GOOD MORNING GOOD NEWS - ONLY 3 DAYS LEFT
Rikki's Refuge believes that everyone deserves life, regardless of
physical, mental or emotional challenges
Rikki’s Refuge Animal Sanctuary is a no-kill life-care
multi-species facility, which means we handle and care for animals other
organizations can’t or won’t. Most of
the animals we take in are considered "un-adoptable" and will receive
love and care at Rikki's for the remainder of their natural lives. We specialize in feral cats, cats with FIV
or the leukemia virus, elderly animals, differently-abled animals, animals with
chronic health issues like diabetes, and farm animals from various situations
to keep them from entering the production market (i.e. being slaughtered). We care for domestic and farm animals from
22 different species - ranging from dogs and cats to cows, pigs, emus, goats,
turkeys, peacocks and everything in between!
We are able to positively, responsibly & humanely assist
humans AND animals through our multi species refuge for abused, abandoned &
homeless animals; promoting speuter, TNR; assisting the elderly and/or low
income, enabling them to keep their pets; teaching humane education, tolerance
& acceptance for the handicapped (physically and/or mentally) of animals
& humans; providing safe haven to native wildlife; maintaining biological
diversity of native flora & fauna.
Rikki's Refuge is a 450 acre sanctuary, managing 100 acres for
farm and domestic animals, with 350 acres preserved for native wildlife and
flora/fauna.
Your gifts of generosity and love, give our 1293 residents a
peaceful home.
Our gifts to you are the love and warmth you feel in your heart,
knowing that you have given life and kindness to countless animals, who,
without you, would never have known a gentle touch or the comfort of being
loved.
Thank you for your generosity and support as we enter 2018, our twentieth
year. We hope you come to visit in 2018
and meet the happy residents of Rikki’s Refuge whose lives you have saved.
I heard my hooman mom, Kerry,
talking to somebody who wondered if it was important for people to share the
green papers they earn with charity.
Her answer made me stop and think.
This is what she said:
It was to me,
when I first worked with a humane society 40 years ago, I pledged to myself to
always share at least a certain % of my income as my contribution for my life,
my opportunities, my wonderful things and my lessons (even when I didn't
understand them or how they could be lessons) here on earth. It was easy for me
as I was contracting and got a check every month or six weeks or so and would
just write a check for my % at the same time I deposited my money, then when I
was working for commission later on, I'd just do a % of that when I got it.
I don't know
where my notion that I should always pay rent for my space on earth came from,
my parents didn't teach me that when I was growing up, somehow it just always
seemed the right thing for me to do, I saw what the earth gave to me, home,
food, air, and felt I should be grateful and give back.
I always made
my parents give more to god in the basket in church than they were going to
spend on eating the food we were so graciously going to when we went to brunch
after church. As my ideas of god broadened and I came to feel all is god, it
could be given back in broader ways.
I think a lot
of people feel that need to give some designated portion and they've set that %
in their mind based on their own internal calculator of give and receive to
keep their lives on an equilibrium. How can you expect to take more than you
contribute?
Haz
you ever heard of paying rent for your space on earth?
Not sure Iz understand it
all, but goes somethin like this: we alz use some of the planet to grows our
food (why don't we have somz Fancy Feast plants?), give us water, produce the
trees that give us the oxygen we breathes, and stuff which gives us shelter.
Most two leggers (without
feathers) pay rent/ house payment to others for shelter, but Mom Earth doesn't
get paid. Doesn't seem fair to me.
If everyone could help out
the creatures on earth (like all us here at Rikki's), it's sorta like paying
rent to the planet, taking care of the other life on Earth.
I'd like to be paid with
Fancy Feast, but as spokescat, I have to think of others. (So hard when I'm
drooling on this machine thinking of nummy Fancy Feast.)
So how about helping Rikki's
Refuge where our people have devoted their lives to trying hard to help Mom
Earth take care of her kids that got left behind.
Give money, time, or what
ever you can.
If you want to think of it
like people rent, you could sign up fer a recurring monthly donation, it's
easy, right on our web page !!! www.RikkisRefuge.org/Donate
However you do it, please
thank Mom Earth for her kindness in helping us all and letting us live here
Won't YOU please help us in any way ---
LARGE or small -- that you
can !!
DOUBLE your donation NOW thru the end of 2017.
When mom was asked how she got this idea about paying rent, this is what she said:
I don't know
where or when I was told I owed for my space on earth. In my circles most the
folks I know / meet have the same belief, and balancing your give and take,
down to, "for every breath you take, what do you give in return?" is
a common thread in the spiritual groups I participate in. For one cannot
receive something one has not given. To be loved, you must love. To be happy,
you must give happiness. To be appreciated, you must appreciate. It's sort of
the philosophy of, "No matter how much you hurt, there is someone who
hurts more, give them comfort, and you too shall be comforted.
I was about to
say my parents weren't really into charity until Rikki's except for monetary
donations to organizations about animals, kids, environment, then I thought that
my mom started and ran Pets on Wheels in conjunction with Meals on Wheels in FL
and supplied all the cat food - she got a couple people to buy the dog food -
and would do cards, and cute things like for Christmas they all made cats or
dogs on skateboards as Christmas ornaments to go with the food.
She did crafts
for church bazaars and would get the group to do things for the elderly and
kids hospitals and stuff too. For holidays as a kid she always made sure we
also did something in a group, usually for old folks, like sing carols at
Christmas at a nursing home, or go visit with little Easter baskets for folks
at Easter and go trick or treating for Halloween but also take bags for the
residents.
She did a lot
of individual work for people, elderly, new moms, ill people, folks who'd been
thru a tragedy, taking them groceries, babysitting, getting them library books,
reading to them, being there, taking them to doctors, we always had lots of
"adopted grandparents" she called them, around the neighborhood. I
was thinking Daddy didn't do much hands on, but he went and fixed things for
people who needed it and belonged to service organizations. He didn't talk about it, he didn't round up
others to help, he just stopped and helped when he saw it was needed, never
expecting or wanting a "thank you" in return. It's just what you did as a human sharing
planet earth.
Just look at
how much in the world is done by good people paying their rent and helping
others, be they hoomans or animals or simply the earth. So much more is done
when people go out and do .... that's the premises behind the IRS letting you
deduct charity work .... so much more will be done by the people and spent by
the people for the good of others when you help make it possible. If just the right atmosphere was abundant
for all to participate and those with greed realized giving gets you so much
more than getting does ...... we'd have about a perfect world !!
Well ... I don't know bout
perfect .... but it would be if I had all the Fancy Feast I ever waned !!!
AND you know your donations
to Rikki's Refuge for our
END OF YEAR DOUBLE YOUR DONATION
challenge is TAX DEDUCTIBLE
.... so you can help make more happen with your dollar !!!
You DOUBLE your POWER !!!
You save TWICE as many LIVES !!!!
You save TWICE as many LIVES !!!!
So please click now: http://rikkisrefuge.org/donate?purpose=Double
or
Paypal: mail@RikkisRefuge.org
of
Mail a check or money order:
PO Box 1357, Orange VA. 22960
Just date your check by December 31, 2017 and it will DOUBLE !
THANK
YOU FOR LOVING
ALL OF US AND
TAKING THE TIME
TO SAVE A
LIFE TODAY
CUZ EVERY
ONE OF US MATTER S
DON'T YOU
THINK ?
Love,
Opie
It's OK Timmy, I promise, they LOVE us, they've got out backs!
I KNOW we can count on them to help us thru another year !!
Don’t forget to SAVE A LIFE TODAY !
Rikki’s Refuge
PO Box 1357
Orange VA 22960
And please come see me soon !!
In the mean time, Keep up with us on Facebook and
you'll get the minute to minute details about what's going on at Rikki's Refuge
.... you'll be the first to see the new residents .... and the first to know
about up coming events !!!
Rikki's Refuge
Opie and
Vincent's Page
Duke's Page
Re-Tail Thrift Store in Fredericksburg
The Duke Thomas Peabody Antique and Collectables
Shoppe in Culpeper
Opie's and Mom's Purrsonal Profile
Opie's Edibles for Fun Animal Friendly Recipes and
Cooking Tips: https://www.facebook.com/OpiesEdibles
Vincent D. Cat's Gathering Place, a place to hang
out, chat, and have fun
Kitty Litter-Ature
Rikki's Crazy Cat Person Club
For the Love of Black Cats
Our Website
which needs help getting up to date .... if you
"do" WordPress and would like to help, let us know Volunteers@RikkisRefuge.org
Rikki's Refuge
is owned and operated by Life Unlimited of Virginia, Inc., an IRS 501(c)(3)
not-for-profit Virginia Corporation. Federal Tax-ID 54-1911042. Your donations
provide direct support. A financial statement is available upon written request
from the Virginia State Office of Consumer Affairs.
