LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A new program helping at-risk children officially launched on Saturday.
Future Healers Got Zoo Buddies, a partnership between Christopher 2X Game Changers and the Louisville Zoo, teaches children about care for animals with the ultimate goal of creating a sensitivity toward animals. The initiative was created to explore the healing and therapeutic power of animals for children experiencing secondary trauma from gun violence.
Twenty children attended the first instructional session at the Louisville Zoo on Saturday morning. The Future Healers Got Zoo Buddies were split into two groups, based on age.
"Little healer buddies" between the ages of 4 to 8 focused on activities about empathy for each other and for animals, while "Big healer buddies" between the ages of 9 to 13 are working on conservative action projects to show how people rely on each other and the planet to help well-being.
All 91 members of the Future Healers program will visit the Louisville Zoo in the future, Christopher 2X said. Malakai Roberts, a child blinded by gunfire in 2020 and member of the Future Healers, will also join the Got Zoo Buddies in the coming meetings.
The Future Healers Got Zoo Buddies program meets monthly, with plans for spring and summer camps in the future. The program is based on the "One Health, One Planet" concept, according to a news release.
2X said the pilot program at the Louisville Zoo is being sent to other zoos across the country, so they could potentially model programming after Game Changers' new initiative.
If you'd like information on how to get your kids involved with Future Healers, contact the Christopher 2X Game Changers organization.
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