BIDDEFORD — A simple act of kindness to help animals has turned into a major artistic undertaking for a Biddeford second-grader and her creations can now be found as far away as Alaska and even overseas in England.

Emma Brennan, 8, has been making elaborate multi-media sculptures made from sand, shells, driftwood and pine cones for the past three years and all of them feature an animal prominently. She sells her multi-media sculptures and then uses the money she raises to purchase food for animals in shelters and other rescue organizations.

Each work takes on average about a week or two to complete.

Her animal artwork endeavors began when her father brought home a large bag filled with small plastic animals.

“My grandma found a rock that was painted and I said why not make things and use the animals,” Emma said. “I wanted to do something nice for all the animals who have been hurt. I wanted to show love for all animals.”

She’s got her own Facebook page where she sells the multi-media sculptures called Emma Brennan’s Rock Message and word is spreading about what she does.

At first, she started out making hundreds of smaller items all inscribed with the message “Love for all Animals, but as she’s gotten older, Emma now focuses on making larger arrangements with themes. Each piece has a base made of sand, held together by glue, and adorned with shells, greenery, paint and an animal figure.

She made one for Jacob Thompson, the young Saco boy who loved penguins before he passed away last year and it included a penguin theme. She also created one for Barbara Bush and left it at Walker’s Point after she learned about the former First Lady’s death, and one to remember the late President George H.W. Bush’s love for animals too.

“I started doing this using fingernail glue, but as these got larger, we switched to using super glue,” she said. “That’s hard to get off your fingers.”

Initially she began taking her multi-media sculptures to businesses and offices and hiding them so others could be surprised when they found them.

“But then somebody found one and told us they didn’t want to hide it,” said Emma’s mother Brittany Backman. “It’s nice for her to know she can give without expecting to receive anything in return.”

Her grandmother, Judy Chambers, takes her to craft stores to purchase the animal figures and then to purchase pet food for donation once the multi-media sculptures have sold.

“Emma loves going shopping and she uses my kitchen table to put these together,” Backman said. “I’m just too proud of her. I take her to the beaches to collect shells and sea glass to use in making them.”

One of Emma’s goat-themed multi-media sculptures made it all the way to Alaska and another is in England, but her multi-media sculptures can also be found in California, Florida, Massachusetts, Arkansas and a lot of other states in between.

Of all of her creations, Emma sad she prefers one called “Noah’s Ark” because it took about three weeks to finish and includes dozens of animal figures.

Not all of her artwork is sold and she often makes pieces to give as gifts to people she admires.

“I gave one to my first-grade teacher and our music teacher at school,” she said. “Many of my classmates tell me that they don’t believe that I do this, but some do and one of the ones I made is at our school.”

According to Emma, she’d like to be a veterinarian some day and work at Biddeford Animal Hospital.

“I’ve learned making these that they make people happier and it’s a way to spread my love for animals,” she said.

— Executive Editor Ed Pierce can be contacted at 780-9013 or editor@journaltribune.com