This Issue:

Table of Contents

Cover Story

Cover Story - Spanish Version

Mini-Lesson

Comprehension Quiz

Teacher's Guide and Worksheets

Best Friends Forever

In 1982, some friends decided to builda paradise for unwanted animals. They bought 3,000 acres in southwest Utah and named it Angel Canyon. There, they established the Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. It had a simple goal: no more homeless pets.

Best Friends is home to more than 2,000 animals at a time. Most are dogs and cats, but there are also rabbits, horses, birds and even wild animals. Many of them will be adopted. Others will spend life at the sanctuary. The operation is funded only by donations. More than 300 people work for Best Friends. Each year, they are joined by 4,000 to 6,000 volunteers.

FROM DISASTER TO SAFETY

The Best Friends mission has taken the staff to unexpected places. After Hurricane Katrina hit, in 2005, Best Friends rescued about 4,000 animals from the streets of New Orleans, Louisiana, and 2,000 from area shelters. Many would have been put to sleep if they had not been rescued. About 600 of the animals were returned to their owners.

During the 2006 war in Lebanon, an animal-rights group there contacted the sanctuary. Best Friends president Michael Mountain told TFK: "It was the anniversary of Katrina, in which people had been told to evacuate and leave their pets behind. We were seeing the same thing unfold in Israel and Lebanon."

Best Friends organized an airlift of 145 cats and 149 dogs from Lebanon to Utah. A village of tents and pens was set up and nicknamed Little Lebanon. More than 500 people applied to adopt the pets. Since November, about 150 have found new homes. Best Friends also sent money to a charity in Israel that has helped thousands of abandoned pets there.

TRUE LIFESAVERS

Helena Hesayne is an architect and animal lover from Lebanon. She flew to Utah to learn more about shelters and to help out. She is now back in Lebanon. "I miss the dogs, but I know they are in great hands," Hesayne says. Maggie Shaarawi also made the long trip to Utah. "It always feels good to save a life," she says.

Next: Growing Pains