Press Release – Mahalo Letter

Press Release – Mahalo Letter:

Rainbow Friends Animal Sanctuary dba Hawaii Rainbow Rangers – August 1, 2021
Rainbow Friends Animal Sanctuary has taken off the old jacket, namely Animal Control and
is trying out a new jacket for the future. I want to thank from the depth of my heart some special
humans and some special animal rescue/ welfare groups who have assisted tremendously during
our Animal Control Contract year from August 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021 with an extension
for transition during the month of July 2021.

First I like to thank the Spirit of Dr. Trevor Rodrigues of Aloha Veterinary Center. He passed on
a couple of months ago. He was a friend, a humanitarian and my main veterinarian for more
than 30 years. When I asked him whether he could take on another client, he said no, we are
really filled up, but then he made place for Hawaii Rainbow Rangers anyway and our daily visits
to his office continued with the stray animals who came through our doors. He and I saved a lot
of animals for humans who had no money. He did the surgeries and I paid his bills. He always had
time! Thank you, Dr. R for everything and I hope you will say hi to Papie, your beloved client.

Then i would like to thank Dr. Eric Jayne who also passed on in the last couple of months. He as
well was a humanitarian as well as a veterinarian, doing thousands of spays or neuters on the
reservations of the animals of the Native Americans. Here on this island he would come,
sterilize 100-120 cats per day, charge us for the day and not per animal, making him the fastest
and least expensive spay neuter vet known to me. Thank you, Dr. Eric. You too know Papie.

Loosing two veterinarians in two months is a huge loss and one that will take years to overcome!

Then I would like to thank Dr. Seeske Versluys of Kilauea Veterinary Services in Keaau, the best
country veterinarian on this Island. She too opened an account for the Rangers for us and we
met her on our daily trips to her clinic. She has a cash register she manually handles. She does
not operate computers and does all her recording on cards, handwritten. Her bills are
handwritten and she has been the only vet on the island who could correctly differentiate
between invoices for Rainbow Friends and invoices for Rainbow Rangers right away! Go figure.

I also like to thank Dr. Horvath of Ocean View who gave medical care. Dr Head who helped with
constructing a surgery room in the Kona Shelter. Dr. Korth of Kona who did spay/ neuter clinics and
helped with medical care. Dr. Pickerel of Aina Hou Animal Hospital in Waimea who helped with
medical care and spay/ neuter services. Dr. Ansari, Dr. Kapust of Aloha Veterinary Center who
helped with medical care. Dr. Malon of Aloha Veterinary Center who volunteered once a week
at the Sanctuary in Kurtistown giving medical advice about the numerous stray animals who had
come in. Dr. Mina of Maikai Veterinary Center with medical care. Dr. Bill of Pahoa Animal Hospital
who expertly reconstructed the hips of Hercules, the jaw of Elvis and the legs of Persiphone,
and all three of these dogs were adopted to fantastic homes. Dr. Kristina Hendricks of Good Karma
for medical care, spay/ neuter services and doing rounds of the animals in the Shelters.
Dr. Sabina Wenner and future Dr. Dottie Brown who did numerous spay neuter clinics throughout the island.

Then I like to thank a phenomenal group of citizens: The Police Force of this Island. We met the
Police Officers in the field with our Animal Protection Officers and I. These police officers were
professional, compassionate, caring, sensitive, understanding, patient and very thankful they were
assisting us in the lives of these animals and not in the killing of these animals. Many, many
thanks go to you, police officers, I will never forget our cooperation and collaboration in
assisting animals who had gone astray on this island. It is my honor to know you.

Utmost and foremost I like to thank another group of citizens: our neighbors!!!
None of us were prepared for the avalanche of need in the area of stray animals on this
island. Cows on the highway at 11 pm, a fire in South Point endangering animals, goats astray,
sheep in distress, pigs in snares, dogs shot, cats killed by dogs, you name it and we
saw it, experienced it, handled it!
My neighbors were sometimes challenged and not happy with this new situation that
sometimes went on at 1 am or 3 am. And we went through it together with our usual
mutual respect. Thank you, neighbors, for everything!

I like to thank the following Animal Rescue/ Welfare Groups for their assist at odd times:
Aloha Ilio Rescue/ Daylynn Kyles President: They transferred the highest number of dogs out from
the Rangers to their organization for the ultimate outcome: a fantastic home.
Hawaii Island Humane Society/ Lauren Nickerson CEO: They are number two on the preferred list
of organizations transferring dogs out to the greatest possible adoptive homes.
Kares Hawaii/ Debbie Cravatta President: They are number three on this list.
Advocats/ Stefanie Delmont: Spaying and Neutering for TNRM and RTF
Catsnip/ Bee Henderson: taking in numerous cats from the Kona Shelter – giving them medical
care and SN on her own cost with the purpose of a fantastic home of their own.
Aloha Animal Advocates/ Maya Dolena/ Tina Bounds/ Nawahine Kahoopii. They orchestrated the
political change from an Animal Control Kill Contract to an Animal Control Neutral Contract and
they did magnificent work in the field for the cat population on the East Side.
Petfix/ Beate and Birgit Neher with organizing numerous spay/ neuter clinics for the Rangers.
Liz Swan with her tireless work for the cats on the Kona side of this island.
Alley Cat Allies/ Becky Robinson President. For their undaunted support to TNRM (Trap Neuter
Return Management) of cats and RTF (Return to Field) of cats including their financial support.
No-Kill Animal Advocacy/ Nathan and Jennifer Winograd for their utmost and foremost support
for the No-Kill movement, their solid advice and compassion.
Best Friends Animal Society for their computer knowledge, improvements to the Kona Shelter
and numerous donations in kind.
All the Animals!

Lastly I would like to thank the Staff and the Volunteers in the Field: Marcia (my sister), Karen,
Exavier, James, Linda, Sabina, Camille, Brian, Myra, Lily, Eden, Pansy, Lani, Kelli, Dale, Cheryl, Rob,
Paul, Marge, Anastasia, Carol, Jim, Lou, Sally, Jill, Keith, Samantha, Jackie, Susann, Dominique, Taylor,
Keoni, Ryan, Lawrence, Carolyn, Guava, Angelica, Shampagne, Shayla, Kelsea, Carley, Hailey, Mikki,
Elaine, Eileen, Ken, David, Faith, Kate, Lynn, Annette, Steve, Natasha, Justin, Sequoia, Marcia, Lev,
Karen, Kyle, Sharon, Banka, Food Basket et all.

I signed the Contract with the County and the County has made it very clear that I am responsible
for everything and anything and as such I will state the following with ‘I’ and not ‘we’:

I did not kill 12,000 animals in the 11 months I had this contract, the number of animals who were
killed per year for 25 years consistently by the previous vendor. Hence, we can announce this past
year as a true victory of the ‘Animal Alive’ – ‘No Kill’ achievement.
I organized and supervised the sterilizations (spay or neuter) of 4,628 or more animals in 10 months
from September 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021. Considering that each of these animals who were
sterilized could produce a litter of 6, that means there has been a prevention of births of 27,768
animals in the next cycle.
Normally Rainbow Friends does 1,275 spays or neuters per year. Now we did 4,628 in 10 months.

Knowing this, it was peculiar that from the beginning of the Contract everything seemed
controversial whereas we did not kill, we did a lot of sterilizing and we took in hundreds and
hundreds of animals who were all treated by veterinarians around the island and had surgeries
where necessary.

My function in life is the ‘Love of the Law’. I am slow in the uptake where the ‘Letter of
the Law’ is concerned. Others need to step in for me in this area. In the last 21 years I have
not found anyone willing or able to take on this role. And it is because of this lack the contract was not renewed.

The Island could have grasped that I was setting up a start-up organization, a challenge onto
itself.
The Island could have grasped that I was setting up a start-up organization with animals
involved, a double challenge, because you can never set up while an avalanche of animals
is upon you.
The Island could have grasped that the above was a triple challenge during this COVID-19
era, where other organizations and businesses failed or just closed.
The Island did not grasp this.
The Island did not recognize what I was doing, instead had a distinct notion about what I
was not doing or not doing yet. Is your cup half full or half empty?
If your cup is half full, your life is full of joy, with a healthy work ethic and love for your
community. If your cup is half empty, your life is most likely full of grumpiness, complaints
and whines, about what life has dealt you instead of seeing that you are responsible to make
something of your life. I mentioned this to you before and you are not hearing me. Try to do
something good for your community, it will be awesomely great for your heart! Try it, I have!

How did I view all of this? With my regular state of being of unconditional love, joy and a
grin. What did I get out of this? 32 guinea pigs arriving unhealthy, wounds on their backs,
with hair loss, discarded by a breeder. Now neutered, all wounds healed, all hair returned,
squealing with joy and life, plump, eating their pellets and daily fresh fruits. They have been
adopted! 2 rabbits, JJ and Osca. Osca attacked me the likes of a pit bull breed bite. They have
a good home. 2 small pigs, males, now neutered, Peppa – a miniature Juliana and Herbert
arriving wounded and forlorn, now enjoying a good home. A pair of work pants and a
T-shirt. I gained. I served the people and animals of the United States and this Island of Hawaii
for 40 years without pay. I operate and function entirely on faith, because I am faith.
Ca va, eh? Ca va.

With unconditional love and grace,
Mary Rose

Rainbow Friends Animal Sanctuary dba Hawaii Rainbow Rangers
PO Box 1259, Kurtistown, Hawaii 96760
17-382 13 Mile road, Kurtistown, Hawaii 96760
982-5110
[email protected] Waimea Shelter – next to the Waimea-Kohala Airport