Dear Animal Lovers, Advocates, Rescuers & Activists:
Such gratitude to the many of you who have written me personal notes re: retiring the C4P Animal Rescue Newsletter, and your kind words regarding publication of same. I deeply appreciate your kindness, your support, and intensely value our shared bond and community action, in helping the voiceless.
The first newsletter that was published (via regular email back in the day) was on December 26th, 2005. I was a mere 45 years old at the time (I'm coming on 58 in 2 months...) I had just returned from Hurricane Katrina, and we had some 60+ dogs looking for homes. Emails to a small mailing list morphed into the newsletter, which has (with more than a little help from my friends) developed into, and now enjoys, a market reach of some 5K every Sunday. That's pretty cool.
I'm intensely grateful for the insane trajectory this newsletter has taken since 2005.
First, I'd like to publicly praise and thank:
My darlings Cyril, Max, Missie, Mademoiselle Misha, Choules and Mary Anycat. Captain Paeter. Stormont. StarStar. Charlie. Never & Beau. Gretschen. Happy. Baby Lu. Francis & Lloyd, et al. Mosey, King, William et al. And precious Tedman...
Next, my sincere thanks to the stalwarts:
Mary Dwyer-Nadon
Lori Nadon
Gayle Swann, Superstar
George Rowley
My dear, dear friend, A.S.A. Harrison (AKA Susa)
Leslie & my second mom, Norma Cockwell
Leanne Fry
Mister Lawrence Pinsky
Laurel Toews
Juli Cat Kaiss
Dearest Ariel Lang
Kimberly Ford, C4P's quiet voice of reason!
MARK MARREN!
Paul Cuthbert
Heather Babin & Paul Kelman
Ellen Moore (& her lovely sister)
Judy Waldman
Bonnie Deekon
Pam (and darling Heidi) Perez
Meg Brubacher - where are you now Meg?
Dr. Charlie - finest Heartworm advice ever!
Francis Battista et al, Best Friends
Marie Lynn Hammond
Donna McMillan
Anne Middleton & Gord Peterson
Paul & Lola & Gary and everyone from the Annex, who hauled Stormont's ass up the Bathurst Street stairs so many times...
And the beautiful man who ran the pet food store in the Annex, who loved Missie to bits, who hosted and honoured Max & Cyril - I'm sorry I can't remember your name, but I was deeply grateful to you for your generosity of spirit towards my goons...
Carol & Deb Enberg - bless your beautiful souls
Cindy & Jim Henderson
Amy Jackson - BRAVE woman alert!
Nancy & Rich for taking such fine care of William Dog
Gervais Vignola & Richard Patterson (WTH?)
mediaINTELLIGENCE staff - esp Adrianna Carlin and "Special K" Karen Young
John Doyle (you ROCK John), George Gamester, Antonia Zerbisias, Jane Weslowsky, Rhondi Abramson & The Toronto Star
Anne Romney, et al, CityTV (esp for hosting Cyril in the newsroom with Anne & Gord at 5:00 pm - Goon had SUCH a blast!)
Spin SFX Productions and their respect for my Goon
Lama Nicholas, et al, & Global TV
Meredith Birchall, et al, CTV
Jack Nagler, et al, CBC
Kenny Yum et al, fmr. Huffington Post
John Pannikar, Paranormal TV
All the dudes/gals at CNN
Mary Anne & Neil & GRACE!
Lorraine Houston
James McLean and every last person at Toronto Animal Services, esp Dispatch!
My dear, dear friends Darlene & Paul & Clovy, Ringo, & Tito Pellman
Dalton @ Regal Beagle in Belleville area
Bill Roberts
Michael Steinberg
Dora Sesler
Colleen Perrin
Pam Hryskiw
Toronto Wildlife Centre
Wendy Jones
Bob & Julius (goddamn Julius, you were the best) &
Andrea Margles
Deepest thanks to Drs. Attila & Marta Koroknai & Lilia, Irena, Joy, Marika, Max, Ada, et al, at Bathurst/Dupont Animal Clinic
Dr. Paul McCutcheon
Dr. Jack Gewarter (bless you Jack)
Dr. Ian Buffett
Dr. Jana Kelton
Dr. Sasan Haghighat
The Toronto paramedics who assisted Cyril and I, with Max on that fateful night...
Amanda & Bryce Baker
Mike, fmr. THS investigations agent
Kara Burrow & Chris @Ralphy's Retreat & Farm Sanctuary
Ladybird Animal Sanctuary - love you girls!
Carrie McInnis, et al, Home Free Farms
Andrea & Ed Vannater, Frog Hollow Farms
Andy Parent & Pauline, Big Sky Farm Sanctuary
Steve & Derek @Happy Ever Esther Farm Sanctuary
Christine & Frank, Evergreen Stables - saviours!!
The two Sues
Avrum
My Jim
Sylvia & Rejean Cleroux
Rose Nadon
All the shelters/SPCA agencies who took me at my word, esp Oakville, Quinte & Windsor Humanes
Mr. Frank Klees
Aunt Josephine
The Chateau Laurier -- Mademoiselle Stella offre ses sincères remerciements
MICK McMICK - you friggin' elf!
Dean Ward
Debbie Petitclerc -- for her kindness to Choulie, and Shirley Petitclerc, for her kindness to me and mine
Al & Luke & Connie & Frank Savazzi
Scott & Penny
Marnie Montgomery
Nancy & Marc Brouillard, Pam Davidson, Liz West
The uber-cool Tammie DiPiettro
Larraine Brown
Mallory & Catherine & my friend Jacques Montpetit
Roz Gelade
Gillian Stevens
Dana Stone
Every last one of my Irish cousins...including Sue Mandla
Danielle DiVincenzo for your strategic capacity. Seriously, sister, you taught me what no one else could/would!
Ma tante Lucille
Jodie Murray
Kaila and Kyshe Stratton
Zeke & Cheryl Zieman, who started the whole bloody thing
Michael Sack - goddamnit it Mike, where are you?
Seriously, there's hundreds more peripheral players, that I owe thanks to, like Calvin & Francine Neufeld, Perry, Barb Selkirk, Bev Sands, Judith Murray, Erika, Helen, Linda Power and Jackie Parkins, too numerous to name -- folks that have contacted me through the years for support for hundreds of animals types, situations, best practices, programs, and successes. To the many of you who have donated funds to C4P animals, those who donated garage sale items, and everyone of you who reached out for support with an animal "situation" or, who reached out to support an animal we were working on (esp those who adopted animals), and everyone who participated in RescueDiaries... YOU ALL ROCK.
I did the math on the newsletter a few years ago...S
ay on average each newsletter has 20 advocacy items, X an approximate 45 weeks per year (900), X an approximate 150 shares per newsletter (135K) X 12 years: that's 1,620,000 shares/actions. That's just a rough, low average, and doesn't even include Facebook analytics. But it certainly is a testament to all of you, and shows just how much you've shared; how much market reach you've given animals through the newsletter; and how much education/awareness you've raised! Well over 1.5 million positive actions for animals. Please take a bow, each and every one of you.
Well done Goon, Max, & my darling Mo, and my kits Choules & Mishe. This newsletter was created to honour you, your lives and your legacies. I've simply been the vehicle -- but you were the inspiration, darling little ones...
Now, my job is to immortalize your individual contributions through your personal stories... Stay tuned, much more to come!
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Our very own
Leslie Bisgould at TedXUofT! "It's Time to Re-evaluate Our Relationship With Animals"(thanks Juli Kaiss for sharing!):
