Weather, just like life, can be unpredictable. There are highs and lows, much like a rollercoaster at the local amusement park. Imagine the last time you rode a roller coaster. You sit down in the cart, get buckled in and slowly move from the station. “Click, click, click” as you start to make your way up the first incline. Everyone is smiling and having a great time. Then you hit the peak, and all of a sudden it feels like the bottom of the cart has completely dropped.
Your stomach is now lodged somewhere between your throat and chest. Everyone has gone from smiles and grins to screams. Some may even be forced to tears as the roller coaster flies down the track in what seems like an uncontrolled manner. Even though everyone is scared and screaming, they voluntarily signed up and even paid for this wild adventure because they know they are securely buckled in and their cart safely anchored to the track. Unfortunately, when weather strikes it’s a lot scarier, and you don’t have the luxury of knowing that you are “securely buckled in” and that your “cart safely anchored to the track.”
This is the position the Guthrie Animal Shelter found themselves in May of 2011. Several tornadoes ripped through Oklahoma leaving a huge path of destruction. The Guthrie Animal Shelter was one of many buildings destroyed that night. Miraculously, none of the animals were severely injured, but it was a scary night for the cats that were stuck in their cages as the building collapsed around them. With the shelter reduced to rubble, they had nowhere to house these adoptable babies. Shelter managers didn’t know what to do. One day they had a shelter, and the next day it was gone. They were now experiencing one of those roller coaster lows. Once Rescue Rebuild heard of this disaster, we knew we had to respond.
Thanks to your generous donations and a group of eager volunteers, we were able to turn what seemed like an all-time low to an extreme high, not only for all of the dogs and cats but the entire shelter staff and the City of Guthrie. Rescue Rebuild volunteers came from as far as Pennsylvania and from all over the state of Oklahoma to lend a hand. What was nothing more than a pile of concrete blocks and broken lumber is now a brand new building that was dedicated solely to cats. We installed cat doors so that cats could walk freely from the new building and into this new enclosed play area! All new play yards were built giving dogs an area of their own to play! A pergola was built inside the play yards to provide shade for dogs and people to get out of the hot sun. This pergola still stands just as strong today as it did when first built.
Your generous donation helps keep Rescue Rebuild on the road helping animals across the country!
