My Heroes

The two people who were the most instrumental in the beginning of this story are my sister Ann and my niece Kate-Lyn.  They were the first call I made every time I had an emergency or a new baby was born.  And although they live about 17 miles away, they would drop everything and come when I needed them most.  Especially to set up yet another kennel for another new family as the babies kept coming.  They are the reason so many of the babies survived and I can't possibly ever thank them enough for how much they cared and how much work they did.  You guys are amazing!

My other sister Lyn (Ann's twin) and my other niece Brie-Ann were also part of my first line soldiers if you will.  Though Lyn lives close by, she works full time and had young children at the time so I didn't call on her as often, but when I desperately needed her, she was there, including the time one of the males had escaped his enclosure and she came over at a moment's notice to help me get him back in.  Brie-Ann started coming and socializing with the animals and the babies and worked with her mom and sister to keep the babies healthy and socialize with them.  You guys are also amazing!

 My mom was in her late 70's when all of this was going on, but every morning she would get up early and prepare water bottles for me to bring down to the animals during the winter months.  She would buy my family food when they came to help with the animals and let us gather in her house.  She would constantly listen to my stories, both good and bad, and give advice when she could.   Most importantly, she knew how much these animals meant to me and supported me through the whole ordeal.  She truly is the best mother anyone could ever ask for.

Kyle and Kurt are my twin nephews (Lyn's sons).  They were younger at the time so their help mainly involved socializing with the animals and keeping me company from time to time in the field.  They especially loved feeding the baby goats and letting the goats jump up on them.  The goats quite enjoyed that as well!

I cannot tell you how many times during the early days of caring for the animals I had to call into work and tell everyone I was having a goat and sheep emergency and I would be a bit late.  My boss, being an animal lover himself, was extremely tolerant of me during this time.  I am quite sure had I been working elsewhere, I may have lost my job, but my boss was a saint.  My co-workers (all animal lovers) were also awesome.  They would listen to my countless stories and humor me by looking at photos and watching videos of the animals.  And it seemed like that's all I talked about all the time.  Lol.

Linda is a co-worker and a friend.  She is the one who first reached out to Farm Sanctuary when this whole thing started to ask them if they would take in any neglected sheep and goats.  This was long before I actually had permission to find them homes, but it definitely got the ball rolling and I am very grateful to Linda for reaching out to Farm Sanctuary about these animals.

Tina and Galen are two of my closest friends and during this time, they too were constantly bombarded with goat and sheep stories, photos and videos.  They never stopped me from telling story after story which I'm sure got tiring after a while.  They always checked in with me to see how I was doing and how the animals were doing.  They were a great support system to have for my emotional state during this time and really, during any time in my life.  They are amazing.

Lisa and Susan are two new friends I met the day of the flood in September 2021.  I had no idea that day how much my life would change and one of the biggest changes was meeting these two wonderful ladies.  They heard about the animals and came right down to the field.  They stayed with me for hours trying to figure out what to do.  They arranged for a local animal rescue to take in the mom and 2 1/2 week old twins that night so they were safe.  They have continued to be by my side helping me through this journey.  I know I've made lifelong friends with Susan, Lisa and their families who include Willie (Susan's husband), Emily (Susan's daughter) and Lydia (Susan's future daughter-in-law) who have all been a part of this mission.  I could not have done that without everyone's help.   Shout out to the rest of Susan's and Lisa's families who have also been a part of this.

Ashley and Kelsey both worked at Farm Sanctuary and were the ones Linda first got in touch with.  Mario and his team are the most amazing transport team.  

As I mentioned, at the beginning, the owner had no intention of giving any of the animals up, but Ashey and Kelsey kept in touch with me for almost an entire year to keep up with any new developments.  They never stopped thinking about me and the animals and when I did finally get the green light to find them homes, Ashely and Kelsey were right there helping me find homes for them.  I appreciate their dedication and efforts immensely.  Kelsey is no longer with Farm Sanctuary, but Ashley is still helping me find homes for the remaining sheep along with her new co-worker Gretchen.  Mario and his team, Megan and Sarah, have now moved animals from this case several times and they are just the most caring people you could ever meet.  I also recently met Grace at Farm Sanctuary who helped Autumn and Sadie take care of their babies when they were born.

 Megan and JC are a couple who adopted the first group of goats.  That group of four goats were giving me much stress at the time because after the flood, some of the fencing must have gotten damaged and these four figured out how to escape.  Each time they got out, someone would call the police who would call the owner who would call me very stressed out.  I was so afraid he would just have anyone come and get them.  Megan and JC adopted these four and they have the most amazing life now.  I visit them frequently and consider Megan and JC good friends now.  They are truly awesome people.  In late 2023, Megan and JC opened their home again by adopting three of the sheep, Katie, Betty and Bam Bam!

Tiffany initially adopted five of the animals from this situation.  They had planned on adopting the three male sheep, George, Curtis and Chaos and when they heard a home had fallen through for two of the goats (Clarice and Pete), they offered to adopt them as well.  George and Pete have always been the best of frenemies so having them go to a home together was comforting.  Sometimes they were the best of friends and sometimes they would back up and run into each other as hard as possible, but they truly are good friends and would often be seen hanging out together.  When Tiffany later learned about the 22 sheep whose home didn't work out, she offered to adopt three of the girls.  All eight animals now live with Tiffany's original little herd on a beautiful farm in Indiana.  In late 2023, Tiffany and her family adopted Luna and Star and now have a fourth of the original herd!

Catskill Animal Sanctuary became involved when they agreed to adopt two of the goats that initially went to Farm Sanctuary.  While at Farm Sanctuary, these two goats, Sadie and Autumn, both gave birth to twin boys.  Catskill Sanctuary adopted both little families and due to their location, I get to visit these goats throughout the year.  I am so grateful to everyone at Catskill Sanctuary who allowed me to share the girls' stories and for taking such good care of these goats and all the other animals at Catskill.  You guys rock!

When the home I found for the sheep after leaving Brown Road did not work out, we had to find temporary placement for them very quickly.  Megan put out a post on a town Facebook group and Scott responded.  We spoke that day and within two days we went up to visit, see the property and meet him and his family.  We came to an agreement for boarding the sheep and two days later, we moved them to his farm.  At the time, I thought they would only be there for a few months, but as time went on, it got longer and longer, but Scott and his family have taken amazing care of the sheep since June of 2022.  It is because of them that I can sleep at night knowing they are safe and loved while we continue to look for homes.  Thank you so much to this family for everything they have done for me and the sheep!

Over my time caring for the animals, I met more people in my neighborhood than in the 50 years my family has lived there.  Some I may have only met once and others I saw there on a regular basis bringing food to the animals and socializing with them.  They were such a comfort and help because I knew others were worried about them too.  There was one couple who came the most frequently and I want to especially mention them, but I don't know if they want their names on a website, but J. and her husband - you know who you are!  Lol.  Thank you to all the other neighbors who cared about the animals too.  A special thank you to the two young ladies who let me borrow their camping chair so I could sit after standing for hours the day of the flood.  I never got your names, but your kindness was much appreciated!

Peaceful Fields Sanctuary is a farm animal sancutary in Virginia who specializes in animals with special needs.  They recently opened their doors to Xena, the blind sheep from this herd, and her family and have given them the opportunity to live the rest of their lives there.  I am especially grateful to Peaceful Fields for taking Xena and her family who include Xena's son Champion, Spirit and her daughter Elsa and Kylie.  Although it's sometimes hard to tell Xena is blind as she gets around very well with the help of her family, having her end up at a sanctuary that specializes in animals who may need some extra help is a dream come true!