Lena had never heard of Rikki's Refuge in 2005 when she called Orange County Animal Shelter about an animal issue and was referred here.  She called and heard the message that we were interviewing for a job opening and left a message there before calling back about the critters.  She got a call back on Friday and came in for her interview on Saturday.

"Joe Callahan trained me that day.  He rolled up on his ATV and said, 'so you're my victim for the day?  Hop on.'  We took off and I figured it was going to be an exciting day ... or I was in big trouble!  He introduced me to the pigs and emus and goats and sheep, my first day on the farm.  I was hooked!"

"I had to give two weeks notice at my job and I know you didn't believe me when I said I'd work my days off and start full time in two weeks.  I couldn't understand why you looked at me like, darn, that one got away.  Now I do.  Like one in 10 or 20 who come to interview really stay for even the first day and more than half the people offered a job, never come back.  I don't know, they must be scared of hard work, being dirty all day long, getting trampled, stomped and bit.  I'll never understand those that run away!"

"I'd had lots of experience with lots of animals.  My husband and two daughters always loved being surrounded by critters, so we've had quite a few over the years and I know how much work goes into properly caring for them."

"I'm in charge of medicine, and the Sanctuary Manager, and I do what ever else needs to be done.  My favorite part of the job is the days I get to work on the farm.  Visiting the animals, feeding them, getting to hug and pat and snuggle while I feed and clean.  I just love feeding the farm animals, especially the pigs.  Little Rob and Petunia and Charlotte."

"My least favorite task?  Gee, I don't know, I love working with all the animals.  I guess it's when I have to discipline people.  It makes me feel mean cuz I have to make them do the job, when I'd think they'd just want to do their best for the animals.  I also really hate expressing anal glands!  It's a nasty job, but somebody's got to do it!"

"I think the hardest thing I've had to learn is how many unwanted and unloved animals there truly are in the world.  I want to see this change.  I want to see people getting animals spayed and neutered; and thinking, before purchasing a cute little puppy, that it's a life they will be responsible for the rest of it's life.  I want them to learn the responsibility and stop just thinking they can throw that responsibility on somebody else as soon as the going gets rough."

"The best part of my job is when we get somebody in really bad off (paralyzed or they've have a terrible accident) and nobody else is willing to try and they come here and we care and we love them and we save their life and make them happy.  Also every time we find somebody a home." 

"Goliath has been a very special one for me.  Animal Control called one day and said there was a goat that had been attacked by a dog and the owner couldn't care for him, could we take him.  Kerry and I went to the location and found a poor, terrified goat laying on the ground, bleeding from his mouth and from wounds on his body.  We got him in a carrier and rushed him back to the farm. His face and lips swole up and his tongue had been bitten thru.  It swole so badly he couldn't eat or drink.  Every hour I'd go out and hold cool water up and pour it over his tongue.  By the third day the swelling was down enough he was almost able to get his tongue back in his mouth.  For a week we had to make mush and help him eat.  Now he's fine and a happy goat, butting me when ever we play."

"The worst is when we can't save somebody and they die because we don't have enough money to take every animal people want us to.  People don't understand that.  They think we can just pull money and time out of our hats and take care of their problems.  It's so horrible to know that somebody is going to kill an animal because we don't have enough money for the necessities we need to save another life." 

"I've seen so much change over the years.  We've added more staff.  There were only three of us when I started.  We've upgraded the animal facilities, added the Dog Clubhouses, the new barn in Cat House #1, we've just expanded everywhere.  Our volunteers care more.  More and more dedicated volunteers have come to help, like Deloris Quick who comes out once or twice a week and brings food for the animals, does yard sales to raise money, buys a lot of food for us (the animals I mean), and just helps us any way she can when she comes.  She doesn't care how far out of her way she has to go to help the animals.  She never complains and she doesn't mind how dirty she gets if it helps us with the animals. I really respect that in her."

"I love our volunteers.  They do the little things we don't have time to do, like playing with the animals, helping to build things for them, scrubbing litter boxes, opening cans and cans of cat food." 

"I love the self service volunteers who come and do what ever we need without even having to ask, Mary Walker on Mondays and sometimes other days, Cindy Wright on Saturdays, Rene Luther several times a week, Dennis and Crystal Banes many afternoons, Candy Erhard who brings food and supplies 2 or 3 times a week, Bob Wallace who scrubs and builds on weekends and who gave me my computer so I can do the medical log, Ron Herfurth who never gets tired of all the little things I ask him to fix at cats, Kathy McLaurin who walks MY dogs once or twice a week, Bill Isen who's made the 9th Life Center so much better for us humans to work in, Kristina Anderson who joins in and works just like one of us every other Saturday.  I love these people!" 

"Yes, I dream of the future!  A real hospital with our vet permanently on site, more treatment space.  I dream of a time when there is enough money be able to take in more animals, to build more dog runs, cats runs, aviaries, to take in more species, especially reptiles and monkeys."

When asked to tell her favorite animal story, Lena begins to tear up and says, "I don't know if I can do this.  I'll never forget going to the Culpeper Shelter to pick up Lacey.  She was an older poodle mix they'd asked if we could take for her last months or year or what ever (we still have her almost two year later).  And they brought out another old, blind, deaf, legs bent with arthritis, horribly matted, white poodle they were calling Cotton because she looked like a wad of dirty cotton balls."

With tears now streaming down her face she remembers, "I knew she couldn't live long.  But I couldn't bear the thought of her dying there when her stray period was over.  After living a long life, to be lost, and to have nobody looking to find you, and to die alone and frightened, it just broke my heart.  I didn't want to leave her but I couldn't take her as she was on hold as a stray.  I ran back Wednesday to rescue her and save her life knowing she'd only have a few months at most to live, but that we could give her the place to be loved and live out her life.  Back at Rikki's Refuge it took me two hours to shave mats and mess off her.  And I named her Precious.  She was such a sweet little dog, it still makes me cry when I think how someone could have let her wonder away and never even try to find her, never called to see if she was still alive, and she would have been killed the next day because she was out of her stray period and nobody even thought anybody might want to give her a chance." 

Precious lived with us at Rikki's Refuge, going home each night with Lena, for four months.  Four very, very happy months.  How do you explain the answer when people ask, "Is it worth it?  Is all that hard work, all your heartbreak, all the time, all the expense, really worth it?"    To Precious and every other animal that's called Rikki's Refuge home, it meant the world, it meant life instead of death.  How can it not be worth it?

"I am a positive change happening in the world because I am caring for the animals and I am getting the word out to spay and neuter and to be responsible for your pet for life.  I want to tell everyone, don't dump at shelters or abandon or shoot or dump by the road - grow up and be responsible."

"Yes, I get tired, exhausted, frustrated, but I get up every day and get back to work because I know there are animals here needing to be taken care of and they can't do it themselves."

If you could take one animal home today?  "What?  Does that mean I can't take the eight dogs used to going home with me every night?   I guess I'd take, Neko, Petunia, Goliath, Jessie and Joey the goats ......  I know, math never was my strong point..."

Your message to the world?   "Animals are a big responsibility and they are yours for life - so stop and think."

"I have a special request to our readers.  We need your help, financially, volunteers, even just being there for us with moral and spiritual help.  You mean more than you'll ever know.  Please help us so we can help the animals."