Best Friends Week

The kindness of strangers

2009-07-26T03:30:00Z

How serendipity, tenacity and love helped build Best Friends

In the early ‘90s after the sanctuary grounds were secured and the founders were busy rescuing as many animals as possible, it was apparent that the rural area of Kanab would not be able to support the growing effort. Out into the world they went: with hearts on their sleeves and saving innocent lives on their minds.

"In 1991, we were hit with a big money crunch," shared Silva Battista, "we had 1,200 animals, massive debt and we were located in the middle of nowhere. But we could not renege on our commitment." Thus began Silva's cliffside chat, the finale of founder candid talks, a popular event in the celebration of Best Friends' 25^th Anniversary.

The first thing they did was send folks to big cities to drum up support. Silva humorously called it ‘begging' - but it can be found as ‘tabling' in the resource section of this website!

Silva and Francis Battista were both tasked with going to Los Angeles. They knew almost no one and just flew by the seat of their pants! During the talk, Silva was flanked by two longtime Best Friends family members: Diane Doyle and Nora Della Maddalena, some of the first angels that helped pave the road to success.

"We picked high end health food stores to target the audience that was a more aware consumer. In some places we had to get there two hours before the store even opened to secure our spot. We stayed as late as possible, afterwards we would do the accounting and then deal with animal issues - inquiries like ‘can you take this duck?' were just part of our daily lives."

Silva mentioned in passing that programs such as the first Animal Help department at Best Friends sprung from these early endeavors. Many animals needing saving, but they can't all go to the sanctuary! Using the technology of the day, they networked for homeless pets in Los Angeles; making mimeographed flyers and posting them at the local supermarkets and community bulletin boards, they were essentially functioning as the first rudimentary Petfinder while they were also acting as chief fundraisers for the erstwhile struggling sanctuary.

Even while putting in 15 hour days, they knew they had no other choice. Back at the sanctuary the animals needed to be fed. A break came when they were able to get a gig in an upscale Beverly Hills center where they could spread awareness to an even broader audience. The people that were attracted to their work turned out to be some of the biggest movers and shakers in the area, in addition to some of the most dedicated and passionate animal lovers in the world!

"We were fundraising in Malibu over Thanksgiving and a man came up to us and listened intently but was very quiet. He handed me his card and it said "President" Kalkan (Pedigree) - the pet food company. He told us of a supply of food that was mislabeled and wanted to know if we wanted it. I asked him if they could deliver it to Utah? He replied, quickly, ‘We're International!' We filled up one of our natural caves at the sanctuary with enough food to last our dogs for quite awhile," Silva related.

In 1993 with the help of a wonderful pet professional to the stars, they were able to have the first Lint Roller Party. Diane Doyle made sure the posters, flyers and invitations all looked professional by lending her design expertise. It was held at the Chateau Marmont, with donated food. The event boasted some of the world's most famous guests: Rene Russo, Claudia Schiffer, Nastassja Kinski, a few of the cast of 90210, and Timothy Leary, just to name a few! Silva and Francis were able to count the director, Wolfgang Petersen, among their most loyal friends; Mr. & Mrs. Petersen not only helped supply a lot of the ‘wow-factor', they even leant them the shirts off their backs, so that Silva and Francis could attend their own event in style!

This was the launch of the annual Lint Roller Party - where celebrities come out to honor the animals and help spread the word about the work of Best Friends. The early events lead to some eye-opening planning tips and tricks, such as: if you are doing a yard sale, don't forget to find out if the venue has a sprinkler system turned on before spreading stuff out the night before!

They held a series of Beverly Hills yard sales culminating at a massive yard sale event in 1995 at the West Hollywood Park, to help offset the money they were losing from assisting locals with pet lost and found in the aftermath of the earthquake. Again they found their extended family coming out in droves to help support the endeavor! With over three truckloads of merchandise leftover after the event, they had raised $20,000.

With all the kindness they were receiving from the community Silva and Francis wanted to give back. They published an animal rescue directory, it was bigger than most phonebooks, another early resource forerunner to what can now be found easily on the Internet.

It was also in this spirit of giving back, that they staged one of the first large scale adoption events. By approaching the production studios they were able to borrow tents, tables and other accoutrements that go into such an event. "It looked like a gypsy camp," Silva described. Nora Della Maddalena was an instrumental part of getting these events to the professional, streamlined event that happen today. This likeminded event team also segued into what became the Best Friends Brigade!

Best Friends knew that many rescues don't have time to do it all! From feeding, vetting, and rescuing animals, some of the day to day maintenance can easily fall by the wayside. The Best Friends Brigade was formed by local volunteers, under the tutelage of Nora, to help revamp shelters. They offered the practical help that was needed, like re-roofing one shelter in advance of El Nino. They rebuilt barns at a horse rescue, they rebuilt enclosures for Shambala, and they continue to help those helping the animals every way they can.

"We didn't expect to love Los Angeles, but the people were so warm and supportive. When we started having monthly volunteer meetings our volunteers opened their homes to us. These beautiful mansions filled with the most gorgeous women in the world. Francis jokes that animal welfare is the best kept secret in finding your dream date!"

Silva's parting words instill the same sense of awe that they've had since the beginning: "We had, and still have, one of the best volunteer teams that anyone could ask for. At every event guests would say the same thing - 'your volunteers are amazing.' It is like a family of people who come together event after event, year after year, without necessarily seeing each other in between and work together like a machine. Everyone pulls their weight, with a huge amount of trust, respect and a willingness to give it all. I have an enormous amount of love for so many of them."

From strangers to friends to family there is gold in them there hills!

For more information on getting involved in Los Angeles please go to Los Angeles Programs

By Denise LeBeau

Photos by Jennifer Hayes

Founders built a sanctuary, one step at a time

2009-07-25T19:02:00Z

So, you have the property and you have the concept, but how do you go about starting a sanctuary?

That was one of the tough questions Best Friends co-founders asked themselves 25 years ago.

Besides being the best setting possible for animals, "You always want to create as much as a people friendly environment as you can," Gabriel de Peyer told 22 people gathered on the patio deck at Best Friends' Welcome Center during a cliffside chat, one of several held during Best Friends Week. De Peyer is one of about 20 co-founders who, in 1984, started the Best Friends no-kill sanctuary on the grounds of Angel's Canyon.

"You're thinking, really, how you're organizing a campus of 2,000 animals," he says. "But you also have to consider, with care, who to hire."

"You'd think we'd want people who love animals, right?" de Peyer asks the visitors. "We made this mistake initially where some employees were very good with animals but terrible with people. You can always teach them animal skills and how to deal with animals, but you can't teach them people skills."

Also, when you start a sanctuary, he says, you're not thinking about how to dig trenches, but that's exactly what happened. "Our mantra really was ‘Don't get angry, don't get depressed and try and remember where you buried the power lines.'"

Paramount in their plans was being respectful and mindful of the local culture and community and how the founders related to the property itself. "The one thing we didn't want was a hodge-podge of buildings," he says.

And they didn't want overhead power lines. "It was important to us how the sanctuary looked," he says. "We wanted to be an addition to the canyon and not a distraction."

As the sanctuary grew, so, too, did the number of animals. "We dealt with it incrementally," he says. "Part of being responsible for the animals is being responsible for the structure. We never went further than what we could handle."

When asked if they envisioned in 1984 the sanctuary as it is today, de Peyer says, "We had no idea it would be this large. We thought we'd put one idea in place at a time."

They also decided to stick with just companion animals. "We did have a baby ostrich," he says. "There's nothing cuter than a baby ostrich, but we knew we couldn't give her the care she needed, so we gave her to a sanctuary."

For many years, they cared for a black goat. They named him Goatee. One day, a woman from New York stayed in one of the original primitive cottages, which in the 1940s were housing for the cast of motion picture films, including one starring Ronald Reagan. "The woman was used to sounds of the city," de Peyer says. "She heard footsteps outside her door so she called her husband, who called the police, who arrived with sirens blaring to catch the burglar. As it turned out, it was the goat."

Another important decision co-founders made, besides putting the animals first, was to set up Best Friends Animal Society so that it continues when the founders are gone. "The Salvation Army has been around for 150 years. It survived," de Peyer says. "Hopefully, in 25 years Best Friends will still be something beautiful and special."

To make that happen, "You light a candle and other people come in and light a candle from yours, and more people light their candles from those candles," he says.

"You light a candle and have it live on."

By Cathy Scott

Photos by Sarah Ause and Jennifer Hayes

Leading the way

2009-07-25T10:16:00Z

When you think about the Best Friends 25^th anniversary, of course you think of the animals, co-founders, Angel Canyon, and even the National Geographic TV show, "DogTown." However, one less visible, but very important occurrence during Best Friends Week was the volunteer team leader retreat.

Team leaders are the glue that holds the Best Friends Network Go Locals and Best Friends Ambassador programs together. If you have ever visited the Network to read about the good news that is happening for animals in your state or seen Best Friends represented at an event in your city, you can probably thank a team leader, and they are all doing this on their own time as volunteers.

And this week was no exception. In addition to continuing to lead their teams from afar, 26 of these valuable volunteers traveled to Kanab from coast to coast and even Hawaii, for the opportunity to meet their counterparts who they've known virtually, but never actually met face-to-face.

"This year's team leaders retreat has been packed with fun, as well as inspiration," commented Patty Meehan, Louisiana team leader. "It's been an opportunity to meet other team leaders from all over the country to network, share triumphs and challenges, and swap ideas for carrying the Best Friends message to more people."

They also got to meet key staff, take tours of the sanctuary, and attend training sessions, but without doubt, one of the highlights of their trip was the chance to take part in the Kanab Pioneer Day parade.

Ever hard working, the team built a float to commemorate Best Friends' 25^th anniversary. As if that were not enough, they also represented Best Friends in the parade itself. Many held their state flags and waved to the onlookers. A talented few got together to learn a drill team performance as the "Best Friends pooper scooper brigade," much to the enjoyment of the crowds.

Enthusiasm was widespread. "Representing Best Friends in the Pioneer Day parade, carrying our state flags, was a true honor. It was heartwarming to hear the cheers from the crowd as we passed by," commented Meehan.

"I'd heard a lot about last year's team leader retreat, but this experience far surpassed my expectations to get to know people in person, experience the efforts with the animals and see the fabulous and real community that is Best Friends," noted California team leader, Sandi Cain. "It far surpasses any other volunteer experience I've ever had."

By Jennifer Hayes

Photos by Jennifer Hayes

Want to learn more about volunteering virtually for Best Friends? See the Best Friends Network Volunteer group, and sign up today to become a part of this fantastic team.

Origin of Dogtown

2009-07-22T08:07:00Z

Though many have recently become aware of Best Friends through the National Geographic show, "DogTown," co-founder Faith Maloney described the true beginnings of Best Friends' Dogtown to an entranced group of visitors during Best Friends Week.

"I started that original Dogtown," noted Maloney who has worked directly with animal care, as opposed to the business or financial side of the sanctuary. Though she tells people that she loves cats, she relates better to dogs, stating "I'm more like a dog: friendly and will do anything for food."

After she left the former sanctuary in Arizona and was given the job to care for the canines in Kanab, she saw that everyone was incredibly busy and any help was at a premium. So Maloney hesitantly mentioned to her colleagues that she might need some help. She was given Tyson Horn, who had come from Texas to help with the initial building of the sanctuary.

She noted that "You could put both of our experience together on a half a sheet of 8 ½ x 11 paper, but that never stopped us."

So they began taking animals from the local community after Francis Battista spoke to the mayor of Kanab, who happened to be watering his garden at the time. Thereafter for the next five years, Maloney inherited the title of "dog catcher" and received calls day and night from four local law enforcement entities: Kanab, Kane County, Fredonia, and the Paiute Tribe.

Though she received no pay, no badge and no recognition, she found the experience very educational. Going into the job, she originally believed she would always side with the animals, but occasionally her sympathies were with the people who suffered from animals who were kept irresponsibly. One example was a local man whose garden was constantly trampled by some dogs a neighbor regularly let run loose. Her suggestion to him was to fence his yard.

Sadly, each time she looked at her answering machine, "I knew that every time that red light was on, there was some horrific animal story on the other end of it."

However, she found working with the animals easy and enjoyable. She had associated so closely with dogs for so long, she began to "smell pretty good" and all she had to do was arrive on the scene of a "vicious" dog and the pup would sniff the air and just naturally gravitate toward her. She would easily pick up the sociable pooch, much to the astonishment of the police, and form a friendship for life in the short car ride back to the sanctuary.

Her animal control duties were only a portion of Maloney's daily responsibilities. She and Tyson prepared meals and fed hundreds of animals, in addition to walking the dogs, and performing cleanup duties. (See Maloney's anniversary blog entry about the pooper scooper parties she hosted in the spring.)

Though the area she managed was called Dogtown, she also took care of any chickens, turkeys, guinea pigs, and sheep that happened to make it to Best Friends. However, many of the memories she shared with the audience related back to dogs.

She discussed Victor, an elderly, unimpressive Australian shepherd who had lived most of his life on a chain. While nothing about the old dog stood out to Maloney, once at the sanctuary, he held a power of authority over the other canine residents, earning him the title of Dogfather. Even Amra, a young 145 pound Malamute in his prime, paid deference to Victor and would not cross the line marking the old dog's territory, even after the elder had passed away.

And after several years of running Dogtown and observing how freely the dogs behaved with one another, Maloney stepped out onto a porch one morning and had an epiphany. Her entire perception changed from that of being a human in charge of all the dogs, to instead seeing the dogs from their point of view. "Here I was thinking I was in control and I wasn't, they were. They had a Dogtown."

She further noted, "That's why I was always very proud of Dogtown, because we created something where they could be themselves."

By Jennifer Hayes

Photos by Jennifer Hayes

Build it and they will come

2009-07-22T07:03:00Z

Twenty five years ago, when Best Friends first began, the work centered around the care and feeding of the animals, as well as building the sanctuary structures. As time passed, the founders began to send out a little magazine to their contributors. And after reading about this extraordinary sounding sanctuary that housed such incredible animals, people started to visit.

"We knew people wanted to come here to see the animals and see what we were doing, but we also felt that people would probably want to come here because, when we arrived in this place, we realized this was a very special, sacred place," commented Cyrus Mejia, co-founder and now the sanctuary's resident artist. "It's a very powerful presence here."

Cyrus and Anne Mejia, also a co-founder who is now in charge of major gifts, presented a cliffside chat to sanctuary visitors, in commemoration of Best Friends Week. The couple set up the original visitor programs, including the tours, cottages, volunteering, and the Welcome Center.

While smaller in the beginning days, the tours were similar to the current ones, except that there were far fewer animals, they would host only one or two people a day, not 100-200, and says Anne, they were transported in "cars that were basically held together with duct tape."

One favorite stop was Dogtown to meet the various "celebrity" dogs, including Amra, the huge Malamute who would often come to greet the new visitors. "If you weren't careful, Amra would come up behind you and put his head between your legs and pick you up and knock you down," noted Cyrus, who stated those days were quite different from the waivers and rules of today. He laughed, "Things change. In those days riding Amra was part of the tour-and landing on your butt."

Anne noted one visitor who stood out in the early years. He was a gentleman who came from Los Angeles to stay in one of the cottages. Not today's modern houses, these were vintage, rustic cabins where one could see through the wooden slats. Anne commented, "If a mouse would share the bed with you, that was a little extra" to which Cyrus replied, "It was like the early sleepovers."

The next morning, after spending the night in the cabin, the visitor announced that he had to leave and cancel his tour. Anne voiced concern, but his response was, "Everything is OK, but it's too quiet here."

Anne and Cyrus initiated the Welcome Center, which began as a small office in a building called the Hamlet. From there, Cyrus started making and selling T-shirts featuring three cats with the phrase, "Best Friends: Where all the tails have happy endings" which is still sold today at the gift shop and online.

The current Welcome Center and the surrounding five acres belonged to another individual and were not part of the original 3,300 acres purchased by Best Friends. Best Friends leased some outbuildings and land from the owner. However, it was a close call when the property was put up for sale and a couple from Salt Lake City became very interested in purchasing it to open a dude ranch. As the woman walked by the small pond gracing the entrance to the home, she told her husband they could not buy it, because she had seen a snake.

A week later, Delores Harris, a strong supporter of Best Friends in the early years, was visiting and heard the story. She called her husband Homer, who had been traveling on the Amazon River, and the pair bought the property, which Best Friends leased from them until it could be purchased. The founders renovated the house, creating what is now known as the Welcome Center.

This is just one more story to add to the list of legends surrounding the area that now houses Best Friends.

Cyrus also spoke of a man named Freddy Crystal who came to Kanab in 1917 with a map which showed that Aztec King Montezuma's treasure was buried in the canyon adjacent to Best Friends. The whole town basically shut down for months as they all attempted to dig up the hidden booty. Needless to say they never found any gold.

The founders and countless visitors to Best Friends know the truth. Cyrus noted, "There is sacredness there and people sense it, but then they think there's something valuable there it must be gold or it must be treasure of some kind. It must be something tangible or physical. They miss the point that it's actually the place itself that is valuable, that it is sacred."

By Jennifer Hayes

Photos by Gary Kalpakoff and Jennifer Hayes

See Cyrus' artwork and learn about his latest projects on his website, cyrusmejia.com.

A 'dream' come true

2009-07-22T05:59:00Z

In 1984, Best Friends was nothing more than a dream.

"What we at Best Friends wanted was lots of space for the animals," John Fripp, a co-founder, board member and chief financial officer for Best Friends told a group of visitors. "We came here to find an animal sanctuary. The dream was to build a place that would be a kind of mecca not only for animals, but also for people who love animals."

But when the group of about 20 people started out, "we didn't have two nickels," Fripp told about 25 visitors gathered on the patio of the Welcome Center for a Cliffside Chat, one of several held during Best Friends Week in celebration of the 25th anniversary.

The dream, Fripp explains, was just that - a dream. "The chances of fulfilling it were so improbable, he says, and "hope and hard work wasn't going to do it." The founders knew they couldn't make it happen without help. Back then, on a good day, they'd take in something like $30 in donations - if they were lucky. They regularly set up donation tables in out-of-town cities, asking people to help.

It was Michael Mountain, a co-founder and former president of Best Friends, who spearheaded the no-kill concept that Best Friends continues to embrace today. "We felt very strongly about that," Fripp says, "but no one knew who we were."

That's when the founders began sending out direct mail pamphlets, donated by a man who wanted to help, to let people know what the sanctuary was all about. "We didn't know if direct mail would work," he says. "It did.

"Bit by bit, it began to look as if the dream was possible."

As the ‘90s progressed, "Best Friends developed into the sanctuary you see today," he says. By 1997, it was clear we were going to survive. It was time to go to the next phase, and that was how can we do more across the country? How could we be useful?"

So, instead of starting satellite Best Friends' sanctuaries across the country, they began teaching others the basics, showing them, by the mistakes they learned the hard way, how they could start their own no-kill sanctuaries. It became a popular workshop continues today.

Joyce Moyer, who traveled to the sanctuary for Best Friends Week with a group calling themselves "The Jersey Girls," told Fripp that Best Friends, "Leads the way for all of us to follow."

Fripp's response? "There's still a heck of a lot of work to be done and we can't do it alone. It's people like you who help. There's a whole new generation doing the heavy lifting."

The mission, beginning in those early days, Fripp says, has always been a day when there are No More Homeless Pets, and because about four million pets are still being euthanized each year in the U.S., "Our work isn't done."

By Cathy Scott

Photos by Jennifer Hayes

A matter of leverage

2009-07-21T19:17:00Z

When it comes to motivating kids to do chores around the house, every parent likes to have a secret weapon up their sleeve. An ace in the hole, as it were. My wife April and I are no different. Our older daughters, ages eight and six, are generally good about chores but once in awhile they like to protest with such fervor you'd think we asked them to go a month without chocolate or something. Sheesh!

These past couple days, however, we played that secret card as often as we could and boy was it worth its weight in gold. "Remember girls, you have to get your chores done if you want to go to Family Day..." Amazing what a little leverage can do!

I have worked at Best Friends as a writer now for a little over three years. What an amazing experience it has been for me, as well as my whole family. We all love to come up to the sanctuary and spend time with the animals, as well as participate in events like these when they happen. So once our girls heard that Best Friends was throwing a party with kids in mind, and yeah, we might have shamelessly dropped the buzz words "face painting" and "craft booth" a time or two, they were excited to say the least.

Well, they weren't disappointed! From the word go, they rushed over to several of the various booths for kids. Our oldest daughter snatched up a handful of crayons and probably drew no less than two dozen animals on the Welcome Center banner. Our 6-year-old took full advantage of the face painting table, and both of them maxed out their winnings on the stuffed animal prize game. They also loved meeting the real animals, and even had a picture taken with one of the Dogtown stars.

April, meanwhile, slipped into the massage chair and for a few minutes I wasn't entirely sure she was going to be willing to come out again! For my part, more than anything I enjoyed watching them all have such a great time. Truly there was something for everybody. After topping the day off with a picnic lunch at Angel's Landing, I think it's safe to say this was an outing the whole family will remember for years to come. Now the only question is what to come up with for our next secret weapon. ...

Written by David Dickson

Photos by Sarah Ause

If you couldn't make it to Family Day but you're curious about Harley the pig, Felix the possum, Oscar the rabbit, why not look them up on our Sponsor an Animal pages.

A mecca of animal care

2009-07-21T08:59:00Z

During this week's third "Cliffside Chat," in which founders reminisce back on the last 25 years of developing Best Friends, Gregory Castle says that when he and the other founders began building the sanctuary, none of them knew exactly what they were in for. As Brits and East Coasters, the founders had little experience of living, let alone building, in what was (and still is) essentially a wilderness setting here in southern Utah. Their first mistake was building a house in the middle of a wash.

"We didn't know what a wash was," he said, "but we soon found out."

A wash is basically a channel for floods, almost always dry except for when a thunderstorm sweeps in (which they often do in the summer here) and a downpour occurs. The wash then becomes a rather swift-moving river. "We had to build channels for the water to go around the building instead of in the front and out the back, which is what happened quite a few times," Castle remembered.

But the founders did get a few things right from the very start. Founder Paul Eckhoff, who sadly passed away in March, designed the first dog-care buildings in an octagon shape to maximize space and comfort for the dogs. As Castle pointed out, Best Friends has used that design since (the design has also become a model for other shelters throughout the world).

As Castle related, the founders have always been amazed by the beauty of the sanctuary's location along the rim and within the sandstone cliffs of Angel Canyon. "I've been here 25 years, and I still get choked up when I look out at all the beauty of this place," he said.

The founders deliberately did not build within Angel Canyon, at least in the places that hadn't already been developed before they bought the property. "We wanted to keep it as wild and pristine as we could," Castle said. The intention was to maintain "the special atmosphere" of the location, and to make sure that people would feel inspired when they came to visit.

"One of the objectives of the sanctuary was to create a special place that would allow people to see how to treat animals with respect," he said. "We wanted to create a kind of mecca of caring for animals."

And telling by the people who attended Castle's chat, that objective has been met. All of those in attendance, who have come from places as distant as Wisconsin, Indiana and Florida, have visited Best Friends repeatedly.

Two of them, Derril and Maura Koberlein of California, have been to Best Friends five or six times. They feel so strongly about the sanctuary and the beauty of the area that they've decided to move here this year, which so happens to be not only Best Friends' 25^th anniversary, but the Koberlein's as well.

"We see money being used for the betterment of the animals," Derril says. "They're more than taken care of-they're loved."

Photo by Gary Kalpakoff

If I had a hammer

2009-07-20T09:05:00Z

Best Friends founders learn carpentry on the job

It helped that they were young, and maybe just a little naïve.

When the group of friends first moved to the canyon in southern Utah 25 years ago to build the dream that would become Best Friends Animal Sanctuary, they had no idea of the sheer amount of work in front of them.

"This is one of the first buildings we built ourselves," Best Friends co-founder Jana de Peyer told a group of Best friends members, volunteers and other visitors gathered Monday inside Angel Village for one of a number of Cliffside Chats being held during Best Friends Week, a seven-day celebration of Best Friends' 25th anniversary. "Whatever you see here was created over the last 25 years."

De Peyer said that out of 25 people, "three of us knew how to use a hammer."

Everyone had a job to do. She pointed out that one of the long tables people were sitting at in Angel Village's dining room was built by Gregory Castle, a Best Friends co-founder and interim chief executive officer.

Once Angel Village was built, 14 of them moved out of the single-wide Airstream trailer they were living in. Angel Village was originally used as their living quarters, and with 10 bedrooms, they were in seventh heaven. It was a big improvement from the Airstream, even though some of them were sharing their rooms with 18 cats.

They came to southern Utah from a small ranch in Arizona where they operated a rescue organization, saving mostly dogs and cats from the local shelter's euthanasia list. They arrived in southern Utah with 200 animals in tow and scrambled to build runs to put them in while building permanent animal care areas. Then they took over the area's animal control agency after finding out it was just a cinderblock building where animals were brought to be euthanized. After taking over animal control, lost, abandoned and abused animals were brought back to the sanctuary in the canyon. After the first couple years, they had more than 1,000 animals.

"We were surprised that in a town this size, there were so many unwanted animals," de Peyer said.

When it came to building materials and furnishings, they were very good at making use of other people's rejects. For instance, the doors in the dining room at Angel Village came from the San Antonio airport when it was being remodeled.

"You can't have any pride if you want to do this kind of work," de Peyer said.

The founders were also good at applying for grants. A matching grant was what built Dogtown Heights. But with their growing animal population, they still had to find a way to bring in more income. So several of the founders, including de Peyer, moved to bigger cities where they set up tables in front of stores and inside airports to tell people about their no-kill mission and ask them for donations. The rest of the founders stayed behind to care for the animals. About 10 people were caring for 1,000 to 1,500 animals at any given time. De Peyer was stationed in Las Vegas. They asked everyone they talked to for their names and phone numbers and this would become Best Friends' first membership list.

De Peyer likens the early days of Best Friends to "an Outward Bound experience." But somehow, everything worked out.

"People always ask me, ‘Is this the vision you had? And I say, ‘What vision?'"

What is de Peyer's advice to others starting rescues and sanctuaries? First of all, don't put all your eggs in one basket. You must build a broad base of support.

Someone asked de Peyer if the founders were proud of what they'd done.

"I can't really say I'm proud of what we've done, because we didn't do it," she said. "It was you guys."

By Sandy Miller

Photos by Molly Wald

An oasis in the southern Utah desert

2009-07-19T11:54:00Z

Best Friends co-founder Francis Battista shares memories of sanctuary's beginning

It was 27 years ago that Best Friends co-founder Francis Battista first laid eyes on the spectacular red-rock canyon that would become home to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary.

"I came through here and I was just amazed by its beauty and size," Battista told a group of visitors Monday morning during one of the Cliffside Chats being held during Best Friends Week, a seven-day celebration marking Best Friends' 25th anniversary. On the patio of the Best Friends Welcome Center, Battista shared his memories of Best Friends' early days as hummingbirds buzzed around the feeders behind him, oblivious to the crowd that had gathered around them.

Battista saw the breathtaking piece of real estate in southern Utah as the perfect place for an animal sanctuary. But reality soon set in. How on earth would he and his fellow founders ever be able to afford it?

At the time, the group of friends was operating a rescue organization on a shoestring budget on a ranch in Arizona, mostly saving animals from the euthanasia list at a local shelter. The ranch had served them well for a time, but now they were running out of room. The search for a larger piece of property was on and Battista, who had a background in real estate, hit the road armed with maps from the Bureau of Land Management.

Kanab Canyon, as it was then known, had once been a film set for B-Westerns. But the Westerns had lost their popularity and the canyon was now owned by a local outfit called Golden City Tours. Its stockholders, a group of locals from the nearby town of Kanab, seemed willing to at least consider the idea of selling the property. To them, the property had become a "white elephant" and was mostly being used for cowboy cookouts and hayrides. Battista's fellow founders came to have a look at the property and they were as taken by it as Battista. Together, the founders managed to scrape up $5,000 for a down payment on the property.

A growing organization

When it came to building what is now known as Best Friends, the founders had their work cut out for them. They'd moved on to the property with some 200 animals in tow and scrambled to build runs in which to keep them while they constructed buildings on the property.

"We all worked out of a Time-Life do-it-yourself book," Battista said.

Meanwhile, they also discovered that the local animal control was basically a small cinderblock building in town where animals were brought to be euthanized. That didn't sit well with their no-kill philosophy, so Battista went to have a talk with the town mayor who was watering his lawn at the time. He asked if Best Friends could take over animal control and the mayor, hardly looking up, simply said, "Yes."

The founders started bringing the area's lost, abandoned and abused animals back to the sanctuary and it didn't take long for the animal population to grow. In just two years, they had between 1,200 and 1,500 animals and no money coming in. They knew they had to get serious about creating an organization and building support. So some of the founders started traveling to bigger cities where they set up tables in front of stores and told people about their no-kill mission and asked for donations. They asked everyone they talked to for their names and phone numbers and that's how Best Friends' membership list was born. Many of those people they first talked to a quarter of a century ago are still Best Friends members today.

Best Friends later added educational programs and rescue missions. When Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast back in August 2005, Best Friends was first on the ground and last to leave, rescuing and then reuniting or finding safe havens for thousands of animals lost or abandoned in the storm.

Today, Best Friends is the largest animal sanctuary in the United States. But its founders, no matter how many challenges they faced along the way, never strayed from their mission to bring an end to the killing of homeless pets in shelters and to create a better world through kindness to animals.

Best Friends has come a long way since breaking ground on the sanctuary a quarter of a century ago.

"I could never have imagined Best Friends would become a force for good around the world," Battista said.

Larry and Beth Erdman of Keller, Texas, were two of the people who stopped by to listen to Battista on Monday. In many ways, they see themselves in the same place the Best Friends founders were 25 years ago. The couple operates a rescue called Little Orphan Angels which places dogs and cats in foster homes until permanent homes can be found for them. In its eight years of operation, Little Orphan Angels has found forever homes for more than 3,000 dogs and cats.

And now, Larry and Beth's organization is experiencing growing pains. Where do they take it from here? Listening to Battista gave them hope for the future.

"It was so very inspiring," Beth said.

By Sandy Miller

Photos by Molly Wald

Photo op with "DogTown" stars draws a crowd

2009-07-19T09:14:00Z

Folks crowded in three-deep today at the Angel Village courtyard to have their photos taken with two of the stars from "DogTown," the National Geographic Channel's series about the life-saving work happening at our dog care area. The two stars were Best Friends animal behavior and training consultant Sherry Woodard and Best Friends medical director Dr. Michael Dix. Also on hand for photos was Woodard's dog, Miles.

It was hard to say who hammed it up the most, though my vote would go for Miles.

Folks lining up were excited to see their heroes, Woodard and Dr. Dix. Most wanting their picture were, understandably, kids. But that didn't stop Lawrence Van Atten and her friend Cynthia Sweet, two adults from the Boston area, from getting in line.

"I felt like I was getting my picture taken with Brad Pitt," said Van Atten after getting her photo taken with Dr. Dix. "It was great."

She and Sweet traveled to Best Friends from an animal welfare conference in Los Angeles. Both are deeply involved in the welfare movement. Van Atten works for International Animal Rescue as the manager of the organization's U.S. office, while Sweet sits on the board of Cape Ann Animal Aid, a non-profit animal rescue in Gloucester, Mass.

Both said that coming to Best Friends, and meeting the likes of Dr. Dix and Woodard, has inspired them.

"We're motivated to go back home and start our own Best Friends," Sweet said.

Photos by Molly Wald

Best Friends Week kicks off with run/walk

2009-07-18T22:36:00Z

On a hot but bearable morning, Best Friends Week launched today with the 25^th Anniversary 5.5K Fun Run/Walk through our sanctuary here in southern Utah. Twenty people from as far away as Indiana, Georgia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina and even Canada participated. As expected, some ran, some walked, but all traveled the same route from Angel Village down through Angel Canyon. With its soaring red-rock cliffs and lushly floral bottom, the canyon is one among many enticements that brings people to the sanctuary.

"This was the most scenic walk I've ever done," said Fiona Thom of Ontario, Canada. Thom arrived a few days ago to volunteer at the sanctuary. Like thousands of others who have made the sanctuary their vacation choice in the last few years, she learned about Best Friends from watching "DogTown," the National Geographic Channel's series about the life-saving work Best Friends does with dogs.

JaNae Willis and Jo McFadden, two elementary school teachers from nearby Kanab, decided to participate in the walk/run after seeing an announcement in the local paper. They came to support Best Friends because they appreciate our educational outreach, and often bring their students up to the sanctuary to be in one or another educational program we offer.

A few spectators did turn up for the walk/run, though none did much cheering. The horses had their noses too deep in the hay to pay the participants much mind. And the wild turkeys just happened to be passing by, probably on their way to our wildlife rehabilitation center to take advantage of the free feed there.

Everyone survived the heat and arrived at the Welcome Center in good shape to the welcoming sight of dozens of hummingbirds sipping from the feeders that hang from the building.

photos by Molly Wald

Anniversary crescendo

2009-07-17T13:06:00Z

Best Friends Animal Society isn't the only organization in the Kanab neck of the woods celebrating its 25^th anniversary. The Symphony of the Canyons is also observing its silver anniversary.

To commemorate these milestones, Best Friends and the symphony, along with the Canyon Singers will host a big blowout celebration with a free concert to mark the end of Best Friends Week. Check out the calendar of visitor events during the week.

The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. on July 25 at Angels Landing at Best Friends Sanctuary. It's the first time the symphony has played at this venue; it's also the first time we've hosted an official event open to the public at Angels Landing.

The symphony will be conducted by Kortney Stirland.

Best Friends founder and symphony violinist Virgil Barstad says the show will have something for everyone: some light pieces, poignant choral arrangements, Gilbert & Sullivan "rewrites," popular contemporary songs and classical favorites.

Also featured will be an original Barstad orchestral piece, "If a Bear Goes Waltzing in the Forest, will his True Love put on her Tutu and Join Him?" (IABGWINTFWHTLPOHTAJH for short.)

"It's thematic," he explains. "It's a waltz between an 800-lb bear and his true love who weighs only 600 lbs, and hence, is lighter on her feet. The bears are eventually joined by all the creatures of the forest - all the players of the symphony."

Barstad has been a member of the symphony since 1994. Over the years, he's noticed that thanks in part to the symphony, Best Friends has become more integrated into the greater Kanab community; and vice versa.

"I remember we [Best Friends] were pretty aloof in the community at first, but all that's changed. We have more of a ‘face' in Kanab, we're more supportive of the community and they of us. I think the symphony has done wonders to help bring us together."

April Dickson, wife of Best Friends writer David Dickson, is an accomplished viola player who has played with the symphony for three years. Truth be told, when she first joined, she was the viola section! That has since changed with the addition of more string players.

"We're growing, that's for sure," she says. "And there's just so much talent in this group; it's pretty inspiring."

April's favorite piece in the show is the "most fiddley one" - "Pops Hoe-down," by Richard Hayman. She also notes it's rather appropriate that the symphony take on Lalo Schifrin's edgy TV theme song, "Mission: Impossible."

Other members of the Best Friends family will be featured in the concert as well: Barstad's wife, Mary McDonald, directs the Canyon Singers (formerly known as "The Choir That Sang Handel's ‘Messiah.'") Under her direction, the choral group has grown and taken on increasingly more challenging pieces, including another Barstad original :his music elaborating a poem about an old man and his dog.

Speaking of dogs, Best Friends dog trainer Ann Allums will play a flute solo on one piece and a vocal duet on another.

And keep an ear out for an ensemble of 10 Best Frienders performing what Barstad describes as "a fundraiser spoof sung by birds."

"You'll just have to be there to know what I mean," he says.

Attendees are encouraged to arrive early, park at the Best Friends Welcome Center and catch a free shuttle service to the concert site. Refreshments will be sold on the night of the show.

Written by Amy Abern

Thank you

2009-07-15T14:27:00Z

One of the final events - and one of the most important - marking Best Friends' 25th anniversary is Visitor Appreciation Day.

That's because, without visitors and volunteers, Best Friends could not do the work it does, pursuing the goal of a day when there are No More Homeless Pets. Dedicated visitors donate their time sitting, walking, playing with and helping feed the dogs, cats, birds, horses, pigs, goats and other animals at our sanctuary.

So, in appreciation of you, our visitors, Best Friends at large - all employees and founders - are saying on Visitor Appreciation Day a great big "Thank you" for your continued support, both in time and donations.

It's an all-day event at the Welcome Center on July 25, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

I remember the first time I visited the sanctuary in 2000. What a place it was. I went on the tour, of course, and learned the lay of the land. I volunteered at the Ridge, behind the Best Friends Clinic where all the dogs lived before The Heights across the road was built. The sanctuary, to me, seemed to operate as a mini-city with staff members and volunteers caring for the animals.

I started with Best Friends as a volunteer in Las Vegas, working with the mobile adoption team. I'd heard first-hand, from employees and fellow volunteers, all about the sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. Hearing about it was one thing; seeing it was quite another. What struck me immediately about the weekend mobile adoption events was that I couldn't tell the difference between volunteers, staff and managers - everybody was equally friendly, helpful and, most of all, they cared deeply for the animals. The sanctuary was no different. I've been a big fan ever since.

Visitor presence alone, coming to the sanctuary and seeing first-hand how the animals are cared for and chipping in with their time to help in the day-to-day operations make it all possible. Most of all, it makes former homeless and discarded pets' lives much happier.

So, let Best Friends staff and founders thank you personally by stopping by the Welcome Center for a fun Visitor Appreciation Day where you can meet employees, founders and fellow visitors.

Written by Cathy Scott

Welcome Waggin’ social

2009-07-15T06:24:00Z

Best Friends is breaking out the Welcome Waggin' for volunteers as part of its 25th anniversary festivities.

The intent of the Welcome Waggin' socials is to make visitors feel even more a part of life at the sanctuary. It's a place where volunteers and staff sit together on the Welcome Center's outdoor patio, exchange stories about their experiences with the animals, and get to know each other.

It happens each Wednesday evening, from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., but for Best Friends Week, even more visitors and staff are expected.

"We have between 25 to 40 people in attendance each week," says Pat Guerrero, who lives in Kanab and donates her time as a volunteer coordinator for Best Friends. "I'm expecting a larger-than-usual turnout during Best Friends week."

One Welcome Waggin' Social stands out for Guerrero as an example of the camaraderie that develops at them.

"One night, in particular, at the end of the evening several of the volunteers who had been sitting together and had just met started to exchange e-mail addresses so they could keep in touch when they all returned home," Guerrero says. "One woman was watching this, and she asked me if she needed to have signed in too."

Guerrero told her no, there wasn't anything special she needed to sign. She told Guerrero, "Well, I see everyone writing things in little notebooks. I thought I had to sign something." Guerrero explained that what everyone was writing down were the e-mail addresses of the new friends they'd made, and she encouraged her to exchange e-mails as well.

And that's what the Welcome Waggin' is all about - sharing, meeting and exchanging, Guerrero says. She's received comments from volunteers that they've greatly appreciated the Welcome Waggin' as a place to gather.

"It gives them something to do with part of their evening, and it's a chance to meet other volunteers, and also a founder or two, as there are always one or two founders in attendance," Guerrero says.

So, if you'd like to meet a founder or two and get together with fellow volunteers and Best Friends staffers over light snacks and beverages, put 5 p.m., July 22, on your calendar.

Written by Cathy Scott