United States
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Hello, my name is Elijah my girlfriend's name is Nicole. This is my story:
My father came up to Alaska to mush a family of dogs through the vast wilderness of Alaska. This was my father's legacy and his life long dream, and it was what some people call a "Spiritual Journey". He was only about two years into completing his legacy and then one early April morning, I got a phone call phone call from a fellow dog musher. This fellow musher began to explain that my father had passed away and told me that there were 56 of his unsocialized, aggressive Chow/ Akita mixes left without an owner. All of them were on 4-foot chains and outside in -30 below weather.
The musher called me to see what he should do with all of them. He mentioned that I could either come up to Alaska to save them (I was living in LA), or Animal Control could put them all down and just save the puppies. Fear and sadness ran through my body like an electric shock. My life changed in that exact moment, because I decided to do what was right for the dogs, and my family. I decided to hop on the next plane to Alaska. I moved into my fathers trailer and took over my father's legacy with these dogs. These dogs are my family, and I am seeing it through till the end.
This all happened about 8 years ago. Since then, some of the dogs have been adopted out, and some have passed away. Today, Nicole and I house 23 of these same dogs. After A LOT of hard work, time and dedication, they are all inside, off chains, out of the elements and they are all very well cared for. Because of Workaway and getting them off of their 4 foot chains, they have all been socialized and are all very sweet and loving. They are all between the ages of 8-13 years old and we are just giving them the most love and attention we can before they journey home to another universe. They live downstairs in their own kennels, in our unfinished 40 x 60 foot warehouse, and we live upstairs.
It has been through the kindness of strangers and the compassion of animal lovers that has allowed this situation to continue forward. It is through these experiences that we have finally come to file for a Not For Profit 501 C3, called the Planetary Health Zone, where we hope to continue to channel compassionate animal volunteers to make a difference to these animals, as well as other animals in need, in the state of Alaska.
Currently, we are looking for volunteers to not only help us with the daily routine of taking care of the dogs and help out with household chores, but also volunteers that want to help change the world by helping other animals in Alaska.
We need help us with fundraising, social media awareness, graphic design, blog entries, and building/renovation projects.
We are looking for volunteers with experience in (but not limited to):
- Fundraising
- Non-profit experience
- Construction
- Graphic design
- Social media
- Editing/ Youtube channel
- Animal rights activism
- Creative writing
We are finally at a turning point with the dogs and the building itself. We are establishing a good cause that we want to see last for 100 years.
Projects to complete:
1) Renovating the kennels so that each pack has indoor and outdoor access, so that they can go outside when they please. Currently, there are 4 packs of dogs. Upon completion of the kennel renovation, it will allow for more time to be focused on projects like: pre adoption dog education videos, educating people about the rouge dog laws in Alaska, and creating awareness about the predator control program for bears, bear cubs, wolves, and wolf pups, among other things.
2) Finish the upstairs kitchen and house projects. Our house that we live in is about 80% finished. We would like to make a lager kitchen to house and cook for more volunteers. Our last big project that we completed was an upstairs bathroom!
3) Fundraising/Website work: We have been doing it alone for so long. Now, we are hoping to find compassionate people around the world that would like to donate to a good cause.
This situation is very dynamic and has many places to help out. Tell me about yourself what you are good at and how you think you could help. Being a laid back/easy going animal lover and spending time with the dogs is VERY important to us.
If you are interested in experiencing Alaska and helping out with a good cause, along with making a big difference in the lives of these elderly dogs, as well as my own, please contact me.
Be Well. Elijah.
-------I DO NOT ACCEPT ANYONE UNDER THE AGE OF 21---------------
-------WORKAWAYERS MUST STAY FOR A MINIMUM OF ONE MONTH, BUT LONGER IS PREFERRED----------NICOLE AND I DO NOT DRINK ALCOHOL, AND WE DO NOT WANT IT IN OUR HOME--------------
Gardening
Building
General Maintenance
Cooking / shopping
Help in the house
Animal care
Charity work
Art project
Help with Computers / internet
feeding dogs, walking dogs, pet training, grooming dogs, cleaning up dog poop, fundraising, office help (filming/editing/transcribing), cleaning, media internet outreach, Facebook updates, LOVING THE DOGS
English, some Spanish
Shared warehouse space with shared bedroom above kennel. Internet, laundry, kitchen and creative space.
Things to do with time off: See Anchorage, Hatcher Pass, Norther Lights (winter), go fishing, hiking, canoeing, berry picking, bicycle, bowling, movie theater, Eklutna
Internet access
Limited internet access
We have pets
We are smokers
More than two
Max 25 hours a week
