Father John's Animal House celebrates 13 years
LAFAYETTE — Father John's Animal House, a staple in the pet adoption community for more than a decade, is celebrating its 13th anniversary this year.
The non-profit organization, located in Lafayette, was founded in 1999 and has since continued to strive to achieve its mission of "providing homes for cats and dogs that need them," according to Marilyn Gribler, the vice president of the board.
"The idea came from a group of women," she explained. "They saw the need in the county for the shelter and one of them provided the down payment for the building. That's how it got its start. Of the three founders the only one still here is Janet Lyons-Fairbanks. I came along a few years later, after I retired."
The animals that are available for adoption come from a variety of places.
"Some are owner surrenders. They belonged to people who can't or don't want to take care of them anymore," Gribler said. "Some have also been rescued from kill shelters as well. They were going to be euthanized otherwise. We have strays as well and we do the impounding for Sparta."
Funding the Animal House
The shelter houses dogs and cats, puppies and kittens and although it has stayed afloat for 13 years, it hasn't always been easy.
"It has been very difficult," Gribler explained. "People don't always realize how much it costs to run a shelter. We still have a mortgage and all the other bills that we have to worry about paying. It is difficult to do what we want to do. Thankfully a foundation gave us a grant to move into our new facility. That helped and we had big donations too."
Another way to finance the shelter is to hold fundraisers.
"We are constantly holding fundraisers," Gribler said. "Adoption fees only pay for the next animal to come into the shelter. We don't make money on adoption fees. We make money on fundraisers."
The shelter will be hosting a casino night on Oct. 25 from 6 to 10 p.m. at Perona Farms Barn. They also host wine and dines and beefsteaks to help raise funds.
Volunteering
"Volunteers are always welcome," she said. "They have to fill out an application and we ask that volunteers become members. The membership rates for students and seniors are $15, for individuals is $25 and the family fee is $35."
Father John's Animal House does what it can to help, Gribler says.
"People should know that we do our best to provide the best shelter we can for the animals so that we can reach our objective, which is to put animals in homes."