Operation Kindness – North Texas’ original and largest no-kill animal shelter – had a banner year in 2017, breaking adoption records for the sixth consecutive year and resulting in the adoption of 4,889 homeless animals. Since its inception in 1976, Operation Kindness has helped more than 100,000 animals find forever homes.

“It is our goal to help as many homeless pets as possible find forever homes,” said Jim Hanophy, CEO of Operation Kindness. “Each year we continue to find new ways to unify potential adopters with our animals. The dedicated support of our generous donors, community partners, volunteers, foster families and staff help us grow each year.”

A key factor contributing to the substantial increase in adoptions is Operation Kindness’ partnership with Pet Supplies Plus. In their stores, Operation Kindness houses “residential” cats and kittens for adoption in custom-designed adoption rooms. Generous donations from Pet Supplies Plus, including an adoption trailer and funds to purchase a truck for the trailer from Muenster Milling Company, allows Operation Kindness the ability to rotate between Dallas-area stores on weekends. This year, Operation Kindness was able to expand community adoptions throughout the Metroplex, bringing more adoptable animals to the community.

In order to expand community services, Operation Kindness introduced the Pet Food Pantry in August. Since its creation, more than 15,000 pounds of free pet food, bedding, bowls and cat litter, as well as flea and tick prevention, have been donated to low-income families across the Metroplex.

Throughout the year, Operation Kindness was able to care for more animals due to the support of its strong foster and volunteer network. The no-kill shelter relied on the support of 296 fosters to provide care and shelter for 1,323 animals, including 22 animals placed in permanent foster care. More than 1,780 volunteers provided service each month, resulting in 49,300 hours of volunteer work in total.

Last year alone, Operation Kindness provided care to 5,090 animals, performed 3,140 spay/neuter surgeries, 363 medical surgeries, cared for 100 animals in the inpatient facility and gave behavioral support to 350 animals to ensure they were prepared for adoption.

More than 63 percent of the animals in Operation Kindness’ care came from transfer partners. The no-kill shelter partners with municipal shelters like Dallas Animal Services to help with their overpopulation. The remaining space contains surrenders from first responders, good Samaritans and owners.

For each animal adopted, Operation Kindness is able to save another animal’s life. Dogs and cats of all sizes, breeds, colors and ages are available for a small adoption fee. This fee includes vaccinations, worming, testing, microchipping, collar and ID tag. Adoption fees are $135 for cats/kittens and $185 for dogs/puppies.

Adoption fees also help cover the costs of caring for the animals including food, medicine, tests, spay/neuter surgery, other surgeries, medical procedures, rehabilitation and recovery.

Operation Kindness, unlike other nonprofits, does not receive funding from the government, instead relying solely on funds from donations, grants and adoption fees to care for homeless animals. As Operation Kindness continues to expand their services to save more lives, their expenses grow as well. For more information, please visit http://www.operationkindness.org/.

Each fall, Service King Collision Repair Centers and its Dallas-Fort Worth teammates welcome the season with the DFW Charity Golf Tournament. This year more than 375 golfers gathered at the 23rd annual event, raising $125,000 ahead of the holiday season for local nonprofits including Heroes for Children.

Service King teammates proudly presented a check for $75,000 to Larissa Linton, executive director and co-founder of Heroes for Children, and members of the board of directors and advisory board of directors for Heroes for Children.
 
“The Service King gift could not have come at a better time – right before the holidays,” said Linton. “This year, Heroes for Children was hit with some extraordinary unforeseen requests due to Hurricane Harvey. Our organization serves the entire state of Texas and one-third of our requests come from the Houston area. When a child is battling cancer, it is imperative that they have a clean and sterile environment. Because of the Houston floods, many of our Houston families needed to be relocated to cleaner and safer areas. The generous donation from Service King will enable Heroes for Children to continue our mission of providing financial and social assistance to families across Texas who have a child battling cancer. Thank you to the team at Service King for being a hero to so many families.”
 
Through the support of donors and partners, Heroes for Children provides weekly assistance to families in need including rent, mortgage, utilities, transportation costs and funerals.
 
“The DFW Service King Charity Golf Tournament continues to serve as a core component of our mission to support our local communities and the organizations that make them great,” said Jeff McFadden, Service King president. “It’s a privilege to join hands with the wonderful people from Heroes for Children that truly do life-changing work for those who need it most. It’s our hope the funds raised from this tournament help to further their mission and provide hope to families across North Texas in the process.”
 
The Service King Cares program, which functions as Service King’s community outreach initiative, exists to positively impact people, organizations and causes for the greater good of local communities. The DFW Charity Golf Tournament continues to support that mission annually. In 2016 alone, Service King Cares – through numerous golf tournaments and events – contributed more than $750,000 to local nonprofit organizations across the U.S.

In 2017, Heroes for Children served more than 500 families and granted over $400,000 in financial assistance. Each day, 46 children in the U.S. are diagnosed with cancer, and their treatment averages $600,000 – not including living expenses. Many families face eviction and must choose between lifesaving medication and paying the electric bill. Even in the best situation, cancer is hard on a family – emotionally, physically and financially. Heroes for Children, founded by two mothers who know firsthand the costs of a child having cancer, was created to temporarily help ease their burden.

Heroes for Children is ending the year with The Spirit of the Season Lives Deep in The Heart of a Hero campaign with a $100,000 goal that will help 130 families with a child battling cancer in the Lone Star State. Donors may text their Heart of a Hero tax-deductible gift by texting “HeartofTexas” to 41444 or make their donation online at http://heroesforchildren.org/donate.

• $25 helps with parking, transportation and meal expenses
• $50 helps with utility bills and grocery costs
• $100 helps with rent or mortgage payments
• $250 helps with treatment and medication

With any size gift, donors join the Heroes for Children legacy – supporting over 6,000 families battling cancer in Texas during their greatest time of need.

Heroes for Children depends on donations in their mission to advocate for and provide financial and social assistance to families with children (0-22 years of age) battling cancer. With the community’s help, Heroes is making a difference by ensuring that no family with a child battling cancer will ever fight alone. For more information, go to www.HeroesForChildren.org.

Operation Kindness – North Texas’ original and largest no-kill animal shelter – was recently selected as one of three finalist organizations in the running for a $100,000 donation from “Reliant Gives,” a charitable-giving program sponsored by Reliant. Reliant Gives expands Reliant’s community outreach across Texas, sharing the power of giving with local communities. Reliant employees regularly nominate a wide selection of Texas nonprofits, which are narrowed to three finalists for each round. Reliant Gives will celebrate continued community support when the winners are announced Dec. 5.

To help garner the community’s support, Operation Kindness will host multiple events this week including a voting party at BJ’s Restaurant and Brewhouse in Addison on Wednesday, Nov. 29 beginning at 5:30 p.m. The public is invited to enjoy drink specials and half-price appetizers, as they make as many votes as possible for Operation Kindness in the Reliant Gives campaign. Throughout the evening guests will have the opportunity to win raffle prizes including the chance have their tab covered.

Additional opportunities to cast votes for Operation Kindness in the Reliant Gives campaign, will include a an ugly holiday sweater happy hour and karaoke soiree, at the shelter located at 3201 Earhart Dr, Carrollton, TX 75006 on Friday, Dec. 1 beginning at 5:30 p.m.

In order for Operation Kindness to secure the financial support they need to continue serving North Texas’ homeless animals, the no-kill shelter is requesting the community vote for them on Reliant.com/vote beginning Nov. 27 and running through Dec. 3. Voting is completely anonymous and the Reliant site does not collect any information or require a sign-in. The nonprofit with the most votes will receive $100,000. The other two nonprofits will receive $20,000 and $10,000 respectively based on the number of votes received. The public may vote as often as they like, and the site will let them share their votes on social media. There are no age restrictions to participate in voting. Voting began on Nov. 27 at noon and will end on Dec. 3 at 11:59 p.m. (all times Central).

Operation Kindness — North Texas’ original and largest no-kill animal shelter – is spreading holiday cheer with holiday happenings throughout November and December to celebrate the season, including: holiday pet adoptions at Galleria Dallas, Pet Photos with Santa, Gift Wrapping for Kindness and holiday gifts available for purchase from Operation Kindness’ Kindness Catalog.

Kindness Catalog:

From life-saving surgeries to warm, cozy beds for homeless animals and enriching activities to keep pets active, there are delightful gifts at all price points to show your compassion while delighting a loved one, friend, client or employee. One hundred percent of the proceeds will directly benefit the homeless animals at Operation Kindness, the original and largest no-kill animal shelter in North Texas. To shop the Kindness Catalog, visit www.operationkindness.org.

Prepaid pet adoption gift certificate:

The Operation Kindness Holiday Gift certificate available for purchase at Operation Kindness and the Galleria Dallas Holiday Adoption Kiosk for $185, includes a holiday card to represent your gift and a gift certificate for the adoption fee. The certificate is valid for 90 days after the initial purchase to ensure the perfect pet is available. If the perfect pet is not available or the recipient does not wish to adopt an animal the gift certificate can be refunded.

Holiday Pet Adoptions at Galleria Dallas:

During Operation Kindness Holiday Adoption Days at Galleria Dallas, which begin Friday, Nov. 17, and run through Sunday, Dec. 31, shoppers can interact with adoptable dogs and cats, learn about volunteer opportunities and adopt a furry friend. Adoption hours are Monday-Saturday, 10 a.m. – 7 p.m., and Sundays, 12 p.m. – 6 p.m., and will take place at the south end of the mall near Banana Republic. Dogs will be available for adoption for $185 and cats for $135.

Holiday Pet Adoptions at The Westin Galleria Dallas:

During Operation Kindness Holiday Adoption Days at Galleria Dallas, which begin Friday, Nov. 17, and run through Sunday, Dec. 31, shoppers can also interact with adoptable dogs and cats, learn about volunteer opportunities and adopt a furry friend in the lobby of Westin Galleria. Adoption hours are Friday-Saturday, 10 a.m. – 6 p.m., and Sundays, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Dogs will be available for adoption for $185 and cats for $135.

Pet Photos with Santa:

On Saturday, Dec. 2, Sunday, Dec. 3, Saturday, Dec. 9, and Sunday, Dec. 10, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Operation Kindness’ Pet Food Pantry located at 3953 Belt Line Road, Addison, TX — pet parents are invited for holiday photos with Santa. Dogs, cats and the whole family are invited to sit on Santa’s lap to pose. A helper will snap 10-15 photos per session. Pet parents can choose to have their favorite photo framed in a 4”x6” format and a thumb drive with all of the photos for $25. These photos make great holiday cards, and all proceeds benefit Operation Kindness.

Wrapping for Kindness:

Esther Mooring and a team of volunteers are requesting small donations in exchange for wrapping gifts to benefit Operation Kindness. Gift wrapping will be available at Barnes & Noble – Park and Preston from Nov. 24 through Dec. 24, hours are as follows: November 24 - December 10: beginning at 10 am to 6 p.m. and December 11 - December 23: beginning at 9 am to 9 pm. Gifts do not need to be purchased from Barnes & Noble to be wrapped – guests are encouraged to bring gifts from other places to be wrapped. Last year, Esther and her team of volunteer gift wrappers raised more than $13,000 for the no-kill shelter, this year they are hoping to beat last year’s goal. 

Artists for Animals, a Dallas-based nonprofit that brings local artists, sculptors, musicians, writers and animal lovers together to support animal rescue charities in North Texas, with professional photographer Teresa Berg is opening her Addison photography studio to area North Texas pet parents Dec. 8 and 9 for a limited-edition, 15-minute photography session with an authentic Santa Claus. In celebration of the season of giving, Artists for Animals will donate 100 percent of the proceeds from the event to Road Trip 4 Paws, a local animal rescue group that transports homeless dogs and cats from the Dallas-Fort Worth area to other shelters and adoption centers across the country that have a shortage of adoptable pets. Each registrant will receive one mounted Teresa Berg original 8-by-10 print.

When: Dec. 8-9. Preregistration is required.

Where: Teresa Berg Photography at 4950 Keller Springs Road, Suite 450, Addison, TX 75001 

Cost: $150 and includes a 15-minute photography session with Santa Claus and a professional Teresa Berg original 8-by-10 print. A portion of the price is tax-deductible.

Registration: Preregistration is required. Please call Teresa Berg Photography at 972-250-2415 to schedule.