le printemps 2023 • l’édition pour animaux de compagnie et mode • readelysian.com •
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peration Kindness is a pioneer in Texas for assisting animals in need of veterinary care, companionship, and most of all, a home. They operate a no-kill animal shelter in Carrollton, TX., and in addition to pet adoptions and lifesaving medical care, their programs provide foster care for vulnerable animals, resources for pet parents, affordable veterinary services for community pets, a pet food pantry, and volunteer opportunities. Operation Kindness was founded in 1976 by a group of volunteers who wanted to realize their vision of creating a shelter for homeless animals that had nowhere else to turn. Their idea was simple: show homeless pets kindness. In its earliest days, Operation Kindness functioned out of volunteers’ homes, but in the summer of 1976, the organization acquired the use of a veterinary clinic located in Garland, TX. Fast forward to 1988, and Operation Kindness had moved to a larger storefront location in Carrollton, and in 1999, they found their current home on Earhart Drive in Carrollton. Since then, they have celebrated several milestones, including breaking ground on the renovation and expansion of its adoption center and animal hospital in April 2018, celebrating the grand opening of the Rees-Jones Foundation Medical Wing in March 2020, and completing the remainder of the facility in July 2021. In July 2022, Operation Kindness launched a new Community Initiatives program to impact more pets across Texas. The new program now offers affordable, accessible veterinary services to under-resourced communities and shelters in Texas and beyond. According to Operation Kindness’ website, “While the organization has evolved since 1976, we have always remained committed to giving every animal the care and kindness they deserve.” Just last year, Operation Kindness used its impressive array of resources to provide second chances for thousands of pets across the region, and helping to facilitate more than 2,900 adoptions. Operation Kindness’ director of marketing and communication, Natalie Buxton, said that the organization’s strength is in its partnerships. “We actually have a really large range,” she says. “Operation Kindness works with more than 70 different rescue partners and other municipal agencies that have animals,” she told the North Texas eNews. “We work with some in Waco and Austin, Oklahoma, and Louisiana as well. Some of our largest partners are some of the big shelters in the region like Dallas Animal Services.” As part of that outreach and partnership, Operation Kindness often takes animals from other area shelters that are experiencing overcrowding, and the organization is proud to accept animals who are ailing or injured because they have the ability to care for them at their full-service veterinary clinic. Buxton estimates that Operation Kindness performs more than 1,000 medical exams at the shelter each month, and says that they can handle everything from serious illnesses to surgery. Buxton says that if Operation Kindness can do something to help animals find a healthy, happy life, they will. And Operation Kindness does not limit its services to homeless animals, but also provides resources to pets that already have homes, but might be in situations where their human families are struggling. Thanks to a food pantry, they make sure that no animal needs to go hungry, and because they have a dedicated veterinarian, they can help with basic care to community animals in need. Operation Kindness will be represented on the runway by a model wearing a creation by Soho Muse designer Victor de Souza. New York-based De Souza, who originally hails from Argentina, practices sustainability by creating timeless pieces with quality and care reminiscent of traditional couture. His “Conscious Couture” is a lifestyle that is committed to beauty, integrity, being set apart as well as conscious production. De Souza’s pieces are truly timeless creations that can be passed down from one generation to the next. ■
Sponsor: TBD / operationkindness.org Carrollton, Texas
Operation Kindness Rescue
