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2021 is coming to a close, and as the weather grows colder we find ourselves taking in more and more animals at The Safe House every day. Volunteers coming to visit and help out often drive down rather than fly, so they can bring a few hopeful pups back to MN with them between transports. I’m grateful… because we’re almost always full to the brim.
Opening The Safe House was a huge milestone for our rescue. By the end of this year, over 800 animals will have come through our doors. They received safety, shelter, good food, and medical care that wouldn’t have been possible anywhere else. And they got love. From everyone here, from all the amazing people who have helped out down here in Kentucky, and from you. These kids may not know it but there are so many people in their corner, rooting for them in their darkest moments. They may not know it, but the moment they become a Safe Hands kid their life is about to take a drastic turn for the better.
It hasn’t been easy though. I’d had hopes for being much closer to having the barn renovated and the lack of additional space we were counting on has been hard. The skyrocketed costs of raw materials has put that plan on hold for now, but it’s also left me feeling hopeful for 2022. We’ve come this far. We’ve saved so many lives that wouldn’t have been possible without The Safe House, and together we will continue to do just that.
What I want you to know is that in spite of all the challenges, this place has already been host to countless beautiful moments. Just over a week ago we took in a very terrified, very pregnant little girl named Kira. She hasn’t known much kindness in her life, but that all changes now. She doesn’t have to give birth outside or in a noisy, crowded shelter now. Instead she brought her puppies into the world in the warmth and comfort of a loving foster home. She will know only love and safety now, her babies too.
Kira was one of ten dogs to arrive that day, followed by 16 puppies and six sick kittens the next. In the days leading up to the last transport on 12/4, we’d taken in a total of 57 new kids. Every kennel was full, every cage occupied, x-pens set up where we could fit them, and I had my very own house guests (six of the newest puppies) in an effort to help just a few more.
The next transport leaves The Safe House this Friday and we find ourselves in much the same situation. Having been here for nearly six months, we have a pattern. The van leaves on Friday afternoon full of hopeful kids… we wish them well, close the gate behind them as they drive off, and go right back inside. There are often a few kids who are too sick to safely make the trip up north, and we need to clean and sanitize everything for the arrivals we know will join us soon.
Our last transport of 2021 will depart from The Safe House on New Year’s Eve, and by the evening on New Year’s Day those animals will be settling into their foster homes. That’s how Safe Hands is going to kick off 2022– helping many more kids start their new lives as we all start fresh with a new year. It’s possible because of you and I can’t thank you enough for that. Here’s to ending the year saving as many lives as we can, and to beginning the next in pursuit of saving even more.
With Big Love,
Lynne Bengtson
Executive Director and Founder, Safe Hands Rescue
So excited to see what 2022 brings to the Safe house and Safe Hands rescue!