Celebrating 22 Years and 1150 Rescues The Monthly Newsletter for Fall 2013 Chinese Shar-Pei Rescue of Lancaster, PA Operation Scarlet's Fall Luncheon The OS Fall Luncheon, which was held at the Lancaster Host Resort, was an opportunity for Shar-Pei enthusiasts to meet and mingle and help to celebrate the joint accomplishments of adopters, volunteers and donors. It is through this dedicated network that OS has rescued over 1150 Shar-Pei. Pictures and highlights of this year's luncheon will be featured in this issue of the newsletter. Here one of everyone's favorites, the Halloween Costume Contest. Odie Bichard as Eyeore (L), Nena Antonacci winner of the prettiest Doogie & Sumo as frogs Congratulations to Raffle Ticket Winners $100 Melinda Davis, adopter of Chyna $200 Yvonne Hersh, adopter of Pepper Anne and Charly Ross $300 Tamie Scherbik Francis, adopter of Walter $400 Gerre Davis, adopter of Qi Lin, Hotai, and Ming Lee Abby Riddelle Winner of Scariest For the first time ever, all of the winners were also adopters!
Thanks to Your Help, The Challenge Has Been Met : Where to begin? October has been an incredible month for Operation Scarlet. It has been filled with some remarkable high points and some dramatic low points. At the beginning of October it looked like Operation Scarlet was going to have to close its doors. After nearly 23 years and almost 1,200 dogs rescued, due to several near catastrophic events, we were on the verge of a financial collapse. However, we were determined that we were not going down without a fight, without putting every last bit of effort and energy into saving an organization that had saved so many lives. It was time to save ourselves. So, we put out the call to our volunteers, supporters, adopters, Shar Pei lovers (basically anyone that we could get to listen) and YOU heard the call. The phone began to ring with people saying that they would not allow us to close. Donations began to arrive, by Paypal, by letter, checks were slipped into the mail slot at the rescue house. Several donors put out challenges that they would match other people s donations, essentially doubling the amounts raised. These challenges were both met and exceeded very quickly. We were overwhelmed with the generosity. Yes, we received a number of large donations, but it is just as meaningful and helpful to receive the hundreds of small donations. Every single dollar that came in is appreciated and will directly benefit dogs in transition to their forever homes. YOU helped save Operation Scarlet and in the process have made sure that we will be able to continue to save more of these incredible companions. YOU have brought us from the brink and allowed us to carry on. YOU have put us in a position where we can start to get ahead of the sometimes immense costs of meeting the needs of our frightened, confused and sometimes injured charges. The truth is we will probably never be completely financially stable. Why not? Because there is always another dog out there that needs help. One that has been abandoned, abused, gotten lost or turned in by their owner. Every time the phone rings it could be another dog that needs to be rescued. Once that call comes in, Operation Scarlet turns into an organization that seems (at times) to run with an almost military precision. Calls go out to our transport volunteers, people that in the recent past have gone to Philadelphia, New York, Virginia, Maryland and North Carolina. These volunteers spend their own time and money to make a long drive to bring a dog in need to a safe place. Another call goes out to our veterinarian office, so that they are ready to receive this dog in need. They then get fully vet checked and any urgent medical needs are immediately taken care of. The rescue room at Operation Scarlet gets set up to receive another guest. Then, as quickly as possible, we put pictures out on the internet to start the process of finding a forever home for this new dog. They go up on opertionscarlet.com, they are listed on Petfinder.com and their picture is shown on our Facebook page. We fundraise constantly so that when the phone rings Operation Scarlet is there to answer it. We thank you for your support during this challenging time and we thank you in advance for all your help, love and support in the future. Dawn, All the OS Members, Scarlet and All Her Kids
Preface to Emma's Story By Dawn Hertzog As you know OS has had a pretty rough year. Computer, water damage and now very little response for the fall luncheon. I found myself at a major crossroads, questioning how long we can survive. I do believe Scarlet is watching over all of this and feeling the pain too and had a major part in sending this story. Maybe she and Emma worked together on this. The timing is unbelievable. Caused me to have a really good cry (was much needed), but also it reminded me why we are here doing what we continue to do. Please read the attached and then help me remain positive and strong. Emma's Story Emma was a beautiful cream brush-coat Shar Pei. She was found wandering the streets of Birmingham, Alabama in February, 2003; she was sent to Chinese Shar Pei Rescue in Nashville, Tennessee, operated by Wendy Autry. Because of a heartworm diagnosis, Wendy decided to transfer Emma to the country s largest Shar Pei rescue, Operation Scarlet, in Lancaster, Pennsylvania operated by Dawn Hertzog. Wendy made the transport arrangements, and a friend and I did the leg of the transport from Bristol, Tennessee to Wytheville, Virginia where we met and fell in love with Emma. We asked Operation Scarlet for the privilege of adopting Emma if she survived the heartworm treatment she did, and we did! Emma was picked up from Operation Scarlet June 21, 2003, and traveled 500 miles to her forever-home in Piney Flats, Tennessee, where she lived for over ten years. In December of 2011, Emma had a truncated liver tumor removed; somewhere around that time, she began accumulating fluid in her abdomen. She was also eventually diagnosed with a tumor around her heart, and another one imbedded in her liver. The decision was made not to try to remove those tumors; Emma was around twelve years old at that time. Emma s local vet, Dr. Karl Kapoor of Pinecrest Vet Clinic, recommended taking her to the University of Tennessee Veterinary Medical Center for treatment. Over a one-year period, she made ten trips to the UT Vet Hospital for treatment (a two-hour trip each way,) and to have fluid drained from her abdomen. She met, and was helped by ten senior students, several vets (Dr. Olin & Dr. Hyink -- two whose names I can remember because they both saw Emma twice), the cardiologist, Dr. Gompf, and a couple of cardiology technicians (of particular significance was Jena, who successfully removed many liters of fluid from Emma s abdomen over that year.) Emma s last trip to UT was in July of 2013, where two liters of fluid were removed from her abdomen by Jena. She returned home, and had three really good weeks of life, feeling better and with no fluid accumulation. But on August 22, she would not eat and was not well; this continued until 8/24, when the decision was made that Emma s time on earth had come to an end. We became aware of a local vet, Dr. Sarah Francis of Loving Hands Home Euthanasia, who would come to the home to do the euthanasia. Emma loved her forever-home, so this was an ideal option. On August 24, 2013, at 3:00, Dr. Francis arrived and came into the living room where Emma was sleeping on the floor. As Dr. Francis and I were there talking, Emma got up, wagging her tail which she always did, and came over and sat down beside us.
I suppose we ascribe human characteristics to animals, but it seemed that Emma knew her situation was dire and she was ready to cross the rainbow bridge. It was as if she said to Dr. Francis, Hi, I know who you are; thanks for coming; I m ready to go. Dr. Francis and I got down in the floor with Emma and were loving on her and talking to her; Dr. Francis asked me to tell her about Emma, which I did with Emma on the floor in my arms. The go to sleep shot was administered in her hip, and Emma quietly and peacefully went to sleep in my arms. After a short time, the lethal injection was given, and Emma crossed the rainbow bridge. The process was simple and loving, with great respect for Emma. The first possession Emma received when she arrived at her forever-home in Piney Flats was a fleece which became her day-time bed (she slept on my bed at night). Emma s body was wrapped in this fleece and was buried in the back yard where she went for walks, digging up moles and scaring out rabbits. She lies there with an older rescued Shar Pei brother, Rip Van Wrinkle, whom she never met on earth. Emma was a very loving girl who was greatly loved and is greatly missed; she was a small dog, but left a huge emptiness in her forever-home. Emma is survived by another Shar Pei brother, Opie (also adopted through Wendy Autry), who still is not back to normal after Emma s departure. Ron Worrell, adopter, with Emma.
Emma's Story Emma's story touched the hearts of many and reminded us all of why Operation Scarlet needs to continue on its mission. Dawn, This is why we are still here today and doing the great work we do for the Chinese Shar-Pei. We are all lucky to be a part of a great Rescue group that has single handed saved more than 1000 homeless Shar-Pei. I thank God every day for the 3 that we have adopted thru OS. Pam Shaw Wow- what a great story! I certainly read it between tears as well! That story is another example of how important Operation Scarlet is and why no matter how difficult times may seem, we have to continue on! There are many OS adopters who can share similar stories of how they have rescued the most wonderful dog ever, and have found in return their dog has actually given them so much more in return! Stacy Made me cry too. Emma had a good life because of O.S. we have ALL had the best dogs ever...because of O.S. I feel that things will work out. Now Scarlet has another angel with her to help. They and all the O.S. Pei who have crossed are now rooting for O.S. they haven't given up on us. We shouldn't either. Mary Ellen Berry I cried too. We all can understand how he feels and have all loved our OS Pei very much and would all go to the ends of the earth for them. That is what OS is all about - not only helping to rescue Pei and find them forever homes - you are also rescuing their two legged counterparts. Donna Rotandi Wow, what a story. What a brave girl. These dogs truly give meaning to living and loving. Dawn if you ever need a pick me up call. I have two of the most wonderful dogs in the world. Sumo who I swear is my soul mate, this dog has the deepest brown eyes for me that always say "mom I am the luckiest dog". And Bogie who despite being abused prior to finding us is the HAPPIEST dog I know. He wags his tail for baths! If you don't get enough of these stories let me know...i know all of us have them. YOU make a difference in all of our lives when you rescue these dogs. And I KNOW they say the same thing. To the family that lost Emma, thank you for sharing such a great story, these dogs have the greatest stories to tell! Feeling very appreciative, Heather This story so reminds me of Mei Mei, who struggled all of her life with health issues, but remained positive, even until she went into eternal sleep. Emma did, as well, remain positive until her time came to leave this place we call earth. I will NEVER give up on these dogs, and will fight for their safety until I can no longer function - that is what we were put here for, and I will continue on as Emma and Mei did, till I can't anymore!! Gwen
The Donation Challenges As you read in this issue "From the Heart", when huge financial challenges threaten the survival of Operation Scarlet, two people came forward with a "Donation Challenge", promising to match donations made to Operation Scarlet in October. Gwen Goldfarb pledged to match $4,000 in donations in memory of her Dessin girl, Mei Mei, who recently passed. Mike Riddelle announced at the Fall Luncheon that he would match the next $5,000 in donations. Dawn was not aware of the $5,000 Challenge that Mike presented. She was so surprised and shocked that she literally almost passed out. The Operation Scarlet family quickly came together to meet these two challenges, effectively doubling their donations, and ensuring that Operation Scarlet would be able to continue on their mission. Special thanks to these two people who helped Operation Scarlet so much in their time of need and to all of those people who helped to meet the challenge. Pictured at the Fall Luncheon is Dawn Hertzog, left; Gwen Goldfarb, center; and Mike Riddelle, right.
This is a great success story. Joy had extreme separation anxiety and was returned twice. Julie and Bob Breighner have worked what is close to a miracle in helping Joy with her anxiety. Thanks for sharing and many hugs to Joy for being such a good girl. Sounds like she had a wonderful time and what an accomplishment. Thanks to you and your family, Joy is improving by leaps and bounds and is finally feeling safe and secure in her home again, thanks to your patience and understanding. Dawn Joy's I wish that I had a photo to give you a visual of this story, however, since I don t I will have to describe it for you. Our middle son Josh is a high school senior and runs on the cross country team. The team had a big meet on Tuesday afternoon and Josh had asked if he could have a pasta party the night before for the entire team, consisting of roughly 50 runners. I was slightly hesitant because Joy had never experienced this type of chaos since she has been here, but has always really seemed to enjoy all of our boys friends. Not wanting to say no to Josh s request, we planned this dinner for outside in our back yard. As kids began showing up we let everyone know that the dog stayed inside since we have not trained her on the invisible fence. Everyone knew that she could not come outside without being on a leash. She patiently sat at our sliding glass basement door just watching everyone in the back yard eating, playing football, and throwing frisbee. She did not bark and she did not seem to want out. She just wanted to watch. Occasionally someone needed to come inside to use the bathroom etc and Joy LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF THE ATTENTION!! Later in the evening when it got cooler, most of the kids moved into the basement to play ping pong and video games and this is when she really got love and attention!! She loved being petted and have her belly rubbed by everyone!! She was SO GOOD!! I kept commenting to Bob how surprised I was that she never barked at anyone. She never acted fearful or afraid of anyone. Most importantly she was really enjoying all of the attention from everyone!! I actually think that she had more fun than anyone else. I was really surprised how comfortable she felt having all of the people coming and going. I had planned to see how things went but figured that I may need to crate her while the party was going on. Much to my surprise, she now has about 40 new best friends. She is doing well! She seldom gets mad when we leave anymore and has run of the house while we are gone. Julie Breighner
Wrinkles was found as a stray and taken to a shelter so her background is unknown. She s shy when meeting new people but has taken all the new faces and experiences at OS in stride. She has become more confident and is beginning to show a sweet personality. She s looking for a home where she can feel safe, secure and loved. In that home, she ll surely come out of her shell and be the best dog ever. Jasmine is an adorable mini Pei. She weighs only 33 pounds and is a beautiful apricot dilute brushcoat. According to her owners she is about 7 years old. You would never know that because she is full of energy and exudes a bubbly, bouncy personality. Jasmine is absolutely adorable. She would be an even happier little dog if she had a forever home. Glory I am a friendly 4-5 year girl who is looking for a home and someone to love.
Albert I am a Pug-Shar Pei mix, making me a one of a kind cutie! My heart was broken when my family moved and could not take me with them. Tom is as big (55 pounds!) and as handsome as they come. He s young, approximately 2-3 years old, and full of fun. He seems to know how to behave in a home, playful but mannerly. Brisky She is friendly, well behaved, very healthy and quite intelligent. She will be a terrific friend and companion for the one dog family. Xiaoli- The "new girl" at OS was rescued from North Carolina and transported to OS by Mike Riddelle. She is looking for her forever home.
Bon Ton Event Stacy Lindemuth with Doogie, Heather Dushanko in center and Mary Hewes with Chum Lee, all selling coupon books for the Bon Ton Community Day Event. Sales of the coupon books benefit Operation Scarlet and can be redeemed on November 15 & 16. The dogs really enjoy working the crowd! Friendly s Night The Friendly's night held in September raised a total of $140.75. everyone who joined us at Friendly's. The kid's say "Woof, Woof!" (Thank you!) September Sub Sale Was a Hit! We had an excellent sub sale with a total of 272 subs sold. The profit from the sale of the subs coupled with $176.00 in donations, raised a total of $960.92 for the kids at the rescue. Thank you to everyone who sold or purchased subs. Special thanks to Kate Oppenheimer who did an excellent job as coordinator of the sale. Pennies from Heaven Donors Fred & Terry Antonacci Thank you! Marilyn Apelman Karen & Jerry Dalton Heather & Dan Dushanko Susan & Ray Fretterd Cathy & Glenn Hall Gerre Davis Mike & Dawn Riddelle Nancy Tartala Thank you to Kris Axberg Anita Pirani Last Call for The 2014 Operation Scarlet Calendars! These beautiful full color calendars are selling quickly. Just complete and return the order form located at the end of this newsletter. These calendars are great for home or office and are super gifts for the Pei lovers on your gift list. Remember that all proceeds from the sale of these calendars will go to helping the kids at the rescue.
Hi, Dawn - Knowing how you like to be kept informed about your "kids", Craig and I couldn't resist sending you the attached photo of Bozo "helping" me in the garden. A friend of ours snapped this picture yesterday as Bozo had settled down among the flowers watching me work. He is a constant and faithful companion, even more so since Niya is gone. Doug Bonsall Molly Caines Hates the Rain Hi Dawn There are so few Shar Pei in my area most people that see her have no idea what breed she is and some only know she's one of those "wrinkle dogs". My veterinarian operates 4 clinics in the area and only has 7 Shar Pei as clients and unfortunately, they do not have the nicest temperament, according to him. I don't know how rumours about breeds of dogs are in your area but in mine they can be terribly unfounded and enough harm is done to turn prospective owners away. By taking Maiya to all these rescue group fundraisers, people can make their own judgment of a shar pei temperament by observing her and interacting with her. Her favorite groups are babies to 3 year olds and special needs children and adults. My very favorite statement that I Hear is "she is so good with children" Maiya is a therapy dog for Prader-Willi Syndrome children and young adults. She also represented the Shar-Pei in a collection of photos and later a book to raise awareness of breed discrimination produced by Jane Caruso-Dahms. The book is called "Fidos and Footwear". Her picture can still be seen by clicking Fidos and Footwear on Jane's website. Obviously I'm more than a little proud of her and I've probably bored you to tears with my rambling on for which I apologize. Leona
The Operation Scarlet Hero Award was presented to Ken Berry (L)for his work as the webmaster for the OS website and to Dick Dunkle, (C) who maintains the posts for OS on Petfinder. The A. Marie Cross Humanitarian Award was presented to Sue Crowle. (R) Sue has been an OS adopter since 1995 and has adopted 10 of Scarlet s kids. She presently has Jack and Blinkin. The awards were presented to the recipients by Dawn Hertzog at the Fall Luncheon. Associate Renewals Rep Renewals New Volunteers Vicki Showers Denise Brodhecker Pam Wert Tracy Broomall Jeanne and Brian Johnson Ellen Campbell Sue Spitz Operation Scarlet welcomes Tara Spaide who is a new volunteer that comes in weekly to feed the dogs. She is doing a great job and even takes them into the play area to play with toys, brushes them and gives them that added attention and love that they are in search of. Paige Evans recently became a volunteer. Paige is a college student at Franklin and Marshall College and is studying animal behavior. Paige also comes to the rescue weekly to feed the dogs and they love spending time with her. Our Beloved Pei That Have Recently Crossed the Rainbow Bridge Hershey Tartala Jasmine Myers Edna Snowflower Hertzog Qi Lin Davis "If there is a heaven, it's certain our animals are to be there. Their lives become so interwoven with our own, it would take more than an archangel to detangle them." Pam Brown In memory of OS adopter, Michael Golden, who passed just two months after his beloved Pei, Mollie.
Operation Scarlet is on Facebook! Like us and invite your friends to do the same. Help spread the word about Operation Scarlet and be a part of our mission to find forever homes for the kids at the rescue. We are doing something new on our Facebook page (Operation Scarlet). Every week we are going to feature one of the "kids" available for adoption through Operation Scarlet, this will be our featured Dog of the week. This will normally be posted on Monday mornings. We have started things off with Brisky. Brisky is so special and really needs her forever home. Dog of the Day - We will also be posting a picture each day of a dog that has traveled through the doors of Operation Scarlet. There have been nearly 1,200 dogs that have had their lives changed because of the help provided by Operation Scarlet. We feel it is so important to remember that these are the ones we are helping. I invite you to send us picictures of your Shar Pei rescued through Scarlet, so that we can feature them. Send them to opscarkevin@outlook.com. I will keep these pics and post one every day. Make sure you check every day to see if it is your special friend that gets featured for the day. Remember, there are MANY dogs that we have helped, so please be patient. I will pick the picture at random. This is all being handled by our new Facebook administrator Kevin Bedgood. Many of you already know Kevin, he has been actively involved with OS for nearly a decade and is currently our Policy and Compliance officer. We are doing this because we really want to get more people looking at our page. Please share these pictures with all your friends.
We Have Been Placed! Shayna Boscoe Mulligan Like Operation Scarlet on Facebook Help With The FB Challenge OS has over 600 likes so far on Facebook. Wow, that is fantastic!! I have a challenge, are you up to the challenge? Let's get 1,000 likes by Christmas. Remember, the more people that "like" us, the more people that will see our dogs. When more people see the dogs, more dogs get adopted and Operation Scarlet gets more donations to help more dogs. Invite ALL your friends to LIKE Operation Scarlet. Help us to help them. 1,000 likes by Christmas. I know we can do it! Questions, Comments or Submissions For Scarlet's News? Email Gerre Davis, Editor scarletsnews@aol.com Email Us OpScarlet@verizon.net Operation Scarlet, Inc. P.O. Box 8463 Lancaster, PA 17604 Phone 717-397-6362 Fax 717-399-9220 Visit Our Web Site www.operationscarlet.com
OPERATION SCARLET 2014 SHAR-PEI CALENDAR ORDER FORM Operation Scarlet s 2014 calendar are ready for mailing now! The calendar contains adorable photos of Shar-Pei that were once homeless and are now enjoying a second chance at life. The Shar-Pei appearing in the calendar are winners of the spring photo contest. There are collage pages of all the contestants along with featured pages of the Rescue Dog of the Year and Lucky 13. Don t delay They sell quickly Makes a Great Christmas Gift Too To receive your calendar(s), please complete the form. Mail it along with your check (payable to Operation Scarlet) to Operation Scarlet, Inc., P.O. Box 8463, Lancaster, PA 17604-8463. The cost of the calendar is $19.00 plus shipping and handling. Postage and Handling - $3.00 for 1 calendar $6.00 for 3 to 4 calendars $4.00 for 2 calendars $8.00 for 5 to 6 calendars Number of calendars ordered Total amount for calendars Plus shipping and handling TOTAL ENCLOSED $ $ $ Mail to: Name Street City, State, Zip Phone ( ) Email THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT!!!!!