Rescue Rebuild - Bathe To Save

Rescue Rebuild is a volunteer and community driven non-profit
program of GreaterGood.org and The Animal Rescue Site.
The program identifies animal shelters and rescues with a physical
location in need of building repairs, improved kennels, additional
exercise yards, cat enrichment areas, or other projects. After a vetting
and application process, the Rescue Rebuild team selects organizations
in most need and travels to their location to repair, improve, and
beautify the shelter and grounds in a way that improves the lives of the
adoptable pets and shelter staff and volunteers who work with the
animals every day. The projects vary from location to location and are
tailored for each build to fit the shelter’s needs.
All work is completed by Rescue Rebuild and community
volunteers, often including local college students who give up
summer, winter or spring break to participate in the project.
BACKGROUND
Rescue Rebuild (formerly Rescue U) began in 2007 as an outreach program
run by the Pennsylvania-based animal advocacy group Animal Lifeline. After
seeing a need for building repairs in shelters they worked with in Appalachia,
Animal Lifeline began taking groups of volunteers on weekend trips to lend a
hand. Over the course of the next couple of years, they combined efforts
with a local college and integrated the student-volunteer element.
In 2010, Petfinder Foundation and The Animal Rescue Site took an interest
in the program and saw an opportunity to build on the work of Animal Lifeline
to grow the size of the builds. At this point, Rescue Rebuild truly became a
national program. The program went from eking out what they could for each
shelter to large-scale renovations with budgets of up to $70,000. The team
on each build grew from small groups of student-volunteers to a true
community effort, with groups of as many as 50 people a day coming to lend
a hand. In 2014, Rescue Rebuild’s director won the Shelter Hero of the Year
award on the Fox: Cause for Paws show for completing 48 shelter
renovations in 6 months (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyPk1xDP5Fg).
Rescue Rebuild is now a program of GreaterGood.org and The Animal
Rescue Site. Using the massive online reach of The Animal Rescue Site and
the fundraising power of GreaterGood.org, we have continued to grow the
program and add new partner organizations.
REBUILD EXAMPLE: GUTHRIE, OK
Shelter Destroyed by EF4 Tornado Over winter break in 2011-2012, Rescue
Rebuild went to Guthrie, OK to renovate the
City of Guthrie Animal Shelter. The shelter
was hit by an EF4 tornado in May of 2011, and
the funding they received from FEMA was not
enough to finish construction.
From December 28 – January 10, student
volunteers from colleges in Pennsylvania and
Oklahoma worked side by side with local
volunteers to rebuild the shelter and
kennels. The impact on the community
New Shelter Building was evident, as local law enforcement,
city management, news crews, and
local volunteers came pouring in.
Over 100 volunteers came out over the
course of the project, including local
contractors, police, and students from
Oklahoma State University, University of
Oklahoma, and Delaware Valley College.
Guthrie Projects included:
New Roofs Over Kennels & Exercise Yards • Reroofing the existing part of shelter
• New roofs for kennel shading
• Repairing all kennels
• New exercise yards
• New outdoor cat enclosures
• New meet and greet area with shade
• Perimeter fencing
• Fresh interior and exterior paint
• Steel storage shed installation
• Land grading/new drainage
Outdoor Cat Enclosures PARTNERSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
GreaterGood.org and The Animal Rescue Site will work with corporate and
nonprofit Partners to create shelter rebuild opportunities based on Partners’
desired geographic location and budget. We will also work on volunteer
recruitment, marketing, and press in conjunction with Partners’ intended
outcomes. Partner will have top branding on any trip that they sponsor and rights
to all marketing materials, follow up stories, images, videos, and follow up
reporting for the sponsored trip.
We can also help facilitate any other
in-kind or product donations Partner
wishes to give to the project shelters.
GreaterGood.org will do follow up
reporting on donations as well.
Red Rover, the nonprofit disaster response organization helping out in Grafton WV & Kiln MS. POTENTIAL PROJECTS (not limited to the following)
• Outdoor Exercise Pens
(typically 25’ x 25’ or larger)
• Meet & Greet Areas (interior or
exterior)
• Installation of New Kennels
• Concrete Related Projects
• Outdoor Cat Enclosures
• Repair Chain Link
• Shed Installation
• Pole Barn Installation (for
storage or kennel placement)
• Painting (interior or exterior)
• Raised Dog Beds
• Shade Screen for Outdoor Pens (cloth,
metal or wood)
• Benches
• Coyote Rollers (prevents dogs from
fence jumping)
• Shelving
• Dog & Cat Enrichment Items
• Creation of Photo Shoot Areas
• Landscaping