A.R.K. / Association to Rescue Kritters

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A.R.K. / Association to Rescue Kritters

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The A.R.K was officially founded by Ruth and Denny Fruehauf in 2001. At that time, Critter Alley, a rehab center downstate was closing it's doors.

They started rehabbing out of their home for many years but quickly realized they needed more space. Ruth and Denny had worked with Critter Alley on a few occasions. Critter Alley donated the remaining assets, including caging and a few education animals over to Ruth and Denny. It was then that the A.R.K Association to Rescue Kritters was officially born. With over 25 years of experience, Ruth is still the director at the A.R.K. She and her team of volunteers carry out the day to day care of wildlife, education, and fundraising. The A.R.K is a non-profit organization solely run on donations and volunteers.

10/08/2026

Here is the latest update for the A.R.K. Association to Rescue Kritters Queen of Hearts raffle!

This week, we drew Envelope #45, revealing the Jack of Clubs. Congratulations to Anita Adams on her $100 win!

This brings our starting jackpot for the upcoming week to $27,048.60, with A.R.K.'s portion currently at $18,068.

We want to extend a massive thank you to everyone who participates in this fundraiser. Our wildlife rescue work truly could not continue without this amazing community support.

Join us next Tuesday at the Travelers Bar & Grill in LeRoy. The drawing is between 7:00 PM and 8:00 PM. Grab dinner and buy your tickets for the next round. Remember, you do not need to be present to win, and we sell tickets all week long!

10/05/2026

We are incredibly excited to announce that our young eastern coyotes are nearing 6 months of age and are passing all of their pre-release conditioning requirements with flying colors!

Thanks to an amazing volunteer, we have the unique opportunity to release these rehabbed coyotes onto a private 80-acre property in the Upper Peninsula. Finding a safe, expansive space like this is rare but crucial, as we know coyotes are often misunderstood.

Despite their bad reputation, coyotes are vital to a healthy ecosystem! Here is how they help:

• Natural Pest Control: They keep rodent, rabbit, and insect populations in check, which prevents overgrazing and crop damage.
• Disease Prevention: By managing small mammal populations, they help reduce the spread of tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease.

FREEZER CLEAN-OUT REQUEST!

As we prepare to say goodbye to our coyotes, our winter guests are arriving. We will be overwintering 6 young bobcats this season! These growing carnivores eat a lot of meat...each one consumes about 2 pounds of meat every single day!

If you are cleaning out your freezers ahead of the winter, please keep A.R.K. Association to Rescue Kritters in mind! We gladly accept donations of unseasoned, uncooked (venison, beef, chicken, etc.) to keep these hungry bobcats fed.

We couldn't do this lifesaving work without our amazing community. Thank you all for your continued support!

(Check the comments below to see a picture of our adorable juvenile bobcats!)

10/01/2026

Congratulations Dr. Vincent! We look forward to the next 25 years with you! Thank you for all you do!

09/30/2026

THE QUEEN LIVES!

We had another thrilling night, but the elusive Queen of Hearts is still hiding!

In Week 39, envelope #25 was opened, revealing the 10 of Hearts.

Congratulations to Dee Enos, who walked away with a cool $50!

The hunt continues, and the prize pools are getting massive!

Here is where we stand heading into next week:

Total Jackpot Starts At: $24,982.20
A.R.K. Portion Is At: $16,670.40

Get your tickets, pick your numbers, and let's see if we have a lucky winner next Tuesday!

Join us at the Travlers Bar, Tuesday evenings! Meet and learn about an animal ambassador, have dinner, and help us search for the Queen.

** DO NOT NEED TO BE PRESENT TO WIN
** TICKETS AVAILABLE ALL WEEK

09/17/2026

After tonight, we will have officially released 117 juvenile Northern Raccoons back to their home counties this season!

Raising over a hundred orphaned baby raccoons is an immense undertaking. It began months ago with exhausting, around-the-clock bottle feedings and a strict vaccine schedule, followed by weeks in outdoor enclosures where they learned to climb, forage, hide, and wild up.

It was a very long summer, but seeing them return to the wild makes every sleepless night completely worth it. These masked bandits play a vital role in our ecosystems as nature's cleanup crew. By eating carrion, insects, and pests, and helping disperse seeds, they keep our local environments healthy and balanced.

This milestone would be completely impossible without our entire team. A huge thank you to our incredible fosters who gave them direct care, our volunteers who cleaned and fed them, and our donors who funded their food and medicine.

Thank you for giving 117 lives a second chance!

09/16/2026

The Queen lives to see another week!

Here are the results from last night's drawing:

Name Drawn: Karen Laws
Envelope Chosen: #12
Card Revealed: 3 of Clubs

Winner: Karen takes home the $50 prize! Congratulations!

The jackpot officially starts the week at a massive $21,544.20!

Next Drawing: Tuesday, September 22, 2026 Drawing Time: Between 7pm-8pm
Location: The Travlers Bar and Grill in LeRoy

Reminder: You do not need to be present to win the jackpot!

Halloween Candy Drive: If anyone would like to bring a bag of Halloween candy to next week's drawing, we would certainly put that to good use for our next fundraiser!

See you there, and thank you for your continued support!

09/14/2026

What a fantastic turnout for our very first Bingo Fundraiser yesterday at Rosie's North Bar in Luther! 35 incredible people joined us to have a blast, win cash and prizes, and meet some of our amazing animal ambassadors.

Thanks to your wonderful support, we raised $862.00, and we could not be more grateful!

A huge thank you to this week's amazing prize donors:

- Katy Cakes for the delicious baked goods

-Northend Meat and Produce in Reed City for the fantastic meat basket

-Rosie's North Bar for hosting us and providing a $200 lottery ticket basket

Missed out or want to play again? Join us at 3:00 PM on the second Sunday of the next three months for our Carnival Bingo in support of The A.R.K.

We are also looking for 3 special prizes for each upcoming bingo day, if anyone would like to donate an item or basket. We can't wait to see you all next month!

09/13/2026

Yesterday was our first-ever golf outing supporting the ARK, and we are still floating on cloud nine!

12 teams came out to Tustin Trails to play 18 holes with us, and the energy was absolutely incredible. Thanks to your amazing support, we completely shattered our fundraising goal of $5,000!

But the good news doesn't stop there! Thanks to a very generous donor, all of our efforts yesterday were matched up to $5,000, effectively doubling our impact for the animals!

An event like this takes a village, and we want to send a massive THANK YOU to:

- Our Hole Sponsors & Raffle Donors

- Our Golfers

- Our Volunteers

- Our Animal Ambassadors

- Tustin Trails

We are so thrilled to come together with all of you to make the world a better place, one animal at a time. Thank you for making our golf outing an unforgettable success!

09/05/2026

Happy National Vulture Awareness Day!

Let’s talk about one of nature's most misunderstood heroes: the Turkey Vulture.

Many people view them with fear, but they are actually harmless and vital to our ecosystem. As nature’s cleanup crew, they eat carrion (dead animals) and have incredibly strong stomach acid that destroys dangerous bacteria like anthrax and rabies. By clearing away carcasses, they prevent the spread of diseases to humans, pets, and other wildlife. They don't hunt...they just clean!

We have a highly anticipated update on our wild-fostered Turkey Vulture babies from earlier this season. We are absolutely thrilled to share that all 4 babies have successfully fledged the nest!

Fostering these young birds and watching them take to the skies is a massive victory for wildlife rehabilitation.

Did you know that adult Turkey Vultures typically begin their fall migration before their young are strong enough to make the long journey? The juveniles stay behind a bit longer to practice their flight skills and build up strength before following the migration corridors on their own. Our four fledglines are doing exactly that right now!

Thank you to everyone who supported us during this busy season. Help us celebrate these amazing birds!

Address

3878 S Maple Valley Road
Saint Helen, MI
48656

Telephone

+19893893305

Website

http://www.arkritters.org/

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