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There was a rural shelter in northern Maine that was very overwhelmed with the amount of unwanted animals they had. Their capacity was 50 and they had over 120. They had limited resources and were even struggling to keep the heat on. My friend and I started taking monthly trip up there, handing off supplies and bringing home as many animals as we could fit in our car. ⁠⠀
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On one of these trips, we asked to see the leukemia room. I knew it would be hard, but I had no idea what I was in for. They took us upstairs into a really small room which housed 12 cats with feline leukemia (feluk). Cats with feluk can live perfectly healthy lives, but don’t usually live past 6 years old. It is an immediate death sentence at most shelters, but the ones who try to help them don’t really know what to do with them and they never get adopted so they end up being warehoused in a cage their entire short lives. ⁠⠀
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These cats were desperate for attention. There was only one volunteer who would go in the room because everyone else thought it was too sad. As soon as I entered the room, a grey cat climbed up my legs and hugged me around the neck and refused to let go. I held him for as long as I could and then it took two people to get him off me. He had been in that room for several years. ⁠⠀
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I couldn’t get him out of my head. What kind of a life was that? I wanted him to be a part of a family. Our family. I asked my husband who adamantly said NO. So, I called the shelter and said “Of course, we would love to adopt him.” ⁠⠀
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Bruiser has so many health issues, I didn’t think he would live more than a week. He was FIV and feluk positive and was even diagnosed with epilepsy! He takes phenobarbital twice a day to control his seizures and he get a B12 injection every 2 weeks. But with all that he has been through, he is a happy boy and has nothing but LOVE to give. He gets lavished with gifts because, I don’t know how much time I will get with him. My kids are amazingly compassionate with him and the resilience of animals never ceases to amaze me. #bucketlistchristmas⁠

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Once I moved back to the States, I opened the first International Animal Rescue office in America. It was a really exciting time, but what I didn’t expect was the amount of phone calls I got each day about local strays. I was just doing development- not running a shelter. But the calls kept coming and I hated that helpless feeling. How could I sit at a desk when I know there is a box of kittens sitting in a snow bank??? So of course I ran out and picked them up. ⁠⠀
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My husband became increasingly annoyed that there were animals running all over the house and an injured pigeon sitting on his laptop. ⁠⠀
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I remember the days when our local shelter was just “the pound” and animals had numbers, not names. They kept the dogs in the dark so they didn’t bark too much. There were small no-kill groups but they were always full. And visiting the shelter would rip your heart out. The line of people was out the door… all wanting to give up animals or turn in strays they found. ⁠⠀
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On one visit, I came home with a mail tray containing a mom cat nursing her newborn babies. The woman who found them had been turned away and she didn’t know what to do. It was overwhelming.⁠⠀
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There was one day that I was just so frustrated with the whole situation, I was in tears. I was in my garage and a lightbulb went on. I ran to my husband and asked if I could turn the garage into a shelter. “Will that mean you will stop bringing animals into the house?” I nodded. “We start building tomorrow.” ⁠⠀
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Within a few weeks, we had it completed and it was approved by the state. It is like a halfway house for stray animals. A place where they can heal before going up for adoption. That little room now has over 100 cats, puppies, and injured animals going through it’s doors each year. Helping animals has always been, and always will be my PASSION. #bucketlistchristmas⁠⠀

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When Hurricane Sandy hit the Northeast, our house was hit by several large trees. We had some damage, but nothing compared to what happened to Long Island, NY. There was an amazing response for the people, but many shelters don't allow animals. Many people were forced to give up their pets. Since people were busy trying to rebuild their lives, they certainly weren't in the market for adopting new pets. Therefore, the local animal shelters were bursting at the seams. They had no power and o supplies. ⁠⠀
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I put our a plea for donations on social media and when I looked out my window the following morning, I burst into tears. There were cars coming one after another dropping off bags of food, water bottles and warm beds. It completely restored my faith in humanity. I had to borrow a friends minivan to fit it all. ⁠⠀
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Driving into the wreckage was like nothing I have ever seen. It was like the apocalypse. I knocked at the door of a shelter and a surprised woman came to greet me. I opened the van door and tears instantly streamed down her cheeks. Nobody had come to help them. They had no heat, no power and were running out of supplies. There were bird cages on all of their office desks as they couldn't even fit all of the surrendered pets. The dogs snuggled right into their fuzzy beds, happy to get off of the cold cement floor. ⁠⠀
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I drove to as many shelters as I could until all of the supplies were gone. Once the car was empty, it only made sense to fill it back up with homeless animals! So I fit in whoever I could and brought them back to the many local shelter who very willingly opened their doors to those in need. There were so many people that came together to help and it is so important to always be in SERVICE to others.⁠⠀
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“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, "Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” -Mr. Rogers⁠⠀
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#bucketlistchristmas

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Our organization had a small primate project on the island of Java, when our vet was called to treat a sick orangutan in Borneo. ⁠⠀
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The area had been heavily logged and much of the forest has given way to palm oil plantations. As a result orangutans have been forced out of their forest home and roam the plantations, searching in vain for food and shelter. Young orangutans are often caught by plantation workers and sold to locals as pets, while adults are brutally killed or left to starve to death. Those that are kept alive endure terrible conditions. ⁠⠀
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Our vet found Jojo chained up on pallets over open sewers, disease-ridden and starving, with no one to give him suitable food or veterinary care. Karmele called the other groups helping orangutans but they were at capacity and couldn’t help. Even if they had room, the laws do not allow the transport of orangutans from Indonesian Borneo to Malaysian Borneo. With tears in her eyes, Karmele had to put the shackles back on Jojo’s wrist and leave him there. Our CEO, Alan Knight, immediately flew to Indonesia to form a plan and get Jojo to safety. ⁠⠀
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Jojo is doing very well thanks to the dedication of our vet team, although he still suffers from atrophy and rickets from being chained in that position for over 10 years. Jojo is a perfect example of what happens to orangutans after they are no longer cute and cuddly pets, as there are so many others in the same situation as him. ⁠⠀
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Jojo was the start of our orangutan project, as we learned the plight of these animals and it was suffering we could not turn our backs to. Just a year after opening the Orangutan Rescue and Rehabilitation Center, we had over 100 orphaned babies in our care. ⁠⠀
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Jojo is almost unrecognizable today. He had grown into a healthy adult male with big cheek pads and remains an ambassador of our organization. ⁠⠀
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Orangutans are on the brink of extinction. They have just been classified as critically endangered. If we don't act now, it will be too late. International Animal Rescue doesn't just take in these animals, we also work to preserve the last of their remaining habitat. CONSERVATION is their only hope. ⁠⠀
#bucketlistchristmas⁠⠀

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This is the actual moment I fell in love with traveling. Sitting on the beach in Ometepe, with the sun setting behind a giant volcano. It is such an old photo, but it brings me right back. I was studying to become a primatologist and wanted to follow in Jane Goodall's footsteps. I would spend 8 hours a day hiking through the volcano in search of the troop of howlers I was observing. It was a magical time and an eye opening time. This experience put me on a new life path towards helping animals in developing countries. ⁠⠀
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Towards the end of our time in Nicaragua, we decided as a group that we wanted to not only climb the dormant volcano, but also belay into the crater. We hired a local guide to help machete our way since it wasn't a well worn trail. We crossed through the cloud forest, which literally looked like the dagobah system (Star Wars fans???) We made it, but things got interesting on the way down when a storm came through. Have you ever been in the clouds during a lighting storm? Not fun. ⁠⠀
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It was insane and really dangerous. There were places where we would be trapped on a cliff and say "ok, jump to that branch and swing yourself over that ravine." The torrential rain turned our trail into a mudslide and as our legs turned to jello after the hours of hiking, we would fall and just keep sliding. It was like a scene out of Romancing the Stone. At one point our guide got frustrated with us and left because the sun was going down and he said we would be camping there for the night. We made it out about 8 hours later covered with mud from head to toe. Needless to say, we were the last group of students that were ever allowed to summit the volcano.⁠⠀
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With three kiddos of my own, our trips look a little different these days... but you can find ADVENTURE in your own backyard. #bucketlistchristmas

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Every since I was a little girl, I wanted to work with animals. I studied Wildlife Conservation in college, but after I graduated, I couldn't figure out what to do with my life. One day, a friend handed me a DVD about dancing bears and that 10 minute video changed the course of my life. ⁠⠀
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Endangered sloth bears were being poached from the wild and trained in extremely cruel ways to make them perform for tourists. I was determined to help them. I quit my job and moved to India where I lived at the bear sanctuary. ⁠⠀
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The most amazing part of the project is that they don't just take the bears away from the people with a slap to the wrist. We realized early on that they would just go poach another bear and perpetuate the problem, so we took a comprehensive approach. ⁠⠀
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When a gypsy voluntarily surrendered a bear to the sanctuary, they could use our alternative livelihood project. We started a sewing school so they could sell rugs and blankets and earn more money than dancing a bear. Part of the agreement was that their children attend school, which was also set up by the charity. These kids never had an opportunity to get an education and now we have kids going off to college. It was so successful, that people were camping at the gate and we couldn't take the bears in fast enough. ⁠⠀
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I thought I would spend my while life trying to end this trade but after several years of hard work, the very last dancing bear walked through the gates of the sanctuary to have the ropes cut from his nose and live a life of peace.⁠⠀
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To successfully end a cruel practice that has gone on since the 1600s was just amazing to be a part of. The bears can not be released back to the wild because they have had their teeth and claws removed. The sanctuary is the next best thing we can give them. ⁠⠀
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When I moved back to America, International Animal Rescue asked me to open the first office in the States. Of course I jumped at the opportunity and have been working for them ever since. We now run projects all over the world, mainly in developing countries where there are no laws to protect WILDLIFE. I am so proud to be a part of this amazing organization! #bucketlistchristmas

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In January of 2012, I went into labor with my first child and 10 hours later when things started going from bad to worse, I was wheeled under the bright lights of an operating room to have a cesarean. ⁠⠀
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I will never forget the first time I saw my son. They wrapped him up like a burrito and placed him next to me in bed, his bright blue eyes gazing up at me. I whispered to him, “I can’t wait to show you the world.”⁠⠀
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Just 18 months later, I gave birth to my second son, Harry. I felt great, and was becoming confident in my skills as a mother. Then suddenly, three short months after he was born, it was like a light inside of me went out. I had no idea at the time, but I was just entering the throws of postpartum depression.⁠⠀
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It is something that I now talk openly about. I am not ashamed of it, or what I had to do to get better. I wish more women would talk about it, because I felt so alone. It felt as though I had fallen down this dark hole and I couldn’t figure out how to climb out. I felt guilty, because here I was cradling this perfectly healthy baby that I had wished for, and yet I didn’t feel the least bit grateful.⁠⠀
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They were dark days. I never wanted to hurt my children, but I felt that I didn’t deserve them. I sunk deeper and deeper.⁠⠀
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I waited 1 year and 7 months to get help. I never should have suffered that long and it breaks my heart to think of all the other mothers going through the same pain, afraid to ask for help. My doctor prescribed medication to me and suggested that I go speak with someone.⁠⠀
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Just as I was coming up for air, I was pregnant again. This was my third, and almost just as emotional as my first, because I knew it would be my last. I lived in fear of the darkness coming back, but luckily it did not return and I have fully enjoyed the birth of my baby girl, Elizabeth. She made us complete and I couldn't have gotten through this without my FAMILY.⁠⠀
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When you are in it, it feels like it is never going to end, that you are never going to feel like yourself again. So I just want anyone going through this now to know that it will pass. You will find yourself. And you will be even stronger for it. #bucketlistchristmas

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