By pattrice jones | Coordinator, VINE Sanctuary
I wish you could be here at sunrise on a bitterly frigid winter morning, not so that you would get frostbite, but so you could see the calm good humor with which every member of our on-site staff greets each day, no matter how dreary. I wish you could be here during the first, second, third, or fourth “mud season” of the year, to see the “socks” on goats, sheep, and cows who have ventured into muddy meadows to munch on tender spring greens. I wish you could be here in deep mid-summer, to visit with the cows in the back pasture as they beat the heat by lounging under the trees by a babbling brook. I wish you could be here in the fall, when the multicolored autumn leaves echo the colorful wings of roosters and hens.
So, in this year’s year-in-review, which I've attached to this message, we’re taking you behind the scenes at the sanctuary! You’ll meet staff and volunteers and gain an understanding of the day-to-day doings that your donations make possible. As always, you’ll also see highlights from our education and advocacy programs.
Michelle and her team of volunteers just sent out the December edition of our virtual humane education program to 66 elementary school classrooms — the most ever! The theme this month is Communication & Cooperation. This spring, VINE Press published its second book. This summer, a Vermont Public Morning Edition feature about roosters at the sanctuary helped spread the word about these misunderstood birds. NPR also shared the show on its social media platforms! This fall, we surveyed vegetarians to help us improve our Veg-to-Vegan Challenge in November.
In 2026, we will be launching a new Humane Education program for middle schools, similar in structure to our existing virtual program for elementary schools but designed to appeal to older children. We were motivated by new research showing that teens are more speciesist than adults, perhaps because they feel they must set aside their “childish” sympathy for animals as they grow up. We’re hoping that interventions in the middle school years can interrupt that trend.
These programs advocate for and are rooted in our relationships with the hundreds of animals—chickens, cows, ducks, sheep, geese, goats, turkeys, pigeons, emus, guinea fowl, and more!—who depend on the sanctuary for everything. Your gifts to our feed fund make it all possible. I thank you so much for that!
But I have to admit that I’m worried. National happenings have led to rising prices and decreased donations. In the past year, the cost of both hay and sunflower seeds has gone up more than 20%! As things stand now, I’m not sure how we’re going to make it through the winter months. We need our community now more than ever. Your year-end gift will go far.
Solstice to solstice, equinox to equinox, the seasons change, but some things remain the same. Birds need breakfast, and we deliver seeds and grains. Cows need lunch, and we deliver 500# bales of hay. Goats go gallivanting, and we patch the fence again.
None of them know about you and the others who make it all possible by sending gifts from afar, month after month, and year after year. But I see you, and Miriam sees you, and Cheryl and Rachel and Pomme and Alex and Michelle and Staci and Elijah all see you and feel so grateful, because your donations make our work possible.
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