Central Texas girl passes on birthday presents, asks for pet food and gets it--lots of it

WACO, Texas (KWTX) – A young Central Texas girl decided to forego birthday presents this year and instead asked for food donations for animals at the Humane Society of Central Texas.

Leighton Kyle, a second grader at Robinson Elementary School, was able to drop off around 200 pounds of food at the shelter to celebrate her birthday on Jan. 25.

“I got food, cat food and dog food for my birthday party, because I have three dogs and one cat, and I really care about them and it was sad to see that the animals at the animal shelter didn’t have that much care,” Leighton said.

Friends and family members answered the call dropping off bags of kitten and cat food and puppy and dog food.

Leighton’s mom, Amy, says she was proud of her daughter’s decision.

“We are so proud of her selflessness,” Amy said.

“She’s a tough one so for her to come up with this without any push for us, just to give because she felt like it was the right thing to do, we are so proud. "

Amy and her husband Jeff, a Marine Corps veteran whose brother was the late U.S. Navy Seal Chris Kyle, founded American Valor, a Kyle Family Foundation dedicated to supporting veterans and first responders and their families.

The proud parents say it has been wonderful thing to see their children following in their footsteps of giving back.

“We spent all of our free time attempting to give to those less fortunate,” Amy said.

“So, to see that same drive in her is really just awe inspiring.”

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