Helping a Sanctuary from the Ground Up: Part 2

Helping a Sanctuary from the Ground Up: Part 2

It Takes a Village

While there is only one founder of Arthur’s Acres, there has been a village of friends and volunteers that have taken this property from a deteriorating murder house, to a safe haven of kindness for all animals. Like raising a child, a sanctuary needs a lot of love and sometimes a stern voice to make sure the property flourishes and becomes what it is meant to be.

Some of the people I see helping are people I have known for years, others are people I have met in the last 5 months and they are all amazing. It is truly inspiring to see so many people come together for a common cause and build this sanctuary from the ground up. These are just a few of the incredible people that have transformed Arthur’s Acres.

There is Tony, whom I mentioned in the last post, that travels from North Carolina once a month to clean stalls and use his many years of activism to boost the sanctuary’s outreach and general care.

Hans, a retiree that is basically MacGyver when it comes to building and fixing the structures around the barn.  It is amazing what he does with limited resources.

Sam, who is there twice a week every week, making sure all the big and small projects get done, whether that is nailing wire fencing around the perimeter or organizing the tools. Todd needs it, Sam gets it done.

Jenny, a local veterinarian that visits frequently to check on all the animals, and make sure nothing looks out of the ordinary with their health.

Lastly, there is Todd’s second in command, Cerri.  She is the behind the scenes person that takes care of so many incredibly important aspects of the sanctuary.  She manages the website, gets in contact with vendors, volunteers, other sanctuaries… the list goes on forever.  Without Cerri, Arthur’s Acres would simply not exist.  And…oh yeah, she does it all for free.

Arthur’s Acres has attracted a vast and diverse group of individuals who all want to help save animals. All these people (and so many more whom I didn’t name) are amazing and their desire to see this place become the best sanctuary, has given it a tremendous start that so many sanctuaries fail to achieve.

When you are part of a vegan community, there is usually an instant connection with your fellow vegans because your morals are aligned (as I went over in a previous post). While being part of a brand-new sanctuary, your relationships grow even faster with the people who are there for the same reasons you are. I will always remember reinforcing 100 feet of fencing until my wrists felt like they were going to explode with Sam, or helping Hans pull Wilbur away from the compost pile (little rascal). And even though Todd always makes sure to thank all of us every time we help out, we all would keep coming back even if there was zero recognition, because we all believe in Arthur’s Acres.

That ends part 2.  Part 3 will be all about the residents of Arthur’s Acres!