ANGEL RANCH

What a day, October 31, 2009! It began with the Brian Dahl Birthday Celebration Bike Ride/Walk where Oxford Cycling and Dahl family and friends remembered Brian fondly. Following the Ride was a work day at Angel Ranch where UM FUSION volunteers painted, pruned, cleaned, planted and played! That evening the Kappa Sigma Diamond Day Ball Game was held on Swayze Field and our champions on the Ole Miss campus awarded us with another $25,000! Thank you everyone who made this a very special day.

Almost daily someone asks me, “how many kids are at Angel Ranch?” Numbers and statistics do mean something in the running of even a not for profit business. I like to share the statistic that I’m most proud of…we’ve kept 12 siblings groups together. They have not been torn apart in a time when they are torn from their homes and schools. They have had each other to cling to in their current family crisis.

It was 4am. Angel Ranch got a call to take a family of five, ages 1,3,5,7 and 9. They arrived with only the clothes on their backs, a frightened little group of wide-eyed kids. They were fed and clothed, baths could wait. They were exhausted so all put to bed. Not long after, they had all piled in one bed sleeping like newborn puppies, oblivious to the horrifying fact that their 2-year old brother had died earlier that morning!

Funny now but not then! Not too long ago… We had a house full of teenagers, which is always a challenge! One of them decided to creatively make a break for life outside of Angel Ranch. He tossed a bike over the backyard fence and followed it over to ride off, but soon realized he was on foot since the bike blew both tires upon impact. We are very grateful to the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Department in situations like this!

January 1, 2008…HAPPY NEW YEAR! To date, Angel Ranch has served 37 children, providing them with a safe and comfortable haven in the midst of their storms. Thirteen have been from Lafayette County, the rest from counties as far away as Perry, Copiah, Harrison, Desoto, Grenada and Quitman. We sheltered a 4-day old infant tested positive for meth and syphilis who came to us after receiving mega doses of antibiotics. We’ve cared for sibling groups of 3 and 4 so they did not have to be separated. We’ve celebrated birthdays and holidays with children, helped them with homework and made sure they attended school dances and marching band during football games. We’ve laughed and cried with them and at times were relieved when they moved on…We’ve definitely had challenges!

November 1, 2006
A DAY TO REMEMBER! Angel Ranch received its license to open to help Mississippi KIDS!

May, 2006
I’d like to acknowledge Ole Miss as the #1 philanthropy school! Students have generously given time, energy, money and encouragement to Angel Ranch this year. They are the best!

February, 2006
In the early hours of Valentine’s Day morning, I received a call listed on my caller ID from Huddle House. Thinking it might be a call from one of the many young people in my life needing a designated driver, I answered. It was a call from a man wanting shelter for a child. At 3:00 a.m. he was concerned for the health and safety of a child and was searching for a temporary, emergency facility. How desperately we need Angel Ranch open now!

November 2005
Almost one year ago, a dear friend shared words of encouragement with me that I now see as wisdom. He said, “Sounds like lots of activity…fundraising is a full time endeavor. I think Angel Ranch is having an effect on folks…perhaps you are doing more good than if you actually were up and running…so the end product may not be the end product….just the journey.” As I meet more and more folks who support our effort to advocate for the needs of abused children and how their needs can be met at Angel Ranch, I see this journey as very important. However, recognizing the wisdom in this philosophy does not deter me in any way from pressing on to open our doors!

November, 2005
Years ago, in what seems like a different lifetime, I assessed ability and functioning levels of individuals in our community. I was fortunate enough to meet a young couple and their young special-needs daughter who were newcomers to our community. A couple years later I learned that the child had died of complications due to health conditions associated with her syndrome. It was then that I had a tree planted in her memory and expressed my heart-felt sympathy to her parents. They are the same parents who faithfully send a check to Angel Ranch month after month after month. They are investing in the future of countless children who will receive shelter from the storm of child abuse in memory of their daughter. I thank them! I challenge you to do the same in honor of your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews and neighborhood children.

Check out this page often for special thanks expressed to folks who are making a difference in the lives of abused children today! They are using their own special gifts, abilities, talents, contacts and connections to stop the cycle of child abuse. They are the unknown heroes in the lives of countless children, children who will be thrown a lifeline as they are tossed about on the waves of their own personal and very real yet invisible storms.

November 1, 2006
Angel Ranch has overcome hurdles and pitfalls over the past three years as it struggled to exist. Today, Angel Ranch opened its doors to the abused and neglected children in Mississippi in the custody of our state. We are ready to provide care and services to children who need shelter in a time of turmoil in their lives. We have an awesome responsibility to care for these children. With the help of the community-at-large, Angel Ranch had its birth birthday today! Please continue to support our program so that Angel Ranch can grow for years to come.

To help us celebrate our birthday, MALCO generously gave a free bucket of popcorn for a donation to Angel Ranch, AOPII Sorority hosted The Oxford Rose Pageant, UM social work students conducted penny drives with surrounding schools and Angel Ranch had an open house for public viewing.