Tuesday, Nov. 30, is Giving Tuesday which kicks off the annual Christmas giving season with a world-wide celebration of generosity. If you are charitably inclined, how do you decide which of the many local charities are worthy of your generosity?
If you’re an animal lover and you want your hard-earned dollars to make a difference, then FOTAS, the private partner of the Aiken County Animal Shelter, is the right choice for your charitable urges. Here’s some of the reasons why:
• FOTAS, working with the county shelter, saves more animals any other nonprofit organization in the CSRA. Period. Full stop. For the past two years, every adoptable animal at the shelter was saved, and we are on track this year to do the same.
• FOTAS, working with the county shelter, funds more spay/neuter surgeries for those in financial need than any other organization in the CSRA.
• FOTAS, working with the county shelter, funds more TNR (Trap-Neuter-Return) surgeries for community cats than any other organization in the CSRA.
• FOTAS saves more heartworm-positive dogs than any other charitable organization in the CSRA.
• FOTAS supplements adoption fees for active military personnel and veterans.
• FOTAS also funds the costs of flea medication, toys, leashes, pet food supplements and subsidizes equipment and extraordinary medical needs.
FOTAS is 100% supported by private donations, so your generosity is critical to our success, particularly since our annual, in-person fundraisers (Woofstock and the fall golf tournament) have not been possible during the pandemic. Plus, you can rest assured that every dollar you donate will be put to good use. In 2017, FOTAS was one of 10 charities (out of 14,000) selected for the Secretary of State’s Angel Award, which recognizes the state’s most efficient and effective charities; indeed, we meet the Angel qualifications every year: In 2020, 88.9% of our budget was spent on life-saving programs.
But, you ask, have all those private donations to FOTAS really made a difference?
You bet they have. In 2009, the year that FOTAS was created, over 90% of the animals consigned to the shelter were euthanized. In 2018, 2019 and 2020, every adoptable animal passing through the shelter was (and will be) saved – that’s over a 90% save rate – thanks to our innovative and robust adoption and transfer programs.
But there is still so much to do – the county’s intake numbers remain dishearteningly high (over 4,000 each year). Plans are underway for a much-needed addition to the shelter (called the P.A.W.S. Building) that will house two meet-and-greet adoption rooms, a multipurpose dog training room and educational space, and new, free-roaming cat quarters for adoptable felines. We will also be installing epoxy flooring throughout the new building (and hopefully in all the adoption kennels) to ensure a safe, hygienic, slip-resistant environment for the animals. This new addition will give us more space and more tools to prepare every animal to be a well-behaved, healthy and happy family member when it is adopted.
Please send your much-appreciated donations to FOTAS, P.O. Box 2207, Aiken, SC 29802, or visit fotasaiken.org to donate online.
From our hearts to yours, thank you and God bless.
Their lives are in our hands
