Isabelle Cobb and Janice Danielson, managers of Bainbridge Self Storage in Bainbridge Island, Wash., continue to help pets displaced by natural disasters through Kitsap SPICE (Saving Pets In Crisis Everywhere), a charitable organization they founded last year after the British Columbia wildfires. This week, Cobb is delivering supplies to the Siskiyou Humane Society (SHS) and the nonprofit Saving Shasta Cats Inc. to aid animals affected by the Delta Fire in Siskiyou County, Calif., according to the source.
The contributions were made after the women saw a plea for pet carriers from Nicole Dwork, who works for both organizations, on the SHS Facebook pages. “People don’t typically have pet carriers lying around in case of an emergency, so we needed a lot of them when the fires started and people needed to transport animals from their homes.”
Dwork said she was surprised when Kitsap SPICE reached out to her, but grateful for the support. “It’s just fantastic that they were able to provide such a great gift,” she said.
Shortly after the British Columbia wildfires began, Cobb and Danielson collected donations of blankets, cat litter, pet food and carriers at their storage facility, later delivering the items to organizations in need. “We ended up making five trips up to [British Columbia] with trailer loads of donations,” Danielson said.
After the ordeal, the two began stockpiling pet supplies in a storage unit. “People talk about being ready, but in a pinch, people are not ready if they have to evacuate their animals. So, we thought we would start putting stuff in a storage unit, and we’ll try to be ready if something bad happens here,” Danielson added.
The British Columbia wildfires burned more than 3 million acres during July to September 2017. About 40,000 animals were displaced during the disaster, Danielson told the source.
The managers also started an emergency fund through the Kitsap Community Foundation, a local philanthropy-services organization. The money raised through fundraisers and calls for donations is sent to animal shelters near ongoing disasters. To date, funds have been sent to organizations in Austin, Texas, and Ventura County, Calif. Donations are accepted at the Bainbridge facility.
Bainbridge Self Storage is owned by Urban Self Storage Inc., which was founded in 1987. The company operates more than 65 facilities in Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington.
Source:
Kitsap Daily News, Kitsap Women Help Pets Displaced by Wildfires
