Phase II of the Fence Project is Complete
We had an awesome group of volunteers out at the Blue Barn Farm Sanctuary today helping to finish the second phase of the fencing! The weather forecast was calling for 90% chance of rain. It rained all night, stopped just before we got started with our project, and didn’t open back up again until we were all sitting on the porch admiring this beautiful creation you see in the picture above. Dare I say it was as close to a perfect day as we could have asked for. It was fantastic!
The only sad part was that Sherri’s face got covered by an arm, we didn’t think to take the group photo until a couple of people had already left for the day, and we can’t see Ryan’s stripped softball pants and odd socks in this picture. Otherwise, it was a total winner!
The initial portion of the back pasture is all fenced in, the section in front of the small barn is now complete, the first stretch of the privacy fence is finished, and we are ready to begin the next phase. We’re going to post a “Before-and-After” video. The transformation is breath-taking, but there is still a lot to do.
This is the part where we put the ball back into your court. We need another round of donations to move forward with the plan. You have been so wonderful sharing all your love and support through this journey. Now that our 501c3 paperwork has officially been delivered (YES!!! Thank you Melissa!!!), we can do super cool things like create a “Donate” button on our Facebook page and website.
It will be pretty easy to use once we have it up. You will just click the button, choose your level of support, enter your information, and the money will go directly into the Blue Barn Farm Sanctuary bank account. For now, please connect with Melissa directly, or one of our board members to discuss our current options for receiving donations.
From there, we can use your heart-felt generosity to cover things like emergency vet bills, straw, food for the animals, water troughs, rodent-proof feed containers, and a million other things that are essential for rescuing farm animals. We love you! We couldn’t do it without you! We are feeling your dedication to growing kindness, compassion, and empathy! Thank you from all of us here at the Blue Barn Farm Sanctuary!
Ask, and You Shall Receive
Mojo had a photo shoot with Melissa, celebrating our gratitude for your out-pouring of generosity.
WOW! You are all so fabulous! The Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary is being graced with the bountiful giving from our friends, family, and followers. We could not be more pleased, and humbled. It warms our hearts to experience such an absolute showing of support. Here is the best part: more in-kind donations are arriving every day! AHHHHHH!!!
Pretty soon Melissa and Ryan are going to run out of space on their porch.
On top of being blissed out by the love and generosity of our supporters, we are also continuing to work on getting everything ready for the animals. We spent Sunday morning working on the next stretch of fence, and cleaning up the newly fenced-in pasture (from all the construction). Then we moved into the small barn to prepare the indoor space for the soon-to-be residents.
I am beyond words when I look back at the pictures from just a few months ago. Where there was once just pasture, there is now a complete fence behind the small barn. By the end of our next fence party, we will have the fence in front of the small barn just about finished, too.
We are definitely feeling the love! Keep those donations coming in, my friends. After this next step of fencing is complete, we will be putting a major focus onto readying the inside of the small barn. Here is a peek into that next phase…
As challenging as it can be just living a “normal” life, imagine adding “opening a farm animal sanctuary” to your to-do list. Exactly. This is why Melissa and Ryan can use all the help they can get toward spreading their message of kindness, compassion, and empathy for all beings.
Together, we are making this happen! Check out the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary Wish List if you aren’t sure what we are still needing. You are amazing! Keep doing great things!
The Piggies Are Coming!!!
I’ve heard it said at least a hundred times, “If we wait until we feel really ready, we might miss our chance.” Well, there was a major need for housing for over 200 rescue pigs, and we are close enough to being ready so that we decided to offer some of them shelter at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary. The news came shortly after last Sunday’s fence party.
We had another wonderful day for continuing construction! Thanks to all the beautiful souls who stepped in and offered up their afternoon for a noble cause. There is nothing quite like sweat equity to make you feel vested in an interest! All of this hard work is paying off, and just in time, too. We received the official word a few days ago from our fearless leader, Melissa. Piggies are in the very near future! Whoop-whoop!!! With any luck, our next blog post will be about our newest residents.
As soon as we have more details, we will be sharing them with you. We are thrilled, and elated beyond words about this rather quick development in the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary journey. If you read Melissa’s previous blog post, you can see how things don’t always go as planned. This time, however, the change of plans is a good thing.
We have a BOD meeting next week, and I’m sure there will be more to write about after that. For now, know that your love, donations, and compassion for our project are definitely being felt, not just by the people involved, but by the animals soon to be living the life they deserve. A life of safety, sunshine, fresh air, and friends to pass the time with. YOUR generosity is making all of that possible!
Please consider making another donation to support the cost of feeding the not-so-little piggies who are on their way to calling the Blue Barn home. For more information on how to donate to our “Feed the Piggies” fund, send Melissa a message.
Dreams really do come true!
Thanks for stopping by, and helping to spread kindness, compassion, and empathy. We couldn’t do it without you!
With much love and gratitude,
Amy
Step By Step, Little By Little
Last week we had another spectacular day for working on the fencing project at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary. With the help of some great volunteers, we successfully finished another section of the fence, as well as set the posts for most of the area where the piggies will be living! There were a handful of new folks who came to support our mission of providing a loving space for rescued farm animals to call home. We couldn’t do it without you! Thank you so much for coming out to sweat with us, share a meal, and dream about the future of kindness, compassion, and empathy here at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary.
If you like getting dirty in the name of rescuing farm animals, and you are good with drills, saws, shovels, and post-hole diggers, this opportunity is for you! Stay tuned for the announcement of the next fence building party!
What about folks who simply cannot wait that long, or would prefer to not get super sweaty? Send us a message, and we will keep you in the loop on ways you can start helping out right this minute. We have a long list, so don’t be shy! Every one of us has the capacity to make a difference, and no effort is too small.
With love and gratitude from the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary
Part 1: Finished!
To most people, this probably just looks like an ordinary part of a fence. To the folks at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary, this looks like freedom. When it’s all finished, this fence will provide a safe, loving home to animals rescued from a life of torture and neglect. You might even say this fence represents kindness, compassion, and empathy.
A very special thanks to all of you who generously donated, making this fence a reality! We wouldn’t be here without your thoughtful gifts. Keep doing amazing things!
Want to know how?
We’re having another fence building party this Sunday, June 9th to continue our progress. Be part of the Blue Barn Team, and make a difference. We are only asking for a few hours of your time to go towards changing somebody’s life. That’s an excellent trade, if you ask me. Come over to the the Blue Barn on Sunday and help us out. You’ll be happy you did.
Tangible Results
It is official, my friends! We have posts installed for the new fencing at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary! It was a long day of digging in the soil, hauling rock and bags of concrete, sawing lumber, drilling and hammering, positioning timbers, and running string lines. Did I mention we had fantastic weather, too?
At the end of it all, we are looking at this beautiful dream coming to life. Our next order of business is putting the boards up on these posts. If you are going to be in town, and want to help out, Sunday May 26th is the date. Mark your calendar, and let us know we can count on you.
Links to Video Clips
As savvy as I would like to believe I am, in truth there are some things that I am no expert at. Take uploading videos to this blog, for example. We have some great clips to share with you all, but I am still in the process of figuring out this new website. Alas, until I get a little further along on this journey, I decided to at least share the links for these clips. I think what might have to happen is a Blue Barn Farm Sanctuary YouTube channel. What do you think about that?
January 26, 2019
Here’s an impromptu video-shoot at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary, with Melissa giving us a tour and detailing her vision for the layout of the property. https://www.facebook.com/bluebarnsanctuary/videos/445807395957269/?t=0
February 8, 2019
Creating a safe space for the animals to live is our top priority at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary. Today, we took down a 90 ft dead cedar tree that was right in the middle of the yard. The wood from this tree is being milled into boards that will be used as part of the fencing for our pigs. Check out this video clip of the tree coming down: https://www.facebook.com/Tilebyryan/videos/2592420724108218/?t=0
February 21, 2019
Moving right along… today we had a friend come spend the day with us, to mill the wood from the felled cedar tree into boards for our fencing. This quick video gives you peak into how much work went into creating the stack of lumber pictured on our blog. https://www.facebook.com/Tilebyryan/videos/2615992998417657/?t=0
March 23, 2019
It’s officially begun!!! We are clearing trenches to set the first round of fencing in place. Somebody please pinch me, because I feel like I am dreaming!!! https://www.facebook.com/melissa.patricelli.3/videos/10157363226438291/?t=3
Digging the Trenches for the Fences
Thanks to Ryan for using his trusty machine to auger his way through the clay and mud. We had a few volunteers out at the Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary helping with clearing the loose soil out of the trench once the tractor did it’s magic. Without the support of volunteers, we wouldn’t have gotten nearly as much accomplished. Thanks, friends!
Stay tuned for the next phase of the little piggy fencing project!
This post was originally published March 26, 2019 by Amy A. Ehn.
How Do Trees Become Pig Fences?
Step 1. You have a towering Cedar tree in your yard that is no longer alive.
Step 2. You are opening a farm animal sanctuary.
Step 3. You are friends with a neighbor who will cut the tree down and mill it for you.https://www.facebook.com/Tilebyryan/videos/2592420724108218/?t=0
Step 4. You build the fence with the help of amazing volunteers.
Step 5. You rescue pigs from factory farms, and bring them to Blue Barn Farm & Sanctuary.
Clearly this is a simplified version of the process. Stay tuned for more progress on the fencing project!
This post was originally published March 1, 2019 by Amy A. Ehn.
Inspiration Comes in Many Forms
I spent the last week down in the Florida Panhandle, visiting and volunteering at Alaqua Animal Refuge. They boast being the largest no-kill shelter in that area. Laurie Hood is their founder, and does a great job of making her life’s work seem easy. I can tell you for certain, however, that it is anything but easy.
In 2007, she heard about a momma dog and her newly born puppies who were all going to be euthanized due to a lack of funding/space at one of the local shelters. She went to this facility, and asked what it would would cost to adopt them all. The person working that day told her there was a $900 adoption fee for that number of pups. Laurie figured out that if she was representing a non-profit, those fees would be waived. She went home, got online, applied for 501c3 status, and returned to that shelter the next day with her “pending approval” paperwork in hand. She left with 34 dogs. That was the beginning of Alaqua.
“Since its founding year, Alaqua staff and volunteers have helped find homes for more than 15,000 animals, with up to 100 adoptions completed each month.”
From those humble beginnings, Alaqua quickly out-grew its space. They have plans in the works for moving from their current 10-acre parcel to a new facility on 100 acres. When she isn’t busy rescuing animals, Laurie is buried in paperwork. She has been instrumental in developing and implementing legislation in support of the animals living in the Emerald Coast. Indeed, working alongside the local Sherrif’s department insures that she has a pulse on the current state of affairs; including animal abuse, neglect, hoarding, and abandonment cases. Last year, Laurie, along with several other staff members at Alaqua, were featured on Nat Geo WILD TV’s Animal PD series, which highlighted some of the dangerous situations she finds herself in when she hears about an animal in need of rescue.
Alaqua is a non-profit, and runs completely on donations. Specifically, they have an operating budget of $100,000 a month. When we look at that bottom line, it is clear to see how important it is to have a strong network of community support in place. Whether we are talking about Alaqua or the Blue Barn Farm Sanctuary, we must do whatever we can to go the extra mile, and give a voice to those who would otherwise get lost in the shuffle. Find a no-kill shelter in your neck of the woods, and send them some love. I can almost guarantee you that they will appreciate your generosity. The only way we can do this work, is together.
“We believe that no dream is too big when it comes to saving the lives of innocent animals. And while we continue to grow and develop, Alaqua will adhere to its guiding purpose: to give neglected, lost and abandoned animals a second chance at life.”