Celebrating Hilda's 36th Rescue Anniversary with the Friends of Hilda Club

Hilda Club members

Celebrating Hilda's 36th Rescue Anniversary with the Friends of Hilda Club

On August 3, 1986, Farm Sanctuary rescued a sheep from a dead pile at a Pennsylvania stockyard. The sheep, later named Hilda, had been left for dead as a “downed” animal – one unable to stand or walk on their own accord. Our founders were there documenting conditions as part of our early investigative work and stopped to take a photo of the discarded animals. Hilda raised her head at the click of the camera. She was alive — and she needed help.

The stockyard released Hilda, and we rushed her to a veterinarian for end-of-life care. Instead, following treatment for dehydration, Hilda regained her strength and began walking on her own. She spent the next 11 years at Farm Sanctuary, passing peacefully from old age in 1997.

Hilda was Farm Sanctuary’s first rescued resident — and 36 years later, we continue our rescue, education, and advocacy work in her honor. Crucial to these efforts is our Friends of Hilda Club, a collective of Farm Sanctuary members who give $1,000 or more annually to fund our lifesaving work and move our mission forward.

This month, in honor of Hilda’s 36th rescue anniversary, we’re proud to highlight some of our Hilda Club members. Thank you for joining us in building a more just and compassionate world for all.

Tracy and Christopher K.

Tracy K.

We joined Farm Sanctuary initially as monthly recurring members. Having spent the last 30 years in the nonprofit sector, I am keenly aware of what good communication is. Farm Sanctuary provides relevant, informative updates that are always donor-centric and always tie the message back to the mission. The animal ambassadors deepen our love for the mission.

We stayed at a cottage named after Hilda at the Watkins Glen sanctuary. We travel quite a bit and to say it was one of the highlights of our lives is not hyperbole. What a joy to meet the staff and volunteers, the animal residents and to soak in the energy of that special place.

We look forward to the impact reports, the stunning printed newsletter (Yes, it is lovely to hold something so beautifully produced in one’s hand) and the invitations to events. We are thrilled to return to Watkins Glen this October for another stay in a cottage.

Amanda U.

Amanda and Henry

Gene’s book Farm Sanctuary changed my life overnight. It’s the reason I went vegan! With the Christian view I have of the world, it is apparent that we are not being good stewards to the animals. I know that Farm Sanctuary has a reach far and wide with the wonderful things they are doing through legislation and education. Of course, the Sanctuary itself plays a tremendous role in showing visitors the rescued animals are all worthy of love. I love gifting an animal sponsorship for a birthday or graduation.

Victor and Suzanne R.

Susan photo

We are members of Farm Sanctuary’s Friends of Hilda Club because we believe that all animals are beautiful, and are entitled to giving and receiving love. All should be able to live free and be loved, just like those who are living at Farm Sanctuary.

Shannon D.

Shannon D

I support Farm Sanctuary’s Hilda Club because Farm Sanctuary was the first place I found like-minded individuals who were doing truly good work for farm animals. The sanctuary’s mission is also something that I admire. I have found the people involved with Farm Sanctuary to be kind and compassionate and I hope one day that all farm animals could live in such a loving environment.

Shannon D

Shani

Shani

My feelings for helpless animals abused by humans reached a crescendo during my first visit to Acton around 2015. When I had a chance to spend time with the animals of the Farm Sanctuary, I couldn’t help but be moved to support the urgent rescue of all of the animals still living in terrible and inhumane conditions. I decided then to support the rescue and care for farm animals at the sanctuary through joining Farm Sanctuary’s Hilda Club. It was a life changing visit.

Sara M.

Sara M.

Joining Farm Sanctuary was easy, as they do the hardest work of all. They dedicate their lives to saving and protecting some of the most vulnerable victims in our world. As if that weren’t enough, they then educate and provide a unique opportunity for us to directly reconnect to these animals. That kind of grace is the closest to God I can imagine. I loved meeting every soul on that farm, each with a unique and hilarious personality. My heart melted as the animals nudged and rubbed against us, somehow still able to love a human.

Sara M.

Nancy K.

Nancy K.

Since I was a young girl, I have felt a kinship with any and all animals I encountered. Not just cats, dogs, ducks, guinea pigs and the rest of the menageries that my siblings and I reveled in as children, but also, cows, goats, horses, sheep, chickens, and the wild creatures we encountered growing up in many different parts of the United States. There was something honorable, dignified, utterly present, and thus luminous in virtually every animal I observed. As I grew older, I became concerned to bring the respect and love I felt for animals into my daily life in all the ways that I could. So when I discovered Farm Sanctuary on an animal website called The Dodo, I was immediately hooked and wanted to know more about this organization. The more I learned, the more impressed I became with Farm Sanctuary. I am delighted — perhaps “heartened” is a better word — to support this organization and all that it both stands for and does on behalf of farm animals. Yes, it has saved thousands of animals from the brutality and violence of factory farming. This is vital. But Farm Sanctuary also does other essential work, helping educate countless men, women, and children about the fate of the animals we eat, skin, and exploit for research, working to improve the conditions of farm animals through the legislative process, and connecting hundreds of people, scores of sanctuaries and thousands of animals in a kind of modern “Underground Railroad,” intended to bring safety and liberation to these good creatures. And the people of Farm Sanctuary do this with grace, humor, kindness, and expertise. For these reasons, I am deeply gratified to be a member of Hilda’s Club.

Mike S.

Mike S.

What I like about Farm Sanctuary is that it provides a safe and comforting home for animals who otherwise face a life filled with terror and pain. In addition to saving the lives of the animals who live at the sanctuary, Farm Sanctuary is a real world example of how humans can enrich their own lives by living peacefully with other animals while valuing and enjoying their personalities.

Too often, people assume that going vegan (shorthand for respecting and valuing another animal’s life) is all about sacrifice. They feel that there is a cost to treating other animals in a kind way. The truth is that going vegan – as Farm Sanctuary exemplifies – is a path towards a happier and richer life for people, not some sort of sacrifice.

We can use lots of complicated terms and definitions, like how cognitive dissonance causes underlying psychological stress, or how being a vegan helps the environment or how it improves our physical health. But in the end don’t we all really know the simple truth? “Life is just better when we love other animals while treating them with kindness and respect.”

Mike S.

Mike B.

Mike B.

Our family discovered Farm Sanctuary when I jokingly asked my family for a donkey or goat for my birthday. Since that was not possible living in the suburbs, I came up with another idea: to sponsor someplace that was rescuing farm animals. A quick Google search later started our journey.

In July, we visited Farm Sanctuary in New York. During our tour, something clicked for me when Andrew said: “What makes one animal for loving and another one for eating? Dogs, cats, sheep, goats all just want to be safe and loved.” From that moment on, I realized my responsibility was to change to a plant-based diet.

What began as a cute birthday gift idea instead has led us to a kinder, more conscious way of sharing the Earth with our four-legged, winged, and gilled friends.

Mike B.

Lucy T.

Lucy T.

I don’t remember precisely when I learned of Farm Sanctuary, except that it was quite a few years ago, and I’ve been following their heartwarming stories ever since. From a cow and her calf who miraculously escaped slaughter to a pair of goats who fled from a live market in NY to a runt pig left to die, who was saved and brought to Farm Sanctuary, I’ve found my faith in humanity renewed with each animal given a chance at a life free of fear and suffering.

Every time any animal is rescued from cruelty and death, it is a victory for all that is good in human nature.

I’ve sometimes imagined a world, far in the future to be sure, when children would gasp in horror and disbelief when told how, once upon a time, the body parts of dead animals were packaged and sold to shoppers who then cooked and consumed them. I dream of a time when such a practice would be viewed as a nightmare from the distant past, rather than the norm that it is today.

Years ago, I visited Farm Sanctuary in Orland, CA, and found such joy in meeting all the healthy, well-cared for pigs, goats, cows, chickens, ducks and other farm animals who were free to wander in pastures, swim in a lake, or roll in the dirt without fear that humans would harm them. I was overwhelmed with the love and respect shown to these brave animals, many of whom endured torturous conditions before being rescued. Farm Sanctuary shows us what is possible when people begin to understand that the lives of animals and humans are intertwined, that their suffering is ours, too.

Farm Sanctuary redeems my faith in my own species. Here farm animals are treated with the love, respect, and care that all animals everywhere deserve. This is an oasis of love and kindness.

My life has been made immeasurably better for my involvement with them.

Kathy L.

Kathy L.

I became a donor to Farm Sanctuary in 1996, 10 years after Hilda was rescued. I remember reading about the horrid conditions in which sweet Hilda was found. I knew about factory farming and recoiled at the cruelty. Gene and his team didn’t look away. And, because of their caring and courage, the second half of Hilda’s life did not mirror the beginning of her life. Farm Sanctuary reminded me what we are so often asked to forget: we have within us the capacity to expand our humanity and in doing so, create the world we know is possible.

Kathy L.

John S.

I have been a supporter of the sanctuary for many years. I had the chance to visit for a weekend some years ago and it was just wonderful. The garden of remembrance is so lovely and to see all the animals in the meadows just living and being themselves peacefully is the most heartwarming experience. I am so pleased and proud to support this work. This world needs kindness and a chance for all creatures to live their lives in happiness and health; the sanctuary is a major step towards that. I urge everyone to visit the sanctuary and view first hand the work that we are supporting and see the staff do the daily work that makes all of this run.

Dominick L. and Jane P.

Dominick L.

Having lived near Watkins Glen for over forty years, we have known of the work of Farm Sanctuary for quite some time. We admire it very much and share its approach to the care and treatment of other animals. We have long adopted rescue animals and have three of them with us now. We were very impressed by Gene Baur’s Farm Sanctuary and his other writings and activities on behalf of other animals. We have done our best to develop a comparable orientation in our relations with animals. We hope Farm Sanctuary continues to flourish and to carry on its admirable work in caring for animals and educating humans.

Dolores P.

Dolores P.

In relation to the billions of animals sacrificed to human palates every year, the lucky few in Watkins Glen or Acton may seem insignificant, but they play a vital role.

Few people ever meet a Pig or a Duck in their natural state or they would hesitate to eat them. Because animals are clearly affectionate, comical, curious, intuitive, willful … it is in the sinister interests of their exploiters to make them appear as objects or better yet, disappear.

At Farm Sanctuary, unfettered and unafraid, animals being themselves plead the case for the unlucky billions, lifting the veil of deception animal agriculture casts.

Dolores P.

David and Nancy P.

David and Nancy

As Hilda Club members, it is a privilege to sustain Gene’s vision and support Farm Sanctuary’s mission of pursuing bold solutions to end animal agriculture and foster just and compassionate vegan living.

Caryn G.

Caryn G.

My husband and I love sheep, squirrels, raccoons, birds, rhinos and many other animals, but sheep are our favorites! We even honeymooned in Australia and New Zealand years ago to spend time with the sheep.

When we learned about Hilda and her rescue, we wanted to be part of Farm Sanctuary. We love the sheep and other animals, watch them online on the live cams and have visited. It’s important to us that the Farm Sanctuary team not only cares for them but also advances broader change. Their shelter tours, legislative work and humane education are making the world better for all farmed animals. We’re honored to be proud adoptive parents to Adriano Sheep and to support this important work.

Caryn G.