Images from Maine Part II

Images from Maine Part I

Homeward Bound

Tamela and I stopped for the night in Harrisonburg, Virginia. We arrived at the hotel around 1 am local time and immediately crashed! We woke up and were out the door by 6 am. We now have starbucks in hand (which - by the way - our friends at GAHS gave us an entire JUG of Starbucks yesterday that was incredible!!) and are on our way home. Our eta is 3:07 pm.

Here is the link to the coverage we received from the local media in Lewiston, Maine: http://www.wcsh6.com/news/article/158538/2/Tornado-Dogs-Rescued-and-Brought-to-Maine

We forgot to mention yesterday that our friends at GAHS recommended The Portland Lobster Company for lunch, which was amazing! We were quite the site to see parking our van and then sitting in silence eating our lunch! It was delicious! Plus, we had some amazing cookies, again given to us from our friends at GAHS, to enjoy for desert!

No matter how many times I've made this trip, there is always a feeling of pride the last leg of the ride home. Despite the sound of empty kennels in the back, I know the enormous impact that we've been able to make in just 3 days. It is not simply 81 saved lives, its also the lives that will be impacted by those sweet babies and the ripple effect that has on generations to come. We are so proud to have been a part of this experience. Each trip holds a different adventure and I'm so happy that I've been part of this one and that I got to share it with Tamela, one of our Board Members.

9 hours left! :)

Images from the arrival!!

a WICKED arrival!

After a whopping 24 hours on the road (sleep deprived and exhausted from worry about the dogs), Tam and I were relieved when we saw the sign to Greater Androscoggin - and you can imagine our delight when we saw balloons as we pulled into the parking lot! And ... it only got better!

As we pulled closer to the building we saw coffee, donuts, supplies and just when we didn't think it could get any better, dozens of volunteers and staff began pouring out of the building welcoming with open arms! Despite looking like a train wreck, Zachary Black greeted us with hugs!

The volunteers immediately began unloaded the dogs from the vans and getting the 4 of us some much needed coffee! Per Tam's earlier request, we got a special delivery of Starbuck's coffee! Wow!

We truly got a second wind after leaving the shelter (which is an incredible facility) and were so happy to have met such kind folks - we felt as if we had just visited with old friends. Thank you GAHS! You guys ROCK! I'll post some photos from the transfer with more photos to come tomorrow ...