By KEN AND NICOLINA STEWART | VICE PRESIDENT AND PRESIDENT
SUGAR’S GIFT™ PROGRESS REPORT FOR FEBRUARY 2024
RECAP OF 2023
2023 was one of the busiest years Sugar’s Gift™ has had so far…thank you for your donations to help us help so many pets and their families! Your generosity is what keeps us going and keeps us successful. We helped several people in areas we usually cannot – West Bradenton, Venice, Northport and surrounding areas thanks to a grant from the Community Foundation of Sarasota County and donations from people like you!
Our Jupiter, FL location with the help of Dr. Blair Dack and the Lifetime Veterinary Center also helped a record number of pets and their families. We are strong in Jupiter and the East Coast of Florida in large part thanks to the Knopf Family Foundation and their generous donations to us each year. Our operations on the East Coast survive because of their generosity.
We helped over 200 people and their Little Angels between the Sarasota/Manatee County operation and the Jupiter/East Coast operation in 2023. As you know, it costs us between $600-$1200 for each pet that we help, so the funds we raise from you and others like you, are what keeps us going...
2024
2024 is already on track to be even busier than 2023 for us here in the Sarasota/Manatee County area. The phone calls still come to us at a rate of 10-15 calls per day, but we are scheduling many more this year. We also receive a lot of calls daily from other areas of the country where we do not have a presence yet. If only we had an Angel or 2 (hint, hint, in case you know of someone….) we could branch out nationally and help even more people and their pets. If you or someone you know has the means to help on a large scale, please ask them to contact us, or let us know and we’ll initiate a conversation. We are the ONLY 501(c)(3) organization in the country who does what we do, and once people hear about our services, they do support us because we are so unique and we provide a compassionate, dignified, peaceful service for our babies – and for us.
MATCHING FUND OPPORTUNITIES IN 2024
Many of you have asked, and we do have 3 wonderful matching fund opportunities where your dollars go even further when you donate to Sugar’s Gift™:
HELPING THE LITTLE ANGELS – WE REALLY NEED YOUR HELP RIGHT NOW!
In the Sarasota/Bradenton area we receive at least 10-15 calls per day. Not all of those people need our help right away – some simply want information for when the time comes. But, realistically, we could be helping 8-10 pets per week if we had the funding.
As you know, we do not advertise, or spend your generous donations on overhead such as paying people, rent etc. We are proud of the fact that between 92-96% of all your donations go directly to our mission of helping babies cross the Rainbow Bridge from home.
Thank you again for your understanding with not being able to help everyone we would like, as quickly as we would like. We try to help within 3-4 days, and sometimes, dependent upon the location, we can help within 2-3 days. We try very hard to help everyone we can and the amount of babies we are helping is increasing…it is so hard to tell people no, but occasionally, we must.
With all that said, we are still busier than ever and helping more babies cross the Rainbow Bridge from home than ever! In fact, we want to help more of you, but we do need more donations in order to do that!
THANK YOUS – WE CAN’T TELL THEM THANK YOU TOO MANY TIMES….
With the challenges we face, we are still getting so much support from all of you – and believe me, we need it! With the rising costs due to inflation in every sector, we are no exception in having our costs to do business increase. We received some very generous donations during 2023, and have again in 2024 already, and please let others know of our wonderful work. Spreading the word is our only real source of advertising.
Thank you to all of you who donate on Facebook, as well. We don’t always know who is donating, and we don’t always know if you have fundraisers for Sugar’s Gift™, but please know that we appreciate all of what you do to help us!
And, we want to give a big shout out to Belspur Oaks Crematory in Sarasota, FL. Barbara and Ray Bounds are our Angels in the Sarasota/Manatee areas. They are so trustworthy – we are asked many times from pet owners who we trust for our cremations. We love Belspur Oaks and want to give a big thank you to them! And also, a great big hug and thanks to Cheryl Brady and Vet Care Express - they do help us so much. Thank you, Cheryl and company!
We would like to also thank the Veterinary Medical Center and ER of Lakewood Ranch! Although we worked with them consistently before they had their ER, they do try to fit us in with their mobile veterinarians when they can. We understand they are very busy and we thank them for what they can do for us.
Drs. Wendy and Kyle are our true Angels in the Sarasota/Manatee county area! They will bend over backwards to accommodate us and our pet owners as much as possible. We have been so busy this year and getting busier even now, and we know they have their own clients to serve…..but they always manage to make room for us in their schedule. Thank you and we love you! (and our pet owners do, too)
And, thank you Dr. Dack and the Lifetime Veterinary Center in Jupiter FL for all they do for us. Safe Passages, our crematory on the East Coast, is helping us find other vets on the East Coast, too!
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
Nikki is available and willing to speak to any group – over-55 communities, fraternal and social organizations, networking groups, etc. She can speak about Sugar’s Gift™ and also about Pet Trusts in a workshop fashion, or as an informational session. Let us know and we can get you on the calendar for your group – and please spread the word because she wants to talk about the benefits of our organization and educate others about us.
WE NEED AMBASSADORS
So many of you ask us how you can help…we need Sugar's Gift™ Ambassadors to help us spread the word and help others know what we do, as well as hear your stories. We will be having a Town Hall meeting soon and we will send out a notice for those of you who have expressed interest in helping us. We need funding, and the more people who know of us and can hear the stories you have to tell them, the more likely we can increase our funding. We will arm you with what you need to help us – don’t worry!
KEEP US IN MIND FOR YOUR ESTATE PLANNING!
Many people ask us if they can include Sugar’s Gift™ in their estate planning. We are very appreciative of that gesture. If you have a Will or a Trust and wish Sugar’s Gift™ to receive funding upon your demise, we thank you for thinking of us. Your gifs will keep us sustainable for many years to come! If you need help or have questions regarding this issue, please contact us and we’ll be happy to discuss options for you.
OUR MISSION – WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO
Our mission is always worth repeating: Our mission is to provide euthanasia and end-of-life veterinary services for terminally ill pets in their own homes. We at Sugar's Gift™ do not charge for any of our services to help your terminally ill baby. Why? Our mission from the beginning has been all about the Little Ones, not about how much money someone has. We don't charge you on a sliding scale. We don't charge you based on your income. We believe this: Every one of you who has a terminally ill pet has something in common with all of us - the love for our pets, our companions, our Little Angels and the need to have them pass in the most comfortable surroundings. That is something sacred to us. We share that love and respect you for that love, as well. That is why we do not charge you for our services. It is the last Gift you can give your baby, and it is Sugar's Gift to both of you.
OUR PET OWNERS AND THEIR MESSAGES TO US….
Pet owners across this great country of ours describe Sugar’s Gift™ as “Bringing lasting peace to pets and their owners after a life full of love.” We offer a life-changing experience...our services extend far beyond the time and scope of the services we provide for you and your pet. We are here as a resource, an ear or a shoulder to cry on, an organization that will always be here for you and your furbabies. Some of our pet owners have described our client care service as unsurpassed. Read some of our testimonials here.
LIKE OUR FACEBOOK PAGE AND FOLLOW US ON INSTAGRAM, TWITTER, THREADS – AND PLEASE RECOMMEND US ON NEXT DOOR, TOO!
We are trying to stay up to date on all the social media channels – but it is difficult! Thank you to all of you who have encouraged others to like us on Facebook….we have increased our followers to almost 1,600 as of today. We want to build even more Facebook Likes, so go here to Like Our Page and share this newsletter with your friends! We especially appreciate all the recommendations we receive on Next Door! If you can tell 5 people about us, and they can tell 5 more people about us...well, you get the picture....exponentially, it can make a huge difference to us!
WHAT WE NEED NOW FROM YOU
WE ARE COMPILING A BOOK OF STORIES!
The pet owners whose pets Sugar's Gift™ has helped are giving us stories - either written stories, poetry, songs, about their pets' lives. We want to publish those stories and let others know what wonderful people and pets we have helped, and how we have helped them through their experience with Sugar's Gift™. If you are one of our terrific pet owners and we don't have your story yet.....get those pencils (or iPads) working overtime! We want to publish the first volume this year!
So, when we say every dollar counts…..EVERY DOLLAR COUNTS. CLICK HERE TO DONATE
REMEMBER….
Sugar’s Gift™ is the only non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization in the country whose mission is to help terminally ill pets cross over the Rainbow Bridge from home with comfort, dignity and peace.
Please give generously.....monthly, annually, whatever suits your budget. We REALLY need your help right now! All the other Little Angels need us....and we need you. Thank you.
We apologize, in advance, if you receive a duplicate of this report. We are sending this through our email server, too, so you may get 2 of the same reports. Just simply forward one to someone you feel would like to read it! Thank you.
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