RHONDA'S HILARIOUS CALL TO ACTION

 I could hear the panic in her voice the minute I answered the call.

     "Guess what? I'm moving in," my cousin, Rhonda Estes, blurted into the phone. I held my breath, wondering if she meant she was moving in with me. Our conversations always began like that, with her asking "Guess what?" and then rolling right on into it, whatever it was.

     "We're out of money," she continued, " and I'm concerned about the animals so I'm locking myself inside the kennels for 30 days to raise funds."

     Rhonda, the adoption coordinator at the Madison County Humane Society in Anderson, Ind., had faced closure before when their former treasurer, now incarcerated, embezzled $65,000.00 from the non-profit organization. They were still reeling from the blow.

        "Animal Shelters and Humane Societies across the nation are struggling to survive and many are closing their doors," I pointed out, "it's a tough economy right now."

     "I know, but I refuse to give up," Rhonda said, "I'm moving my air mattress in tomorrow and I just wanted to let you know where I'll be."

     "So how many dogs will you be sleeping with?" I asked.

     "125."

     Rhonda laughed. We both laughed. I wished her luck and we hung up the phone.

     On December 8, my cousin followed her heart and voluntarily imprisoned herself inside the kennels for a month. She lived on TV dinners heated in the microwave, bathed in a large tub normally reserved for the dogs, and slept on a leaky air mattress until someone donated a roll away cot. She faced cold nights in a drafty building that had no TV reception, and gave up the comforts that most of us take for granted. Her goal was to raise $10,000.00 to keep the shelter open and find forever homes for the strays. With the help of the community, she exceeded that goal. Rhonda raised a record $31,300.00 in 30 days.

     "The outpouring of love and support from the community has been overwhelming," she said, blinking back tears as she tells me about the kindness she received from strangers.

     Mrs. Fritts, a teacher at Zionsville Middle School in Zionsville, Ind., encouraged her sixth grade students to get involved. They wrote letters to Rhonda, thanking her for saving the animals. They bought a leash and collar, and took up donations, raising $139.00 for the shelter.

     "The letters from the children were a blessing," Rhonda said, "they were the best gifts I have ever received. I am going to visit the class to share pictures and stories, and thank them in person."

     Although the lock-in caused Rhonda to miss Christmas with her family, she held an Open House with Santa for her canine cohorts on December 19. He brought presents, and had a photo session with the visitors and the animals. Many people dropped off donations and supplies for the shelter, and some just came to visit.

     On Christmas Eve, as she was heading back to the kennel area to bed down with the dogs for the night, she heard a knock on the front door. When she answered it, she found a family standing on the stoop holding steaming trays of food.

     "Turkey, stuffing, candy and fudge--complete strangers brought Christmas dinner to me," she said. "Working in a shelter, you see horrific abuse done to animals, but this experience has opened my eye's to the love, the compassion in people. It's been humbling and inspiring."

     Rhonda kept a daily journal of her adventures from the inside as a reminder of those blessings.

     "The dogs are fun to be with," she said, "and I think they loved having me here. The nightly howling sessions were a hoot. One dog, usually Mattie, would utter a low howl, and one by one, cage by cage, we had a whole concert going on. I didn't get much sleep, but the sacrifice was a small one."

     According to Rhonda, who has worked at the Madison County Humane Society since 1995, it takes about $20,000.00 a month to run the no-kill shelter and they rely strictly on donations.

     "We have a small staff with big hearts, and our volunteers are always ready to go that extra mile. Without them, we would be lost. If we close, what will happen to the animals? Some of them, like the dogs from the puppy mills are just starting to trust people. We will struggle, like others, but I refuse to give up."

     Rhonda was released from her beloved prison on January 8, and I'm sure she's already planning her next fund raiser. She called the other day and I let the answering machine pick up.

     "Guess what? I'm shaving my head," she blurted into the phone. And then she rolled right on into it.