Support for Mattie---find a forever home soon---buddy!

Donation made by Sarah Brashear: "For Mattie"

In memory of Rita Martin!

In lieu of flowers, John Martin (who adopted Louise from the Adeline's Puppy litter) asked donations to be made to Illinois Birddog Rescue, in memory of his mother Rita Martin who recently passed away. We thank the following people for their support:

John Martin
Laurel Bowen
Susan and Paul Marrone
Beth and John Conroy
Carol and William Whowell

Your contributions are greatly appreciated.

We want to express our deepest sympathy to the Martin family for their loss.

Wes Memorial Fund Donations for the month of May 2007!

Donation made by Julie Larson and family:
"To be used for Candice/Sadie's medical expenses, or as needed."
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Donation made by Dan and Bonnie Jensen
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Donation made by Matthew and Allison Gill
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A generous donation made by Gene Laster and family
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Donation made by Sarajean Howells
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Donation made by Dan and Lisa Fink
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Donation made by Herb Kober
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Donation made by Justin and Melissa Fronek
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Donation made by Dennis Felton
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Donation made by Richard and Pamela Kehoe
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A generous donation made by Mark and Hether Yeager
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A generous donation made by James Peters
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Donation made by Monica Soja
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A generous donation made by Johnny Paolucci and Nancy Denk
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Donation made by Debby Filler and family "for the Wes Memorial Fund"
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Donation made by William and Kathleen Cheney
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Donation made by Michelle and James Demos
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Donation made by Christopher and Mary Gasik
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We are thanking you all from the bottom of our hearts for your generous support, which has never been more needed than at this time. We will never forget your kindness.

Wes Memorial Fund Donations for the month of April 2007!

Donation made by Cindy Glass (April 2007)
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Donation made by Heather McCullough (April 2007)
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Donation made by Claudia Haslett (April 2007):
"Every bit helps. The work you do is important. There's nothing quite like a 'Pointer'."
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Donation made by Debra Kennedy (April 2007)
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Donation made by Gary Berg (April 2007):
"From Silo Molly"
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We want to thank everybody for their generous donations. They are much needed and greatly appreciated.

In memory of...

Donation by Judy Gemperline and family:
'In Memory of Java and my second dog, Nasa, who was Java’s best friend' ~ Judy

Hope, Strength & Courage

Three badly maimed pointer/setter mixes Hope, Strength & Courage were patiently nursed back to health by their shelter. Illinois Birddog Rescue is taking them under their wing, as their time was running out. Continuing vet care will be necessary for these three, especially for Hope, who is still struggling with skin issues.

Donation made by Ed Kaufman:
An extremely generous donation was made by Mr. Kaufman. You are a true rescue angel and this sweet trio and Illinois Birddog Rescue thank you so much for your contribution.

Donations for Dorothy

Little Dorothy was sitting at a Michigan shelter with not much hope at rescue, as she’s an older gal with wounds from frostbite and a huge tumor. IBR thought she should have something to look forward to and vet tests show hope that surgery could actually give her a brighter future and hope a forever home. Sadly Dorothy did not survive your surgery. IBR cremated her and gave her ashes to foster mom Lisa Floros in memory of her loving care of sweet Dorothy.

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Donation made by Hildur Hanna:

“Dear Illinois Birddog Rescue - I am making this donation in honor of "Dotty," the rescue from Standish Michigan on 3/8.” Hildur Hanna

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Donation made by Mike & Jeri McClure:
A heartfelt "Thank You" to Mike and Jeri McClure who made an extremely generous donation that covered Dorothy's surgery cost.

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Donation made by Andrea Mann:

"I am so very sorry about Dorothy. Words really don't help in situations like this. Later on they will. Please let everyone know a candle will be lit for Dorothy and hugs are in the wind to all."

Andie

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Donation made by Patricia Goodwin:
"For Dorothy"
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We thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts for your support.

Teaching Compassion!

Thanks to Kathy Cheney’s efforts—

Her school was able to raise $174.04 for the puppies!! Kathy is coming over to meet them on Saturday- so we’ll get some pictures for her to take back to the school! Illinois Birddog Rescue, Inc is making a difference in our community. I think Kathy just found us by a random search on petfinder and she saw our plea for help.

Thanks a heap- Kathy!Kathy was also personally thanked by three of the buck funds puppies (Gidget, Jersey Girl and Wheaties) who gave her sloppy puppy kisses.
Kathy later wrote:

Hi Lisa,
Thank you so much for the pictures! I can't tell you the
feelings that went through me when I looked at those shots.
I am so happy those babies have a shot at a wonderful life.
I will be sure to share them with the students at our school
tomorrow and let them know that what they did made a
difference. 

'Buck Funds' Pointers Donations

Kathy Cheney was touched by the plight of six pointers that need rescuing, she donated money especially to their cause. She writes: "I hope this helps somewhat. Our school is also collecting for Illinois Bird Dog Rescue, we have collected over $60.00 so far just in our class." IBR is transporting the setters this weekend.

Donation by Jennifer Ligsay: "I live all the way out in California so I cant take those beautiful dogs. I did make a donation though. I don't have a lot of money, but I do donate to deserving causes when I can. These doggies (they are SO thin), and the Boat Mountain story made me cry. I wish I could save them all!"

Donation made by the Autumn Acres Organization. Jenifer writes: here is the donation for the pointer pups(and mom) from KS. Good Luck with them and thanks for helping them out!

We would like to thank all of them for their special donations.

In Memory of...

Donation to the Wes Memorial Fund made by Pat and Annemarie Bennett (Feb 2007):
"In memory of Augie"

Donations Wes Memorial Fund February & March 2007!

Donation made by Carola & Jeff Clark (Feb 2007):
"Wes, though we only met you one time, we could see how special you were and how much you meant to your mommy. You will never be forgotten!"
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Donation made by Amy and Robert Williams (Feb 2007)
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Donation made by David and Denise Kerr (Feb 2007)
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Donation made by Herb, Mar and "Lucy" Kober (Feb 2007)
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Donation made by Chris Dewey & "Skeets" aka Nala pup #2 Balloo (Feb 2007):
"So very sad to hear of Wes' passing. My heart goes out to Lisa. Here's a small but HEARTFELT, donation to the Wes Memorial Fund, to keep IBR's wonderful work going in memory of Lisa's heart-dog....and the inspiration for IBR. Rest well, Sweet Wubs."
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Donation made by Maureen Kozial (Feb 2007), who also sent Lisa a card quoting the beautiful poem displayed below the blog header.
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Donation made by Tana Vaughan (Feb 2007):
"This is for the Westleigh Memorial Fund. I was very sad to hear of your loss."
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Donation made by Nancy Bye (Feb 2007):
"Not the least hard thing to bear when they go from us, these quiet friends, is that they carry away with them so many years of our own lives." John Galsworthy
~In Memory of Wes~
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Donation made by Christy Carrano (March 2007):
For Wes:
"The sun is mine
And the trees are mine
The light breeze is mine
And the birds that inhabit the air are mine
Their voices upon the wind are in my ear" ....Robert Hogg
~In memory of Pearl~

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Donation made by Deborah Taylor (March 2007):
"Wes was a wonderful dog. I am so glad to have known him. I am so sorry for your loss Lisa."

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We would like to thank everybody for their generous donations. They are much needed and greatly appreciated.

Announcing the Wes Memorial Fund!

Lisa Spakowski, Illinois Birddog Rescue Founder and President mourns the loss of her beloved English Pointer boy Westleigh---otherwise knows as Wes, Wubbies, Wubs. After the adoption of her Pointer, Wes, in 1999, Lisa learned about the wonderful world of Birddogs and Field Training. This passion also helped her to create Illinois Birddog Rescue which is a Pointer and Setter Adoption Foundation in the Chicagoland area. “

Allison Brudney, Lisa’s close friend and fellow board member writes: “Wes was the reason Lisa started IBR, the reason we all have that special pointer or setter (or blend) in our lives, and the reason we are all friends! In lieu of sending flowers, we would like to set up the Wubbies Memorial Fund.”

Lisa’s Own Words: “Wes was a gift and it was an honor to have had him in my life. He was such a blessing. Through him and the love of the breed I started IBR and because of him my extended family is big and wonderful. I love you Wes- forever and always. Thanks for 8 wonderful happy years; your spirit and zest for life will always be a comfort to me.”Lisa Flores, an IBR volunteer wrote the following upon hearing of Lisa's loss:

"I just want you to know this...and I don't want to make you
sad...We never met Wes but he is part of our family.  Sofia
(my 2 year old daughter) watches the NATCH video several
times a day.  She wakes up and says good morning to our
dogs and then says "WES" and runs to the computer!
She can navigate the IBR site to get to the videos!  He has
brought so much joy to Sofia and to us! I wish you could
see her reaction and hear her cheering him on!   We are
so glad that we are a part of the IBR family!"