On December 16, 17, 22, 23, and 24, the MaxFund, an animal shelter in Denver, will be wrapping gifts at the Southwest Plaza Borders store. Volunteers will wrap any Borders merchandise all day long on each of these days in turn for donations to the shelter.

What makes the MaxFund unique is that it is a true no-kill shelter. Despite the costs and difficulties it incurs, the MaxFund never puts any of its animals down, no matter how long they've been living at the shelter. The Executive Director of MaxFund, Nanci Suro, is devoted to making sure that each and every animal MaxFund takes in fully recovers from injuries and is placed in a loving adoptive home.

MaxFund has many "tails" of success to share. One such story is that of Molly Dharma, a two and a half year-old dog who came to MaxFund over two years ago.

Molly had been previously abused, so she had quite an unruly temperament when MaxFund first took her in. She would growl and jump at strangers and other dogs; her actions were always unpredictable. This behavior scared away many potential adopters, but Molly did manage to get adopted on four occasions, after all four of which she was quickly sent back to MaxFund.

Recently, though, Molly received the miracle she needed. A man by the name of Kirk Zimmerman took Molly in and he still hasn't given up on her. Zimmerman has been forced to work very hard to socialize Molly and adjust her to a new home. However, through his unconditional love and patience, Zimmerman has helped Molly become more trusting and even make friends with both people and dogs.

Since its opening in 1988, the MaxFund has helped more than 15,000 animals, providing necessary medical care for injuries and placing them in loving homes. According to The Humane Society of The United States, shelters perform euthanasia on about three to four million animals every year. Although the MaxFund can't save all these animals from death, it does save quite a few. MaxFund can help the animals it takes in even more with every donation it receives, particularly around this holiday season.

Hannah Smith is a freshman at Bear Creek High School and enjoys spending time with animals, volunteering and playing the violin.