Brooke USA Foundation announced that it raised $20,000 to help humans and animals affected by the Texas Panhandle Wildfires. Thanks to a challenge grant from The Isabella Moss Dattel Fund, created by a caring donor in memory of her beloved donkey, Brooke USA exceeded its initial commitment of $10,000 and has now granted funds to both the American Association of Equine Practitioners (AAEP) and the Texas Equine Veterinary Association (TEVA).
Forty-seven Brooke USA contributors rose to the occasion and raised the additional $10,000 needed to satisfy the challenge and help both humans and animals. The founder of The Isabella Moss Dattel Fund stated that “cattle ranchers are hardworking families, many of whom have been operating their business for generations. Isabella and I are proud to help and support working equines and their families. They are instrumental to an industry that has represented our country for centuries.” The Isabella Moss Dattel Fund pays tribute to the invaluable contributions made by working horses, donkeys, and mules everywhere.
More than 1 million acres of land have been affected by the fires, destroying crops, and injuring or killing livestock, among them working equines. When feed, hay and veterinary supplies were desperately needed, Brooke USA helped defray the costs incurred by AAEP with a grant to said organization.
“The fact that we were able to help so quickly and exceed our original goal is an achievement that deserves celebration. I’m proud of our donor community who came to the rescue of fellow equine owners,” said Emily Dulin, CEO of Brooke USA. Horses are among the animals affected and they are essential to cattle ranching and agriculture, two big contributors to the state’s economy.
Today, while the fires are contained or extinguished, ranchers continue to require assistance, and will continue to do so for weeks and months to follow. Recovery is a long process as people have lost everything they own, their financial well-being has been threatened, and they are looking for help to care for their animals.
Brooke USA has been working with TEVA to ensure that veterinary care continues for those animals already injured, and that feed and hay is delivered in a timely manner. Recently, Brooke USA was alerted that, due to the fires, many ranchers have lost their seasonal hay and feed deliveries; and now require replacement provisions.
“What we are facing is heartbreaking and although the fires have been contained, the need for financial assistance has only just began. The disaster recovery process is paramount to restoring, redeveloping, and revitalizing those people and animals impacted, added Dulin.
In the past, Brooke USA has partnered with organizations working on the ground to support the needs of equines and their owners – whether it was during the floods in Pakistan, the earthquake in Morocco, Hurricane Ian in Florida, or the wildfires in California.
For more information on Brooke USA Foundation, visit www.BrookeUSA.org.
About Brooke USA Foundation (Brooke USA): The mission of Brooke USA is to significantly improve the health, welfare and productivity of working horses, donkeys and mules and the people who depend on them for survival worldwide. We are committed to sustainable economic development by reducing poverty, increasing food security, ensuring access to water, providing a means to education, and raising basic standards of living through improved equine health and welfare. We accomplish this by raising funds and responsibly directing them to the areas of greatest need.
Brooke USA strives to alleviate the suffering and vulnerability of developing communities by funding and implementing programs that improve the quality of life and health of working equines and thereby positively impacting their economic sustainability, protecting the planet, ensuring gender equality, and guaranteeing life on land resilience. We want to see healthy, happy people and equines that work in partnership to achieve sustainable local economies. To learn more about Brooke USA, please visit www.thedonkeyproject.org.
For more information, contact:
Emily Dulin
305-505-6170
Emily.Dulin@BrookeUSA.org
Kendall Bierer
561-309-9873
Kendall.Bierer@BrookeUSA.org