After-Life Care Fund
Lifelong care does not end at death.
Full Circle Farm Sanctuary provides sanctuary through every stage of a resident's life. With the majority of residents now in their senior years, preparing for the realities that come with aging is an increasingly important part of that promise.
Lifelong sanctuary means preparing for every stage of that journey, including what comes after a resident's life ends.
During the summer of 2026, Full Circle experienced the loss of three senior residents within a matter of weeks. Their deaths brought into clear focus the need to plan not only for the care residents require throughout their lives, but also for what is required afterward.
The After-Life Care Fund is a dedicated reserve that ensures the resources needed to care for a resident's body safely and respectfully are already available when that difficult day comes.
The responsibility that remains
When a resident dies, there is still important care ahead.
Every resident requires specialized care after death, including safe and dignified handling, transportation, and cremation. The specific arrangements vary depending on the resident's size, species, and circumstances.
These needs begin after life has ended, but they remain part of the lifelong commitment Full Circle makes to every resident.
They are part of the promise of sanctuary.
What the After-Life Care Fund covers
The After-Life Care Fund is reserved specifically for expenses that begin after a resident dies.
It helps cover:
Transportation after death
Safely transporting a resident from the sanctuary to the appropriate after-life care provider.
Cremation
Cremation expenses, which vary based on a resident's size, weight, and the circumstances of their arrival.
Specialized equipment and assistance
The assistance or equipment needed to safely prepare, move, and transport a resident's body.
What it does not cover
The After-Life Care Fund does not cover veterinary treatment or euthanasia services.
Those remain part of Full Circle's resident care expenses.
This fund begins when life ends.
Why maintain a $10,000 reserve?
After-life care can cost thousands of dollars for a single resident, with the total cost varying based on transportation, specialized assistance, equipment, timing, and the resident's size.
And loss does not follow a schedule.
With the majority of Full Circle's residents now in their senior years, several residents may reach the ends of their lives within a short period of one another. The expenses that follow can accumulate just as quickly.
That is why Full Circle's goal is not simply to raise $10,000 once. Our goal is to maintain a $10,000 After-Life Care reserve.
By setting these resources aside in advance, the fund allows us to meet these responsibilities without the added pressure of raising money in the midst of a loss.
When the fund is used, we will work to replenish it so the reserve remains available for the next resident who needs it.
We hope there are long stretches when this fund sits untouched. But recent experience has shown us how quickly after-life care expenses can accumulate.
During the summer of 2026, after-life care for three senior residents totaled more than $7,300.
That experience helped make clear why a dedicated reserve—not another emergency response—needed to become part of how Full Circle prepares for the future.
Why creamation?
Full Circle does not bury residents on sanctuary grounds.
The decision involves more than logistics. Burial must take into account the safety of the residents who remain, the possibility of disturbance by wildlife, environmental considerations, and the practical realities of safely managing the body of an animal who may weigh hundreds—or thousands—of pounds.
Cremation allows us to care for residents' bodies safely and respectfully while protecting the sanctuary environment and the animals who continue to live here.
For large-bodied residents, the logistics are especially complex. Only one crematorium in our region can accommodate residents of their size, and it is approximately two hours from the sanctuary—a four-hour round trip. Safely preparing and transporting a large resident's body also takes time, and when arrival at the crematorium occurs outside regular business hours, additional fees apply.
These arrangements are time-sensitive. Caring for a resident's body safely and respectfully requires us to respond to the circumstances as they are.
The After-Life Care Fund makes it possible to plan for those responsibilities before they arise.
The lives that helped shape this fund
The three residents whose losses brought the need for this fund into such clear focus were Jupiter, Matthew, and Ewa.
Their deaths came within a matter of weeks, each requiring the after-life care and arrangements described above. Experiencing those losses in such close succession reinforced why Full Circle needs to prepare for these responsibilities before they arise.
Matthew, Ewa, and Jupiter were deeply loved members of the Full Circle family. We invite you to learn more about their lives and the years they spent at sanctuary.
Help us be ready when that difficult day comes
We cannot know who will need this fund next.
We cannot know when.
What we can do is prepare.
Maintaining a $10,000 After-Life Care reserve means the resources needed to care for a resident's body are already there when they are needed.
It allows Full Circle to meet the needs of that moment without the added pressure of raising funds in the midst of a loss.
And when the fund is used, we will work to replenish it—keeping that same promise of preparedness for the residents who will need it in the future.
Help us build—and maintain—the After-Life Care Fund.