Friday, February 25, 2011

Sanctuary Update

The Claire Foundation Animal Sanctuary
All Heart in the Heartland
2011 Update for Our Friends and Supporters

2010 was a challenging year, but a beautiful one. We not only helped rescue and place a lot of animals, we gave Sanctuary to many more, too. Like the feral kittens we nursed and raised, and who now reside in the barn with all the other ferals.

Like Duck and Miss, whose owner passed away and left two deaf and blind 11 year old dogs that no one wanted.

We took in more abandoned housecats, and helped people who lost their homes due to foreclosure to find a place for their animals, even when we couldn’t take them because we were overcrowded. Part of our mission is free coaching for people with any kind of animal issues, and we take many calls per week and spend many hours supporting people and their animals in this way… more this year than ever before.

The animals here at the Sanctuary are never in cages… we live in an atmosphere of home, where everybody learns to get along.

Thornton, a huge Golden/Hound mix was rescued at about 2 months of age. He lived here at the Sanctuary for over three years, until he found his forever home with one of our Board members. He and Pushkin, a rescued cat who loves to snuggle with Thornton, went to their new home together. After 4 months, reports are that they are amazingly happy and well-adjusted in their new home.

We would also love to find a home for the super-loveable Honey-Bunny, a Sheltie/Corgi mix. She came to us from an abusive situation, and was quite shy at first… but over the past two years she has been here, she has really come out of her shell. She loves the cats, loves children, and is very social with other dogs. She is approximately three years old now, and has a lot of good loving to offer the right home.

Bella is the newest rescue member of the Sanctuary… a year-old boxer/shepherd mix. What a delight she is, fun-loving, great with children and cats and other dogs. We’re working on the chewing thing… and her love of using those paws like a boxer. But she is so smart that she learns everything amazingly quickly. She wants to please!

These are only a few of the stories… there are so many (over 40 animals reside here now), and so many more needing our help. Your support is what enables us to fulfill our mission of offering Sanctuary to as many animals as possible, and helping others to do the same.

This year, we hope to buy a used tractor to keep the horse pastures mowed and harrowed, to put in more dog fencing and dog doors, and to put in a new shed home with apartments for the ‘anti-social’ cats to have somewhere to call their own. And most of all, we hope like crazy for a large bequest to pay off the farm and put it in trust for the Sanctuary! We will be getting more attention this year, since our Sanctuary is being featured in a new book about animal sanctuaries. We’ll keep you posted about the publication date.

Whatever level of support you give, it is appreciated. We send you and your animal friends a big hello and heart-felt thank you!

The Claire Foundation Animal Sanctuary
http://www.clairefoundation.org/donate.htm

Thank you! You can also mail your contributions to:

The Claire Foundation Animal Sanctuary
4955 London Road

Farmington, MO 63640

Contact us: 573-760-0984
E-mail us

Blessings...
Mary Alberici

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Riding the Waves

Making ends meet in a non-profit these days is like riding the ocean waves... on a quiet day, the steady waves are easily and pleasurably navigated even by children.  But there are times when the waves are so big that they threaten to engulf you... unless you learn to surf, and ride the waves home.

Well, economically the waves this past year have been huge.  Somehow we've learned to surf!  Even in the months when it looked like there was no way, somehow we've come through.  Riding the waves is not as fun as it sounds... it's downright scary when you don't know exactly where the next dollar is coming from.  But we are making it!  And a lot of thanks goes to organizations like The Katy Favre Foundation, and the Rainbow Ranch, whose support and donations have helped immeasurably in 2010.

So now, in 2011, we are optimistic that the waves will die down, and we can float on our backs a bit more... perhaps even have the funds to buy the new tractor and the new dog fencing and dog doors that we need, or even a big bequest that would pay off the mortgage and put the land in trust for the animals, in perpetuity.  Now THAT would be something! 

Maybe the waves we'll be riding this year will be waves of big dreams that really do come true! In the meantime, with your help, we'll continue to ride the waves that come.