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Awty PAWS Sparks Action

By Vishakha Medha Rao, The Awty International School, School Buzz Reporter | November 20, 2025

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The PAWS Club members at their first meeting! Back row (left to right): Ekta Patel, Peach Cox, Indigo Mouton, Julia Burger, Zola Rodi, Eglantine Leleu-Eponville, Molly Williams, Sarah Irshad. Front row (left to right): Vani Mahajanam, Adrian Vega, Citlalli Cruz, Sydney Goddard, Charlize Chou, Fanny Riba, Anjali Shah, Aanya Ram, Evelyn Park, Clara Cox, Mishaal Khan. (Photo: Zaza Warrender)

Compassion doesn’t just apply to people; it extends beyond to include our four-legged friends too. At Awty, a passionate group of students is stepping up to make a difference by channeling their love for animals into meaningful community action.

PAWS isn’t just a cute name for an animal club; it’s an acronym for the Project for Animal Welfare and Safety. The club’s purpose is to get involved with the Houston community to strive for animal protection by assisting shelters and raising awareness at Awty.

President Fanny Riba, along with Vice President Zaza Warrender, Secretary Anjali Shah, and Treasurer Mishaal Khan, started this club because of a passion that started in middle school. She states that she was part of an Animal Club in middle school, but when its presidents left, the club had died down.

Now, as a high schooler, Fanny is excited to start this club again with a team and partnership with the Houston Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA).

Fanny and the PAWS club have many upcoming events planned! With a stable team of members, the PAWS club plans to form volunteer groups to help out at the Houston SPCA. Fanny is most excited about creating a community of likeminded members with a similar passion for helping animals.

Additionally, the club is planning a bake sale, donation drive, and movie night to raise funds for the club and for the SPCA. They’re also in the process of making club sweaters to represent the PAWS team in action.

But perhaps their biggest upcoming project is making a squirrel nesting house in the Awty Makerspace to give to the SPCA.

With a clear mission and dedicated team, the PAWS club is a rising movement toward compassion housed in the student community of Awty. As they work on creative projects and community outreach, these students are proving that small efforts can make a big difference on the creatures, critters, and in between of the Houston community!