Giving Thanks in a Problematic Year

This is the time of the year when we close our books on the fiscal year, and as such, we see the businesses and individuals who have donated to our projects, both in cash and supplies. We also look at the volunteers who have given their time and labor for nothing more than the enjoyment of working with sheep, doing good works, and the knowledge they acquire. Midway through the year the song Reason by Unspoken came to dominate my playlist. It is a really good song, but the first two lines did not match the year we were having:

This year’s felt like four seasons of winter
And you’d give anything to feel the sun

I realize in 2020 things have been all sideways, and not all has been well for many, but we have seen blessing after blessing in both volunteers and donations.

Once again Sage Woolens has been a major supporter of our programs, consistently helping to keep the sheep happy. Their donation to the fencing of the new pasture was phenomenal, and quite timely. We were three weeks out from starting the fencing project when they notified us that they were sending a sizable check. Our practice of not soliciting donations applies to our benefactors the same as any other individual. We don’t. So when they told us the check was on the way, it was both an unanticipated and wonderful blessing.

The generosity of Idaho Farm Animal Sanctuary (IFAS) was amazing. In October, completely on their own, they used their platform and network to do a fundraiser benefiting us. What nobody but our board knew, was that in June we needed a little more cash to finish our new pasture. One of our donors who supplies matching funds contacted us, and offered to advance us matching funds if we needed it to finish the project. We took the advance knowing that by the end of the year we had to have additional donations to warrant the matching funds. After a week of prayer, we let it go and forgot about it. In November when we received the check from IFAS, it not only covered the advance of matching funds, but qualified us for additional matching funds which went to our winter hay.

Golden Valley Vinegar Once again the folks over at Golden valley Vinegar supplied us with apple cider vinegar for the sheep. Most people do not know this, but where humans prefer sweet, sheep prefer sour. Apple cider vinegar is both a treat to them, and a tonic for the rumen. We are happy that they have

We would like to tell you all about the anonymous matching funds, but they are anonymous. They covered a large part of our costs this year, and we already have a commitment to as much next year as well.

We are very thankful for the many volunteers who have been helping out this year, we have hit an all time high in the sheer number of volunteers, which was surprising considering this has been a year of covid and gathering restrictions. Some of the volunteers were only in the area temporarily. We cherish their contributions and are attempting to keep in touch with them. Thanks to the internet, Germany or Georgia is as close as the keyboard or phone. We continue to pray that they are both bold and effective in their labors. We will dive deeper on the volunteers in another post.

In review the year seems to have gone more like the Anthony Brown & group therAPy song B.O.B Bounce.

You wanna see a blessing just look at me
Don’t hate, take it up with God, He did it.

Your Invitation to the Next Board Meeting

The next RescEwe board meeting has been set for 10:00 am Saturday December 26th at Jolts and Juice Coffee in Caldwell. This is an open board meeting, and the public is always welcome to attend. We welcome your input. Even if you have no input, just come on out, and enjoy some coffee with us.

If you feel you want to up your involvement with RescEwe, and perform a valuable service at the same time, you can volunteer for the Advisory Board. This meeting is your best opportunity to set things in motion. An important point we need to make, is that our board members do not have to be located in the Treasure Valley area. Our board members have, and still live in different states, not just Idaho. We understood from the beginning that a diverse knowledge and skill set will make our boards more effective. As such, most all board work happens online with no need for face time for those outside the area. This also means that the board members can fulfill their duties pretty much on their own schedule. It just requires a commitment to participate.

We will still be using Discord to connect to our remote attendees. If you do not already have access to the Discord server, contact us to let us know and we will set you up with access . Due to the Covid, we may have to have a totally online meeting this year, but it is looking unlikely at this time. We have an alternate location under consideration in Homedale if Canyon County tightens their restrictions.

We look forward to hearing from, or seeing you there.

To find Jolts and Juice on google maps