Woman Sleeps in Shelter for 30 Days to Raise Funds

April 15, 2008 | By Robin Wallace

ANDERSON, Ind. – With 13 years devoted to the Madison County Humane Society, Rhonda Estes was fully vested in brainstorming for new fundraising events to help keep the rescue’s doors open.

But she might have gotten more than she had bargained for in the process. Estes has now taken up residence at the no-kill shelter in an attempt to bolster support.

“I was actually trying to work on a different type of fund raiser, called a ‘jail and bail,’ but I couldn’t figure out how to make it work,” said Estes, the shelter’s adoption coordinator. “While I was walking around the house, I thought, ‘well, I could lock myself in (at her own home),’ but realized that wouldn’t work, but what would work is if I threw myself in ‘jail’ at the shelter.”

The next day, she bounced the idea off other shelter workers and on Monday, April 7 she began serving her 30-day sentence at the central-Indiana facility.

Her goal was to raise $10,000, not to mention attention, during her confined stay. Her strategy is off to a successful start. In just a week’s time, the donations now total $6,000.

“I got three phone calls from Florida, one from South Carolina, two from New York and one from Michigan,” said Estes, who reports that the average donation ranges from $25 to $100, while “so far, the largest, single donation is $1,000.”

In addition to funds, Estes’ stunt has brought an increase of adoptions and volunteers to the rescue. On Saturday, MCHS had four new volunteers committed to helping.

“It’s an absolute big increase in volunteers, which is wonderful,” said Estes, who also reported the shelter has had three to four more adoptions than its normal track record.

Financial woes loom for the shelter, which has come to the end of its working budget for the year and has been struggling since April 2007 to recover from a former employee’s embezzlement of $65,000.

The stolen money came out of the shelter’s “pinch savings,” which helped offset each month’s operating costs opposed to that month’s brought in donations. Estes said the facility -- which does not euthanize animals for the sake of space, but only when ordered by a vet – can fluctuate between $10,000 “on a good month’s operating costs, but it can go as high as $20,000.”

With the Anderson facility currently housing 105 cats and dogs, where “it’s about an even 50-50 split,” Estes remains dedicated to insuring a way to care for all the animals, come what may. In the meantime, she’s getting used to her new house mates.

“It’s been an experience, you don’t get a whole lot of sleep,” said Esters, who sleeps on an air mattress in the kennel area. “Some nights are better than others. I think they are getting used to it, because each night they seem to be getting quieter.

“Last night, I was able to walk through without everyone going into a tizzy,” she said of the shelter’s animals.

But, Estes is not alone in her quest of a sound night of sleep. During this fund-raising imprisonment, her three pet Chihuahua’s are living right aside of her.

“They are actually fitting in pretty good,” said Esters of Tiki, Buddy and Toby, who range from six to 10 years of age. “I don’t let them run loose. During the day they stay with me in the office, and in the evening, I confine them to an unused kennel room, where they sleep next to me.”

The native Anderson resident has been involved at the shelter since 1995, first as a volunteer, then as a board member and now as a staff member of more than two years.

As her commitment level evolved at MCHS, she also watched her region digress in its development with General Motors closing the last of its plants.

As reported by The New York Times in 2006, Anderson’s population has dwindled from more than 70,000 in 1970 to 58,000, which Estes said is directly reflected in the shelter’s support system. But now, she is encouraged.

“The community has stepped forward, people are wanting to help, and it makes you feel good that these kinds of people are behind you like this,” said Estes. “But it’s absolutely for the animals, who are the ones that are going to pay the price if we close … and that’s why we are here is to help those animals.”

While Estes’ lock-in will come to an end May 6, the shelter has several upcoming fundraisers, including a dog wash on April 30 and a walk-a-thon on May 3.

For more information on these events or to make a donation, contact Madison County Humane Society at: 2219 Crystal Street in Anderson, Ind. 46012, or by phone at 765-644-6484.

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