68 THE COASTAL BEND MAGAZINE • Fall 2018 TheCoastalBend.com Wanted: Kind People and Caring Homes Pets #1–#9 are at Animal Friends of Port Aransas, (361) 749-5941, afpa.inc@gmail.com Pets #10–#20 are at Gulf Coast Humane Society, 3118 Cabaniss Rd. in Corpus Christi, (361) 225-0845 Animal Kingdom throughout South Texas. Most Coastal Benders know of Fallen Horse Rescue not from the occasional news sto- ries about abused horses that they have taken in, but from the tagged-on messages by jeweler, Denny Bales, to his paid TV commercials. This is a practice Bales has been doing for decades, mostly for the Gulf Coast Hu- mane Society, and he deserves credit for millions in do- nations and volunteer hours over the years. This year, Tom Armstrong extended his efforts to save animals to the City of Mathis animal control de- partment, which, due to antiquated practices and little budget, was a 98%-kill shelter for dogs. Seeing the suc- cess of Fallen Horse Rescue in rescuing pack animals, grazing livestock and dogs at its facility, Mathis Police Chief Pete Saenz and the City’s Animal Control Officer, Tommy Patterson, turned to Armstrong for a way to change policy and practices that they were not proud of. In January, Tom Armstrong took on the job of Ken- nel Attendant at the City of Mathis animal shelter— on the very day he started, it became a 100% no-kill shelter, as a condition of his employment. In the eight months since, with rare exceptions for animals that could not be saved, Armstrong has rescued over 500 dogs, finding them homes through local organizations like the Gulf Coast Humane Society, Shelter a Mutt, and For the Love of Strays, and even across the country in communities where no-kill, spay and neuter and other efforts have actually resulted in a shortage of dogs for families who want one. Imagine that! Tom and his supporters are not wealthy people— what they do comes from the heart, it is not rational, and the rewards are slow to come and without expecta- tion of reciprocation. These are acts of kindness, empa- thy and faith. There is no other explanation, and those of us who wish we could do more in our own lives are lucky to have guys like Tom—he just needs our help, and he will do the hard work—but Fallen Horse Rescue should be funded in a large, reliable and sustained way. Some of the wealthiest and most generous South Texans ensured the financial health of the Amos Rescue Keep in Port Aransas, which operated for many years as a labor or love by Tony Amos and his volunteers, but which became exponentially more effective at its mis- sion when the mission could remain the top priority. Every moment Tom Armstrong is making deals to get free hay, or appealing for reduced medications or vet- erinary services, or working his list in search of small donations, are moments when he is unavailable to carry out the mission of Fallen Horse Rescue. This group de- serves to be fully funded, and we urge anyone who has taken time to read this far, to consider offering help. From a GoFundMe campaign to applying for grants, Fallen Horse Rescue will take the help it receives to ex- pand its mission of salvation, as the need is great and growing every year—and ole’ Denny Bales can’t pay for it all. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20