Dear fellow humans: Thank you! A few days after the North Bay fires began destroying so much and threatening so many, Peninsula Humane Society & SPCA posted on our Facebook page a call for donations of food, bowls, collapsible kennels and other donations we knew were desperately needed to help the animal shelters most seriously affected. Within days, by nightfall of Friday the 13th, our community’s generosity had completely outstripped expectations, filling the garage at the Burlingame Center for Compassion at 1450 Rollins Road. That next morning, early Saturday, volunteers and staff started showing up to load 10 good-size SUVs and pickups as well as one big cargo truck with thousands of pounds of life-saving supplies. By end of the day, all of our folks were back home having made deliveries to six shelters in Vallejo, Santa Rosa, Napa, Vacaville and Ukiah.
Interestingly, three themes dominated as I talked with folks as we unloaded supplies from their cars for this relief effort and helped others load up their trucks and vans for the drive north. First, everyone rejected my thanks to offer instead their appreciation for a practical way to help others. Second, many spoke of the generosity they’d experienced: for example, neighbors dropping off supplies for them to bring to us, the unknown fellow shopper at the pet supply store who helped pay for what they were buying for the shelters. Third, acknowledgment of how kind we can all be when a crisis strikes, followed by wondering why we cannot exhibit such kindness all the time.
Just a brief update: I’m happy to tell you that roughly half the hurricane victim animals we rescued from southern Florida have now been adopted into new Bay Area homes as the rest remain under medical treatment. With our dog and cat facilities already stretched from that disaster, we took in a bunch of injured and orphaned native wildlife from a fellow rehab center threatened by the fires. Together, we’ve all made a difference. Thank you!