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With strong community backing and plenty of puppy energy, the fundraiser proved a simple idea can go a long way in helping animals in need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Lauren Nickerson is in puppy love. (Healey photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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ELMSDALE: Who knew that puppies and moving together could make a meaningful difference. That was the case Saturday as a tail-wagging good time turned into meaningful support for local rescue efforts as a unique fitness fundraiser brought the community together in the Elmsdale Business Park. \u201cMobility with Puppies\u201d sessions held at Flex Fit Elmsdale raised […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":63811,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[965,957],"tags":[233,10786,196,986,10787,10788,10789,10790,10791,165],"class_list":["post-63750","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-east-hants","category-news","tag-community","tag-cooperators","tag-east-hants","tag-elmsdale","tag-exercise","tag-flex-fit","tag-puppies","tag-puppy-mobility","tag-south-paw-conservation-association","tag-yoga"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63750","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=63750"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/63750\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/63811"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=63750"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=63750"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/staging-z.thelaker.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=63750"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}