Our goal is to build an animal shelter which will house lost and abandoned animals from the mountain communities and which will, when built, provide greater opportunities to educate and create awareness of responsible pet ownership, as well as encouraging the spaying and neutering of pets to reduce strays, prevent neglect and abuse, and to show compassion to pets and reunite them with their owners.

The end of 2009 saw the shelter building up and watertight - a lockable shell attached to 1500 sq ft of concrete with all the underlying plumbing, gas, electric and sewage infrastructure in place.

Now at the end of 2010 it has only gotten better. With the help of members, donors, volunteers, the Thrift Store and it’s volunteers, the annual Wine and Cheese event and its wonderful sponsors, we were able to make significant progress on the interior - and then finished the year with some more exterior concrete work.

Inside the shell Bob Stowell and his crew erected the steel studs, nailed in the wallboard, added insulation, put windows in the right places, and finally taped and textured the walls. Donors and volunteers contributed the many buckets of primer and paint needed to cover nearly 4,000 square feet of drywall and then spent several weeks sitting on cold concrete or climbing to the the top of 14 foot walls to to get it all on there.

Bathroom fixtures and floor were also completed - having a functional bathroom allowed us to discontinue to the construction porta potti and it’s monthly rental fee.

Fencing the entire property will be a challenge but we were able to start with a three-rail ranch-style along the road and the south side.

The Thrift Store continues to be our most effective fund raising enterprise. Sally Erikson came up with the idea for the Thrift Store eight years ago. She was the first manager of the store and although she has handed that responsibility over to long-time volunteer Judy Cadman, still works there every week. The volunteers, the donors and the customers are what make our store so profitable. Without them there would be no shelter building.

The Wine and Cheese Fundraiser last September broke all previous records for attendance and money raised. Tejon Ranch contributed a new venue in a real vineyard and volunteers Sue Alberti, Alice Crandall, Pam Wheeler, and auctioneer Knute Johnson made the most of it. Mellow music was provided by Sunjay - Sara Jane Owen - and there was plenty of fine wine, frothy brews, delicious cheeses, fresh fruit, a huge assortment of fabulous donated items for the silent and live auctions, and just a whole lot of fun in the sun. This year the event netted over $9,000 - which completed the funding of concrete for the exterior kennels!

Thank you to ALL of our donors this year. We hope that you will continue your support this coming year and in the future. Money is still needed to finish our facility and to get it operational but I know that we can count on your help in the coming months and years.

If you haven’t yet sent in your membership for 2011 please do that today. With your continued support we can finish this building and start serving the lost, stray and abandoned animals here in the mountain communities.

Candace Huskey, President

Volunteers are needed to work at our Frazier Park Thrift Store. It is located just east of the pharmacy in the Galt Center. The Thrift Store is our primary fundraising enterprise. If you would like to volunteer or have items to donate, the Thrift Store is open Tuesday thru Saturday 10-4, weather and staff permitting. Or call the store at 245-1436.