Road Trip: we headed to Kanab to learn firsthand about Best Friends Animal Sanctuary

Last week my husband and I drove to Kanab, Utah, to tour the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Our kitties Reggie and Rita had sponsored a fundraising brick for the new veterinary clinic and we wanted to find it in the clinic's garden area and tour the rest of the Best Friends sanctuary property.

My husband and I participated in the 8:30 a.m. orientation van tour and afterward saw additional areas and met with Best Friends Co-Founder Jana de Peyer (that's Jana and I pictured together in the lobby area of the Cat World HQ).

What delightful, gracious hosts everyone on the Best Friends team was. We are so appreciative for their hospitality. You can take a look at what we saw in this YouTube slideshow video:

The Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab is simply huge... more than 3,300 acres located in the most beautiful terrain you can imagine. Some 1,700 animals...cats, dogs, bunnies, horses, pot-bellied pigs, goats, birds (and more) call the sanctuary home while they await adoption to their forever homes. Best Friends has partnerships with a network of shelters and rescues across the country to aid in forever home recruitment, plus runs adoption centers in Salt Lake City, Los Angeles and New York.

What's amazing to me is that Best Friends is just a little over 30 years old and has done phenomenal work in a very short period of time. Their network boasts 1,220 organizations and they also make grants to network partners and rescues across the country. I'm personally in awe of Best Friends achievements in the animal welfare space.

I only learned about Best Friends in 2011. In my hometown, I've served on the board and advisory council for a local cats-only shelter called Cat Care Society. Back in 2011, Cat Care Society was under a foreclosure "black cloud" on a commercial building used to house its thrift shop. Long story short, Best Friends had agreed to take some of the CCS kitties if necessary, but good news, Cat Care Society negotiated with the lender and was able to accomplish as short sale that made the foreclosure nightmare go away. Nonetheless, we learned firsthand that Best Friends knows how to be a best friend to shelters and rescues across the nation, particularly in critical times of need.

Since the events of 2011, a trip to Kanab was always in the back of my mind, but it took until this year to make it happen.

One last thing.... yes we found Rita and Reggie's brick. Take a look:

Needless to say, we hope to go back again...next time spending more time and volunteering at Cat World.

Quoting the Best Friends website: "Located in the beautiful red-rock canyons of Southern Utah, Best Friends Animal Sanctuary is home to about 1,700 animals and stands as a model for lifesaving programs that we share with others around the country." Link to the Best Friends website to learn more: http://bestfriends.org.

This Week at Cat Care Society: Earth Day Adoption Special + Free Cat Behavior Seminar

In honor of Earth Day - Wed, April 22, noon - 5:30 p.m. - Cat Care Society is having an adoption special! One day only! All cats age one year and older can be adopted for $4.22! Help us celebrate our wonderful planet, and help give a fine home to a feline companion. Whenever a cat is adopted from CCS, two cats are saved - the cat who is adopted, and a stray or abandoned cat who can come to CCS because of the space opened up by the adoption. Call our adoption team for more information: 303.239.9680. Click here for more information.

Note: The Standard adoption screening process will still apply. Click to review CCS Adoption Standards. Further, the adoption process needs to be started one hour prior to shelter closing.

Saturday, April 25, from 10:30 a.m. - 12 (noon), Billie Reynolds, owner of Good Kitty Behavior Consulting and Training, will be presenting "The Benefits of Play with Your Kitty." In this seminar, you will learn:

*The physical and mental benefits of playing with your cat regularly.
* Which toys are best to engage your cat in play and how to get your kitty to play.
* How play can help you and your cat build a stronger bond.
* How play can decrease common behavioral issues. 

Space is limited. Please RSVP by phone: 303-239-9680 or by email: frontdesk@catcaresociety.org. Location: Lower level classroom at Cat Care Society - 5787 W. 6th Avenue. Click here for more information.


Visit the Cat Care Society website at: www.CatCareSociety.org 

The Ultimate Denver Guide: Westword's 'Best of Denver 2015' is Out

For the 32nd year, Westword has compiled its list of the city's best of everything.

Check out these sections:

ARTS and ENTERTAINMENT

FOOD and DRINK

SHOPPING and SERVICES

SPORTS and RECREATION

READERS' CHOICE

Link to Westword's Best of Denver 2015 Overview

In Case You Missed It: "Adam Scott to make Denver-set pot sitcom ‘Buds’ for NBC"

ICYMI: Quoting from the Feb 20 "the Cannabist" posting:

"NBC might soon have a sitcom on its schedule set inside a Denver pot shop, according to multiple reports. And with the announcement of “Buds” — from creative team Adam Scott (from the network’s near-death “Parks and Recreation”) and Joe Mande (a comic, writer and Twitter phenom) — cannabis has broached a different aspect of mainstream media...

 ...'Buds' is a part of NBC’s 2015-16 development cycle, according to various outlets. Its executive producers are Adam and (his producer wife) Naomi Scott and Mande, and it’s the first sale since the Scotts’ production company Gettin’ Rad Productions signed a first-look deal with Universal TV in 2014."

Link to TheCannibist.co

Also check out a related posting on Fusion.net

The Denver Downtown Aquarium's "Swim With The Fishes" Leads 5280's "50 Urban Adventures You Must Try"

Quoting from 5280's April issue:

"It may not be the open sea, but certified divers starving to get wet can dust off their cert cards and test their buoyancy control in the aquarium’s tanks," according to Lindsey B. Koehler's first person review included in 5280's April cover article.

Link to Koehler's Urban Adventure Recap about scuba diving at the Denver Aquarium

Link to the full article, "50 Urban Adventures You Must Try," by Dougald MacDonald - April 2015 Cover Article on newsstands now

Link to Dive with the Fish at the Denver Aquarium Information

Link to Swim [Snorkel] with the Fish at the Denver Aquarium Information

Absolutely PR Celebrates Its Sweet Sixteen

Absolutely Public Relations is celebrating its 16th year in business, achieving key media placements for clients in both the traditional and social media spaces. The announcement is made by Absolutely PR Principal/Founder Maggie Chamberlin Holben, APR, who says, "During the past year, Absolutely PR assisted Colorado BioScience Association, Galichia Hospital Group/Kentuckiana Medical Center, Fitzsimons Redevelopment Authority, Boettcher Foundation, Colorado BioScience Institute and CID4, the Colorado Institute for Drug, Device and Diagnostic Development.”

Holben has been providing pro bono PR and marketing communications counsel, plus board and advisory board service, to Denver’s Cat Care Society since 2011.

Absolutely PR specializes in media relations, the strategies and tactics necessary to achieve impactful editorial placements in the international, national, trade press, local and social/digital media space. Visit http://www.AbsolutelyPR.com.

Link to the full release including a recap of recent placements and coverage

DBJ: "Forbes names 7 Colorado employers among America's 500 best"

Quoting from the March 31 DBJ posting:

"The best places to build a career and punch the clock include seven companies and organizations in Colorado in Forbes' inaugural "America's Best Employers" list released Tuesday.

Forbes' list includes 500 private- and public-sector employers in 25 industries across the nation that it says offer job seekers the best situations."

The seven Colorado companies showcased include: Cherry Creek School District, U.S. Air Force Academy, Arcadis, CH2M Hill, Level 3 Communications, Chipotle Mexican Grill and Sport Authority.

Link to the Denver Business Journal posting

Link to the full list at Forbes.com