Thursday, July 28, 2005
Let there be light.
Last week, I received seven boxes of light bulbs for the Tri-Valley facility. If you have never been to our Tri-Valley shelter in Dublin, you should take the trip. It is a beautiful place, with high ceilings, glossy floors, and spacious habitats for the cats and dogs. It's very clean, shiny, and well lit.Or at least it is supposed to be.
Over the past few months, it seems many of the lights all began failing at the same time. Which makes sense, if they all have about the same amount of life in them. They'd never been replaced since the building opened in 2001, so it's not surprising that so many are out at the same time.
So we have been working in rapidly diminishing light, in the hallways, the cat halls, grooming and the adoption lobby. We have gradually gone from well lit, to a soft glow, to dim, to downright dark in some places.
OSHA would not have been happy with us, so getting our light bulbs replaced has been a priority, and an expensive one. It's not the kind of expense that most donors think of with a smile on their face as they write out a support check.
Isn't that kind of odd? Here we are, a bustling shelter filled with devoted volunteers and staffers, funded by generous donors all united by a compassion for homeless animals.
And replacing our light bulbs is the day's budget priority.
It's the less sexy side of funding an animal shelter.
