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On October 24, the Foundation for TJO Animals will host its 2nd Reese Fund: Day of Compassion, a 24-hour community giving event dedicated to providing emergency medical care for animals who have suffered severe neglect, cruelty, and abuse. 

The Reese Fund was created because these animals often arrive at TJO needing far more than routine shelter care. They may require emergency surgeries, specialists, hospitalization, intensive treatment, and weeks of recovery before they are ready to find a loving home. Depending on the severity of their injuries, the cost of saving just one life can reach tens of thousands of dollars. Reese was one of those animals. His care cost approximately $15,000, and had he survived his surgery, his total medical and recovery costs would likely have approached $25,000. Sadly, Reese did not get the chance to experience the safe and loving life we were fighting to give him. But his story became the reason we knew we needed to do more. 

And Reese is not an isolated case. 

TJO provides animal control services to Springfield, Chicopee, and Holyoke, and the need for emergency intervention for abused, neglected, and critically injured animals is ongoing. The Reese Fund allows TJO to say yes when an animal needs lifesaving care—regardless of the circumstances that brought them through our doors. Our goal is to hold two to three Days of Compassion each year to replenish the Fund and ensure that resources are available when the next emergency arrives. Because the next animal shouldn't have to wait for us to raise the money. 

Compassion Doesn't Stop at Emergency Care... 

This year's Day of Compassion will also include an in-person pet food drive benefiting the Reese Pet Food Initiative, an effort to help keep pets with the families who love them by providing access to essential pet food. The initiative has grown since its launch and is now serving families through Lorraine's Soup Kitchen in Chicopee and the Gray House in Springfield, with plans to add a Holyoke pantry by the end of the year. 

We are asking our community—and especially our local business community—to help us make this year's Day of Compassion bigger than ever. Businesses can join the effort by hosting their own pet food drive in the weeks leading up to Reese Day. Collect a bag, a can, or a box of food from your employees, customers, and community. Every donation helps a family keep their pet fed, healthy, and home. 

On October 24, we will come together to remember Reese, support the animals who need us today, and prepare for the ones who will need us tomorrow. Because compassion is more than saving one life. It's making sure we're ready to save the next one.