Amante, Cerbat Spanish Mustang stallion with his son at Return to Freedom’s American Wild Horse Sanctuary. Photo: Tony Stromberg
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Buoyed by the generosity of 166 wild horse and burro lovers, Return to Freedom has raised more than half of the $25,000 needed to build a new 48′ x 48′ metal cover that will protect hay from the rain while increasing safety and efficiency.
As of Saturday morning, RTF’s project has raised $13,848 on the GlobalGiving Foundation’s website.
RTF participated in GlobalGiving’s September “Accelerator,” which pits many worthy projects from nonprofit organization’s against one another with grant bonuses awarded for the top performers. To “graduate” to a permanent place on the fundraising website, projects needed to attract more than 40 unique donors and $5,000 by Friday, Sept. 30.
RTF looked to be falling well short — until Thursday.
That’s when more than 140 wild horse lovers answered an email call for last-minute donations. At one point, supporters gave more than $10,000 in just four hours!
That rocketed RTF’s project into third place for dollars raised, earning it a $1,000 bonus from the foundation.
On behalf of the 379 wild horses and burros at RTF’s sanctuary and the RTF team, thank you to everyone who has given so generously to this much-needed project.
Here’s why we need to keep going:
With winter’s damp weather approaching, RTF’s 50-year-old wooden barn is too cramped to meet the sanctuary’s hay storage needs. Access for deliveries and daily loading of feed trucks by our staff is challenging, particularly in slick conditions.
A steel, open-sided structure built on concrete in an easily accessed area will give the sanctuary safer, more efficient storage that is less vulnerable to rain and fire. In addition, greater air circulation will make it less likely that hay will grow mold and ferment in damp weather.
A new hay cover will also enable RTF to stockpile hay when prices are low, stretching valued donor dollars and enabling RTF to focus more resources on its ongoing fight on behalf of wild horses and burros on the range.