10/28/2026
🐾❤️ BEHIND EVERY RESCUED DOG IS A TEAM YOU MAY NEVER SEE! ❤️🐾
When you follow an animal rescue, you often see the exciting moments — a dog finally being trapped after weeks on the run, a frightened stray being brought to safety, or a happy reunion with an owner.
Those moments are incredible, and the people who make them happen deserve every bit of recognition they receive! ❤️
But have you ever wondered what happens AFTER that dog is rescued?
At Hearts of Paws Trap and Rescue, saving a dog is just the beginning of a much bigger journey. And behind every successful rescue is a team of people working together, often in ways the public never gets to see.
🐕 KELLY — THE RESCUER & DIRECTOR
Kelly founded Hearts of Paws and built it into a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. She’s the one out in the field, spending countless hours tracking, trapping, and rescuing dogs that are lost, abandoned, frightened, or difficult to catch.
She’s rescued hundreds of dogs over the years, often in challenging situations that require patience, determination, and dedication.
She’s the person you often see when a dog is finally brought to safety. And that moment is worth celebrating!
But once that dog is safe, there’s still a whole lot of work to be done.
💻 MANDY — THE BEHIND-THE-SCENES COORDINATOR
That’s where a different side of rescue begins!
Mandy handles much of the day-to-day administrative work that keeps the rescue moving forward.
From managing our page and answering messages to processing applications, communicating with potential adopters, coordinating fosters, arranging adoptions, and helping dogs find their forever homes, there’s a tremendous amount happening behind the scenes.
She also creates our adoption posts, informational materials, flyers, and other resources, while helping coordinate veterinary care and the many details involved in preparing dogs for adoption.
You may never meet her in person, and you may not see her in the rescue photos, but there’s a good chance you’ve interacted with her if you’ve messaged our page, applied to adopt, or fostered one of our dogs!
Because rescuing a dog is one thing. Helping that dog through the next chapter and into a loving home is another equally important part of the journey. ❤️
🎪 PATTI — FUNDRAISING, EVENTS & COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Patti brings years of experience, community relationships, and a passion for helping animals.
She’s an important part of coordinating fundraisers, organizing events, connecting with supporters, and helping bring people together for the animals who depend on us.
Fundraising and community involvement are essential to keeping a rescue operating. Veterinary bills, food, medications, and supplies don’t pay for themselves!
Patti helps create opportunities for our community to get involved and support the dogs who need us.
🐾 OUR FOSTERS — THE HEARTS THAT OPEN THEIR HOMES
Our fosters provide the safe, loving environments where rescued dogs can decompress, heal, learn to trust, and prepare for their forever families.
They provide something no amount of money can replace — a place to feel loved and safe.
Without foster families, our ability to help dogs would be incredibly limited.
❤️ OUR VOLUNTEERS & SUPPORTERS — THE PEOPLE WHO KEEP US GOING
From transporting dogs and helping at events to donating, sharing posts, spreading awareness, and supporting fundraisers, every single contribution matters.
Some people give hours of their time. Others give a few dollars, a bag of food, or simply share a dog in need of a home.
ALL of it makes a difference!
🐾 WHAT MANY PEOPLE DON’T REALIZE ABOUT RESCUE…
A successful rescue doesn’t end when a dog is caught.
There’s often veterinary care to arrange, appointments to coordinate, medications, foster placement, daily communication, applications to review, references to check, adopters to speak with, and ultimately the process of finding the right forever home.
There are phone calls, messages, paperwork, unexpected expenses, difficult decisions, and countless hours of work that never make it into a Facebook post.
And every single part of that process matters.
❤️ WE ARE A TEAM.
Hearts of Paws is a volunteer-run rescue. None of us receives a paycheck for the work we do. We all have jobs, families, responsibilities, and lives outside of rescue, but we make time because these animals deserve a chance.
No single person does it all.
The person who rescues the dog matters.
The person who coordinates its care and finds its home matters.
The person who raises the funds matters.
The foster who opens their home matters.
The volunteer who gives their time matters.
And every supporter who helps us continue this mission matters.
We each bring different strengths, experiences, and abilities to the table. And together, those contributions are what make Hearts of Paws possible.
Because rescue isn’t just about getting a dog off the streets. It’s about everything it takes to give that dog a better future. 🐾❤️
So the next time you see a happy rescue story or an adoption announcement, remember that there’s often an entire team behind that happy ending.
And from all of us at Hearts of Paws Trap and Rescue, THANK YOU for being part of that team! ❤️🐾
