Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue Kicks Off $10 Million Campus Expansion Project

Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue, the non-profit, no-kill animal shelter and adoption center on Lorraine Road in Lakewood Ranch, officially broke ground this month on its yearlong campus expansion project. More than 120 Nate’s Honor board members, local officials and loyal supporters gathered Dec. 6. to celebrate the momentous occasion.   

Board Member Mary Dougherty-Slapp provided the opening remarks and introduced Sally Dionne, District Director for Congressman Vern Buchanan, who highlighted the bill sponsored by Buchanan that recently passed into law making animal cruelty a federal felony. Nate’s Honor Animal Rescue Director of Development Rob Oglesby then gave heartfelt remarks about the history of the 11-year-old organization and the critical need to expand the campus to save the lives of more animals in need. The presentation was followed by the ceremonial dig, which was led by one of the dogs rescued from the Bahamas.

“The sad reality is that Florida has the third highest euthanasia rate in the country, with puppies and kittens being killed at the highest rate,” said Oglesby. “Our daily challenge of saving the lives of at-risk animals is greater than ever, and we’ve simply outgrown the existing physical capacity. This expansion will allow us to save twice as many lives each year and provide quality education programs for the community.”

The planned expansion of The Ranch includes three new buildings totaling over 30,000 square feet of space, including a 20,000-square-foot welcome center, a separate intake building that will be used to quarantine new animals, and a behavior and training center. In addition to serving as a place to socialize with potential pets, the new welcome center will feature a state-of-the-art veterinary clinic, indoor/outdoor cat habitat, and warm, welcoming event rooms, allowing for greater community outreach and a wider scope of services. Other campus improvements include a new dog pool and patio, walking trail to help dogs learn to walk on a leash, fenced play area and eight more dog cottages.

The changes will double capacity for dogs and increase capacity for cats by 25 percent, allowing Nate’s Honor to save about 4,500 animals annually, compared to the 2,000 it has saved so far for 2019.

The expansion of the eight-acre campus is being funded by a $10 million capital campaign, called Journey Home. Thanks to generous supporters, Nate’s Honor is currently at 70 percent of the fundraising goal.

Nate’s Honor still needs the community’s support to raise the much-needed funds to complete the project. To learn more about how to help, please contact Nate’s Development Director Rob Oglesby at 941-538-6206 or visit http://www.nateshonoranimalrescue.org