April Roo-Flections

As we close the April calendar and look forward to all that May has in store, let’s take a moment to reflect.  

We kicked off the month with our 1st Guest Day of the season.  April 6th marked the beginning of our annual once a month FREE Guest Days. We’ve been hosting Guest Days since we moved to Georgia in 2016 and have met so many incredible people along the way. This also means that for eight years attendees have enjoyed a beautiful stroll around the sanctuary, learning about the rescued residents, where they came from, who they are as individuals, and how they represent the billions like them who would live rich lives if given the opportunity.

That same weekend on April 7th,  we launched our community outreach program of 2024 by attending Birmingham Vegan Fest https://www.facebook.com/bhamvegans .  This was our second time attending this truly spectacular event.  We are so grateful for the Birmingham Vegan Fest team for their continued support of FCFS, their passionate work on behalf of animals, and their incredible kindness.  Not only did they hop in a van together to join us later in the month on April 13th to participate in our Compassionate Cuisine Cooking Class Series, but they generously donated proceeds from Birmingham Vegan Fest to the residents of FCFS.  This group is simply amazing and a true example of sanctuary support.

Speaking of our Compassionate Cuisine Class, a HUGE THANK YOU to Atlanta local vegan legend and our merch perch recipe card creator,  Leigh Saluzzi, https://www.instagram.com/downyondervegan/ for hosting our April class.  Leah presented a mouth watering southern classic with a vegan twist, Southern Style Seitan and Dumplings.  The wonderful aroma floated throughout the lodge and had us all hungry for more.  The recipe was a deliciously spectacular hit! We can’t wait to announce our next class scheduled for mid summer.  Stay tuned for details.  

We didn’t stop there, April closed out with a wonderful group of volunteers spending their Saturday doing Spring Cleaning for the pig houses.  This is an enormous task that would keep the Animal Care Team occupied for at least a day. With the dedicated support of our incredibly awesome volunteers, this task was complete in a matter of hours. The pigs were excited to push the fresh straw around to create their new beds. Thank you volunteers! After all the hard work we finish each Group Volunteer day with a vegan potluck, a long standing and scrumptious FCFS tradition. When the potluck wrapped up, we offered watermelon rinds to the pigs. One of their favorite snacks!

We are so excited for  Sanctuary Season … Guest Days, Cooking Classes, Community Outreach, Volunteer Days and more … We love swinging open the sanctuary gates and welcoming visitors to learn more about our mission and the important work we are doing for the residents. 

We hope to see you soon! To participate in an FCFS event, click on the Visit or Support pages of our menu.