“The good man is the friend of all living things.”
~~ Mahatma Gandhi ~~

TODAY (August 26, 2014) IS NATIONAL DOG DAY!
Would you help us support our dogs here at Rikki’s Refuge?
Make a dog’s tail wag by helping us fill a feed bowl today!
Please share this for us, thank you!
You can help us by donating at: www.rikkisrefuge.org/feedme (where ever it is needed most), donating directly to our Paypal at: mail@rikkisrefuge.org or by mailing a check/money order to: Rikki’s Refuge, P.O. Box 1357, Orange, VA. 22960. You can also order through our Amazon Wish List here:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/126FNLHBB9AGA

Phew! We were BUSY today! Tagging and pricing, tagging and pricing. Although we got a lot done, we hardly made a dent in what is in the stockroom. But, we’ll keep plugging away! We have another work day scheduled for this Sunday (the 31st) so we will be closed again. In the meantime, come and shop what we’ve put out! The clothes racks are STUFFED! And check out the Christmas! We even found some Dept. 56 Hide-a-Way Hollow items!

And look at the beautiful pumpkin/harvest table that Helen made! See the little furry thing on the bottom shelf? That’s Claudia’s way of helping. 

The cats had a blast running around all day. As the afternoon wore on, they tired out a bit, and looked for new places to relax….

And don’t forget that the Paws to the Rescue booth is half price! This is their final week — let’s empty out their booth!!!! Shopping their booth helps to save the lives of animals in a high kill shelter!

Rikki’s Refuge Re-Tail
” A Pawsome Resale Shop ”
3503 Lafayette Blvd.
Fredericksburg, VA. 22408
540-891-5300
RE-TAIL on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ReTail.org

This week’s (8/14/14 – 8/30/14) Staff/Volunteer of the Week for Rikki’s Refuge is DENNIS BANE! Thank you Dennis, for everything you do! We appreciate you!

Dennis Bane is amazing!! We usually know he’s been volunteering at Rikki’s when we see a storage area organized, a new deck built, the pantry’s been stocked, supplies have been picked up, produce has been delivered. Dennis is the epitome of “self service volunteer”. No muss, no fuss, get the job done.

Dennis walks the talk. He believes in what he does, he does what he believes in. Lends a hand, help out, leave the world a better place. Dennis just retired as a beloved coach and REACH instructor at Spotsylvania High School. REACH is a program to help teach intellectually challenged upper teens and young adults the skills they need to become independent.

Dennis has been bringing his REACH classes out to Rikki’s for years. They are wonderful kids and have helped with so many projects and fundraisers. Together they run the Duke Thomas Peabody Booth at the MinuteMan MiniMall in Culpeper, VA, USA, to raise funds for Rikki’s. It’s located right at the intersection of 522 and 3 and 29 ? Duke sells Rikki’s items, animal related supplies, and cool collectables and antiques. Stop in and visit when you’re in Culpeper !!!

They also help with pick up and delivery and sorting donations and organizing at Re-Tail, our thrift store in Fredericksburg, 3502 Lafayette Blvd, VA, 22408, USA. Dennis is often the one moving donations to and from Re-Tail and Rikki’s.

During Pumpkin Season, Dennis and his group is our biggest hauler. Everybody at Rikki’s, except the cats and dogs, love pumpkins. Hauling season is only about a month away. Let us know if you’d like to help haul pumpkins, every stand, farmer’s market, and most grocery stores want them hauled right after Halloween and they’ll give the soft ones away during the season too!! mail@RikkisRefuge.org if you will help this year!!

Time to pick up a pallet of cat food? Dennis is there with his trailer. When he’s gone, it’s all been unloaded and stacked in the pantry. For those working at Rikki’s, it’s like the cat food fairy came and stocked the pantry — no fuss, no muss, it’s all done !!!!

Every Fall, the first Saturday of November, Dennis holds Rikki’s 5K Race/Walk to raise money for Rikki’s. Rikki’s 6th Annual 5K will be November 1, 2014 at 9:00 AM at beautiful Lake Anna State Park. Entry fee of $25.00 (or $30.00 on race day) will help the over 1200 animals who call Rikki’s Refuge their home. Checks should be made to Rikki’s Refuge. Donations of pet food and/or other supplies are welcome. Awards will be presented to the first male and female finisher and the first 3 in each age group (19-under, 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60-up). Also the team with the most runners/walkers. All pre- registered runners are guaranteed a T-Shirt. The race will be held rain or shine. The race is sponsored by: Patterson’s Construction, Ed’s Awards & Engraving, VA Runner, Lake Anna State Park, Giant Food Stores, Meadows Farms, and The REACH program. Entry Forms can be picked up at: VA Runner, Ed’s Awards & Engraving, Giant Food Stores, 360 Feeds or email bugbane30@gmail.com for more information.

Dennis puts the whole thing together in his usual style. No muss no fuss. He lines up the sponsors, makes the brochures, manages the funds, organizes and runs the day !!! Thank you Dennis. I don’t think I say that often enough cuz usually I’m just looking at the wonderful things you’ve done …. and you’re gone … off to your next project.

When Dennis rings the REACH team out to Rikki’s to work, they do all kinds of things. Dish washing, clean up, organizing, yard work …. and they even built the deck for the new office trailers !!! These people are talented !!!! This kind of work teaches the REACH kids skills they can use in the world and the confidence to go out there and make something of their lives. They could not have a better teacher than Dennis. He truly loves his kids and he keeps up with many long after they graduate and have happy successful lives.

Thank you Dennis for all you do for Rikki’s Refuge …. and for all you do for the planet !!!

You’re an outstanding human being, we’re so glad you’re on this planet !!

Gentle eyes that see so much,
paws that have the quiet touch,
Purrs to signal “all is well”
and show more love than words could tell.
Graceful movements touched with pride,
a calming presence by our side
A friendship that takes time to grow
Small wonder why we love them so.

Please VOTE & SHARE for RIKKI’S REFUGE in the Animal Rescue Site SHELTER CHALLENGE every day! Thank you!
Vote here: http://www.shelterchallenge.com/web/charityusa/nomineehome?userId=53331&nomineeId=17448

Would you nominate Rikki’s Refuge in this contest from Tractor Suppply? You must like the page to participate and the rules are there on the contest portion of the page! They are accepting nominations right now! Ten finalists will be selected from the pool of nominations for the voting period. Nominations are accepted through September 1st.

https://www.facebook.com/TractorSupplyCo/app_448952861833126

Please enter for Rikki’s Refuge to WIN $1,200 worth of Dry LiveFree Dog Food from Dogswell.
Very fast entry: your email, your first name, your zip code and the shelter/rescue that you’re entering for! Thanks!
Please share too!

http://www.dailykibble.com/promo/dkrescue-dogswell/

VEGAN MOUSSAKA

5 large russet potatoes, peeled and cut into chunks (3 ½ lb.)
4 cloves garlic, peeled
¼ cup plus 2 Tbs. olive oil, divided
1 large onion, chopped (1 ½ cups)
3 Tbs. dried oregano
2 15-oz. cans chopped tomatoes
⅔ cup green lentils
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
2 medium eggplants, sliced
2 small zucchini, sliced
3 tomatoes, thinly sliced

Cook potatoes and garlic in boiling salted water 10 minutes, or until soft. Drain, and reserve liquid. Mash with 1/4 cup olive oil and 2 cups cooking liquid. Season with salt and pepper. Heat 2 Tbs. olive oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and oregano, and sauté 5 minutes. Add tomatoes, lentils, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, and 3 cups potato cooking liquid. Cover, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer 45 minutes, or until lentils are tender. Remove bay leaf and cinnamon, and purée lentils in food processor until chunky. Season with salt and pepper. Place eggplant slices on paper-towel-lined baking sheet, and sprinkle with salt. Let stand 30 minutes. Rinse, and pat dry. Preheat oven to 350˚F. Coat deep 13- x 9-inch baking dish with cooking spray. Spoon 1 1/2 cups lentil mixture into bottom. Top with eggplant, followed by zucchini and tomatoes. Spoon 2 cups lentil mixture over top. Spread half of potatoes over lentil mixture. Top with remaining eggplant, and lentil mixture. Spread remaining potatoes over top, making sure to cover completely. Bake 1 1/2 hours, or until top is browned.

Rikki’s Refuge will be at the National Capital Cat Show on September 6-7, 2014 at the Dulles Expo Center in Chantilly, VA.
A couple of volunteers are needed a few hours on Friday Sept 5th to help set up.
The show runs from 9 am to 5 pm Saturday Sept 6th and 9 am to 4:30 Sunday Sept 7th; you can volunteer as much or little time as you’d like.
We’ve got 14 passes for volunteers; you don’t have to stay all day but please leave your pass when you leave.
Volunteers – Please contact Ron Herfurth at: topcat@cstone.net
to let us know when you can be there.
The show is open 9:30am – 5:00pm Saturday and 9:00am – 4:30pm Sunday
General Admission: $10 Adults • $6 Children (under 12),
$6 Seniors (60 +) • $30 – Family of 5
For more information about the National Capital Cat Show, please see:
ON THE WEB: http://www.nationalcapitalcatshow.com/show.shtml
ON FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/NationalCapitalCatShow
ON TWITTER: https://twitter.com/natcapcat