In 2023, the hardworking team at VINE Sanctuary organized more than 400 educational events, all the while caring for more than 500 animals in the midst of climatic and economic circumstances that made everything more challenging.
We could not possibly have done it without the help of a huge community of care ranging from local volunteers to far-flung supporters. That includes you, so please take a moment to look over our 2023 Year in Review and feel good about your own contribution!
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The goats got a new playground this year, courtesy of the creativity and energy of volunteers. Constructed from up-cycled materials, this expansive exercise area (only a portion of which is visible in this photo) offers young and elder goats alike the opportunity to amuse themselves. Nine goats now live at the sanctuary, and we get more requests to take in goats than any other mammal. Among the notable goats at VINE are young Marble, who’s always up for a cuddle; quirky Cookie, who regularly gives rides to roosters; and elder Mirana, whose tiny size belies her huge personality and prominence.
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Another Mondo Rooster Rescue |
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Chickens remained the most populous members of our community, with hundreds of hens and roosters in residence at year end. We also helped chickens find homes elsewhere. Even as many of the large number of roosters we rescued late last year were getting acclimated here or finding their ways to other sanctuaries, our new Rapid Response Team arranged for the rescue and transport of 97 birds, including 36 roosters and 61 hens, to sanctuaries near where they had been seized from a breeder of birds for cockfighting.
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One summer night, thunderstorms and fireworks combined to startle Tiki the emu into jumping the fence. The next day, he was spotted among raspberry bushes on the extensive grounds of the planetarium that abuts the sanctuary. Thus commenced a weeks-long voyage during which Tiki travelled through forests, fields, and rural by-ways, always disappearing back into the woods by the time that we rushed to the scene in response to a sighting. The whole town got into the quest to map Tiki's amazing adventure. Everyone cheered, and we heaved a sigh of relief, when we finally brought him home safely. We can only guess at the friendships he forged and memories he made along the way.
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When we say that animals co-create the culture of the sanctuary, we mean it. Nobody embodies that more than Rose. Rose extends empathy to all newcomers and takes care to teach youngsters our ethos of mutual respect. At 19, Rose brings the wisdom of age along with her own compassionate spirit to that task. All of the increasing number of elders at VINE require specially fortified diets, and many also need medications for conditions like arthritis. All of that costs money, but what they give to the community is invaluable.
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Pigeons are farmed for the meat called "squab" — plump nestlings taken from their doting parents just before they are ready to fledge. The 156 pigeons at VINE include survivors of this and other cruelties, including pigeon racing, canned hunts, and animal experimentation. This year, volunteers and staff climbed high to replace the roof on our largest aviary, giving the birds within more sunshine and better protection from winter weather as they exercise their wings.
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Billy
Billy Idol the muscovy duck lived at the sanctuary for more than twenty years, arriving as a young parent with his partner and ducklings and eventually outliving them all. Fierce upon arrival and irascible in middle age, Billy's personality mellowed in his later years, which stretched on to double the usual lifespan of a duck of his kind. Nobody who knew him was surprised by that, since he was such a vivid person. We miss him every day.
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Whisper
In personality, the beloved goat called Whisper was the diametric opposite of Billy: Shy where he was bold, gentle where he was fierce, and quiet where he was talkative. But they both shared a fondness for spending time with chickens. Whisper was especially popular with her feathered friends, who flocked to nest on and around her. Humans flocked to her too.
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Karma
Here is how Karma got her name: When she arrived, she began courting a ram who was infamous for making unwanted advances to both ewes and cows. She followed him so relentlessly that she wore him out! If you ever needed proof that sheep aren't "sheepish," Karma was it. When at Tufts for hernia surgery, she broke out of her pen and went walking around, gregariously greeting people of all species!
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We pledge try to be as bold as Karma, as loving as Whisper, and as unstoppable as Billy as we maintain the community they helped to co-create. |
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“Eat the Rainbow!” was the theme of Rainbow-Palooza, the world’s first combined Pride and VegFest. That event brought hundreds of not-yet-vegan people from our rural small town and surrounding areas together to enjoy free vegan food while learning about both animal rights and LGBTQIA+ issues. Attendees came for the Pride and stayed for the vegan food. LGBTQ+ organizations tabled side-by-side with animal rights groups, trading ideas and building relationships. Everyone enjoyed the positive vibe, which enabled not-yet-vegan attendees to be open to new information. Many pledged to go veg on the spot! Also in June, we put on several online events in conjunction with our annual 30-day Pride Month Vegan Challenge.
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This spring, the 37 preK-5th grade classes participating in our Barnyard Buddies program capped their year of receiving monthly humane education lessons with on-site or virtual field trips to the sanctuary. This summer, we signed up more classes than ever before for the 2023-2024 school year. The 51 classrooms currently enrolled include schools in Vermont, New York, New Jersey, South Carolina, Alabama, and Pennsylvania as well as Canada. Barnyard Buddies is sponsored by Dr. Bronner's Magic Soap, and we deeply appreciate the funding that makes this vital program possible.
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Disability Pride Month Events |
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People with disabilities represent more than 1/4 of the population, but the vegan movement makes no special effort to reach people with disabilities and some common vegan messaging is inadvertently ableist and therefore off-putting. As an organization founded and predominantly staffed by people with disabilities, we set out to fix that. Our events in July included a lecture on linkages among ableism and speciesism, a “speak-out” of vegans with disabilities, and a workshop about how sanctuaries can put ideas from the disability rights movement into practice. Next year, we’ll be organizing even more events and sharing the resulting insights with other animal advocates.
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Our work has always included efforts to bring insights and ideas arising at the sanctuary into the public discourse. This year, as always, we welcomed scholars and artists to visit and volunteer, so that they too could learn about and from the nonhuman members of our multispecies community. We also launched a new publishing venture, VINE Press.
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Our first book, Bird’s-Eye Views, includes dozens of essays conceived and written at the sanctuary. Books-in-progress include collections of writing by LGBTQ+ animal advocates and vegans with disabilities. All VINE Press books will be both rigorous and accessible to general audiences.
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This November, we piloted a first-of-its-kind 30-day challenge specifically designed to help vegetarians make the transition to vegan. Why? Because many people taking our Pride Month Vegan Challenge turned out to be vegetarians who just needed a little help to get to vegan. All of the participants who took the exit survey indicated an intention to remain vegan. Now that we have tested the concept and found it sound, we will launch a bigger and better Veg2Vegan challenge in 2024.
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All told, we organized or participated in more than 400 programs this year, including 32 online education events for activists; 393 humane education sessions for kids; 12 appearances at in-person events; 12 on-site volunteer days; and 21 other events.
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Every year, I feel such a mix of emotions while pulling together our annual review. Pride and amazement at what we managed to do. Chagrin about what we didn't manage to do. Relief that we made it through the year. Grief for all who didn't make it through the year. Gratitude for everyone—staff, volunteers, and donors alike—who made it all possible. Worry for our financial future.
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Now, more than ever, we rely on contributions from generous individuals to keep the sanctuary going. Thank you for being part of our unique community of care—we couldn’t do it without you!
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If you prefer to donate by mail, you can send a check to the address below:
VINE Sanctuary, 158 Massey Road, Springfield, VT 05156
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