May's TLC Volunteer of the Month!

Melissa and Shelby, who Melissa nursed
back to health after being VERY ill

It is with great pleasure I congratulate Melissa Gilmore - TLC's Volunteer of the Month for May, 2014!

I originally met Melissa at the Simi Valley Spay & Neuter Clinic and we got into a conversation... She expressed the desire to get involved in our rescue and shortly thereafter, Melissa joined us a regular volunteer.  

Gravitating towards working in the back, Melissa has rapidly learned our procedures and protocols.  She had to quickly learn how to administer meds, to know when a dog or puppy should be seen by our vet and just basic tough cleaning procedures to prevent cross contamination and sick puppies.

But beyond that and why she is nominated this month?  Melissa consistently goes above and beyond to make sure dogs and puppies are not dying on her watch.

Bottle feeding Liv

Recently we got in a litter of orphaned Kelpie puppies three to four days old.  Bottle-feeding newborns round the clock is an exhausting task to undertake, but three at one time?   I've done it - it is like climbing Mount Everest and back... sleep never ever seems so sweet as when you have been deprived of it for days on end - trust me!

None of these puppies should have survived, but all three did.  Liv, Bosco and Camryn owe their very lives to the care Melissa gave to them.  It won't be long now before this litter will be spayed/neutered and go up for adoption.

And had it not been for yet another dedicated TLC volunteer like Melissa, the world would have missed their gentle spirits and loving natures.

Congratulations, Melissa - you have been a valuable asset to TLC and we deeply appreciate all your hard work and passion!

April's Volunteer of the Month at TLC

This is probably one of the hardest things I have to do each month for we have SO many GREAT volunteers at TLC... There are some we seldom see at the rescue shop but work LONG hours from their homes, doing TLC magic... And then we have others (we call them the 'young guns') who work just as many LONG hours at the rescue shop... TLC volunteers lead with their heart and step up with their commitment and dedication to saving dogs...  It is a tough decision to make each month - trust me!

And so... (drum roll here)...
Congratulations to Arissa - 
April's Volunteer of the Month!

I met Arissa shortly after we took over the rescue shop in January of 2012... She was a VERY quiet and VERY shy dog walker... I think she barely said ten words to me the first month I knew her... Big Joe took Arissa under his wing and loved her like one of his own... 

Arissa is like a sponge, soaking up everything around her in the environment... She has tremendous work ethic for one so young and the energy of nitro in a race car... I remember turning around one day, totally exhausted and Arissa is still 'a blowin and a goin'... I couldn't believe I had run out of steam and she was still as fresh as a daisy (until I remembered that I am almost three times her age!)... 

But it is not just hard work that makes Arissa so special - it is her attention to detail and follow through - critical in what we do in the rescue and the rescue shop... 

More than once, Arissa has 'taken her work home with her' and is currently fostering an old timer with her family... She has also taken on bottle babies, nursing them through scary times and into great health... Arissa is currently our Training Coordinator and gets new volunteers up to speed on what we do... And recently she took on a new project we call 'Microchip Mondays' where we do low cost microchipping in the hopes more dogs get chipped and quickly found if ever lost...

Arissa has learned so much in her almost two and half years with us at TLC and she approaches every new challenge with gusto... I have often said that this is the next generation of No-Kill in our county and if I know Arissa, she will continue to be out there on the front line, making a positive change in the number of pets being saved for years to come.

CONGRATULATIONS, ARISSA!  And thank you for being such an important part of TLC!

Linda, Director

Volunteer of the month - Congratulations, Shallan!

It gives me great pleasure to announce TLC's March "Volunteer of the Month"... ::drum roll:: ..... Shallan Carnahan!

I have had the honor to know Shallan for over two years now and working side by side with her, I feel humbled by the depth of compassion and dedication she possesses... In fact, Shallan is the inspiration for TLC's Mission Statement:  "We will do whatever it takes within our resources to save the life of a dog unless it is illegal or immoral".

Shallan literally saved TLC when we took over the rescue shop location in January of 2012... Had it not been in her heart to stay with us, teach us and grow with us, TLC would not be where it is today... Big Joe, Joseph and I didn't even know how to turn on the air conditioner and Shallan proved to be an invaluable resource with answers to every question we asked... Previously Pets Hope, all of the other employees decided to quit - Shallan was the only one who stayed and believed in the dream of having a full blown rescue shop that existed solely to save dogs' lives off of the kill lists in local shelters... 

Shallan is a young lady after my own heart... She's a born animal advocate who also believes that no healthy adoptable animal should die... 

In addition, the depth of her animal husbandry skills is limitless... If I don't have firsthand experience with something, she does... 

And work ethic?... I have yet to ask Shallan to help on something that she hasn't immediately said 'Yes' and can be counted to be there through the tough times as well as the day-to-day routines when needed... Seldom do you find a young lady of this age with so much 'old age wisdom and mindset' - every day working side by side with her is refreshing and rejuvenating to one's rescuing soul... 

So, dear Shallan, thank you VERY much for being a part of Team TLC - we and all of the lives we have saved with you are grateful and appreciative you are a part of our lives!

Congratulations!
Linda
 

Volunteer of the Month - Kathryn!

It takes us 300 volunteers per week to do what we do and be open to the general public for 56 hours a week... Volunteers are like gold and diamonds to us... There is a direct link between the number of dog lives we can save and the number of dedicated volunteers who believe in the cause of No-Kill for Ventura County... 

But beyond the 300 hours of energy, sweat and hard work by those volunteers who come in and run the rescue shop, take care of the puppies and dogs, do laundry, clean up poop and run 16+ loads of laundry, it probably takes that many hours each week to get done all of the other things for TLC... Everyone comes to the table with their talents... So although someone might not be wearing one of our red smocks and you see them at the rescue shop, they might be working just as hard behind the scenes, saving dogs' lives...

Such is the case with Kathryn (Rutherford)... Kathryn started volunteering with TLC early in 2012 and at 69 years old, I only can hope and pray I have half as much energy as she does when I reach that age!

I have never seen this lady have a 'bad' day... If you meet her early in the morning, she always has a sweet "Gooooood Mornnnnning!" for you... I have never asked Kathryn to do something for TLC that she hasn't jumped in with both feet and both hands to grab the task, envelope it and make it her own... Initially Kathryn started at TLC as a dog walker and then as part of the Bathing Brigade... One day she came to me and said she wanted to do something 'more important' for TLC and I suggested that she take over our fundraising events...

And in 2013, there were some months that her events actually paid the huge electric bill we get ($1,000+) each month from dear Edison Electric...

Not only fundraising, Kathryn is one of our die-hard foster moms... More than once she has taken on a next-to-impossible save... Each and every one of them has blossomed under her care and dedication... Kathryn now has many 'feathers' in her 'guardian angel' cape!... For sure, Barkley and PandaBear owe their very lives to our dear, sweet Kathryn... Arabella was on death row with no hair down the length of her back and now, she's full clothed again, plump, happy and adopted!

This is the magic of TLC... Great folks on Team TLC who believe in the cause and do all that they can do with their talents to go that extra hundred miles to make a difference in the lives of the homeless dogs that end up in shelters through no fault of their own!

Congratulations, Kathryn!  And thank you so VERY much for all that you do!