Marjorie Vales-Thedford is directing the Animal Rescue Foundation’s 10th annual 5K Run & Walk with the Dogs on Sunday (May 18) at Memorial Park in Beacon. 

What’s the history of ARF?
It was founded in 1986 by Barbara Shea, who bought the lot [on Simmons Lane] from the city for $1. There were two buildings; she gave one to Essie Dabrusin, the founder of Mid Hudson Animal Aid, which is next door. 

How did the 5K begin?
I moved to Beacon almost 20 years ago when I got married and started fundraising for ARF with Joan Roman, who passed away last year. I grew up with animals at home, but I’d never been involved with a shelter of this scale. Joan inspired me because she lived in Pennsylvania but commuted here for the events she organized. Running had always been part of my life, so after five years of volunteering, I created the 5K to bring the community together around a shared love for animals. 

What does ARF need most?
We need funding and people who can volunteer on a regular basis. ARF has no paid staff; donations help us care for the animals and get them adoption-ready. We are working to adjust the physical structure of the shelter to stay compliant with New York State law. [Animal shelters and rescue organizations must be licensed by the state before Dec. 15.]

What happens when a dog comes to the shelter?
The first two things are physical and psychological assessments. Trainers check the dogs and determine what type of work volunteers need to do, such as working on abandonment or socializing issues, to get them ready to be adopted. Volunteers come in the morning and in the evening to walk the dogs, clean their pans, feed them or take them to the vet, if that’s necessary. All of our rescues are vaccinated, spayed or neutered. Once we feel the dog is ready to be adopted, we have another assessment with the trainer to determine what type of adoptee we should be looking for, to make sure we align the dog with the right environment.  There’s also a trial period after adoption to make sure the family or individual that they’re going with matches the animal’s personality. 

What trends are you seeing with incoming animals?
We have 12 or 13 dogs and puppies and 30 to 35 cats waiting to be adopted. Some of them are lifelong residents, meaning they’ve never acclimated enough to be adopted. We get surrenders, which are animals that came from good homes but financial or other situations didn’t allow people to care for their animals anymore. We’ve seen a lot of those in recent years. In terms of abandoned animals, we get a lot from down South, where the shelters are overcrowded and the animals get euthanized. We transport the animals up here and try to find homes for them.

Behind The Story

Type: News

News: Based on facts, either observed and verified directly by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.

Jeff Simms has covered Beacon for The Current since 2015. He studied journalism at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. From there he worked as a reporter for the tri-weekly Watauga Democrat in Boone and the daily Carroll County Times in Westminster, Maryland, before transitioning into nonprofit communications in Washington, D.C., and New York City. He can be reached at [email protected].

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