The Homestead Legacy Project is located at our original sanctuary in Spring Hill, Kansas. 🏡🐾 While we have faced many roadblocks along the way, our commitment to this special place has never wavered. ❤️
Important Note: This project should not be confused with our new Homestead EAST project in KCMO. Homestead East is being built in the same spirit and incorporates many of the ideas, plans, and dreams that first took shape here. 🏗️✨
Though Homestead East allows us to expand our mission in the present, The Homestead Legacy Project remains in the works for our future. 🌱
The challenges we face with the Homestead Legacy Project are teaching us invaluable lessons, shaping our journey, and strengthening our mission. 💪🐶🐱
Keep reading to learn more about its story, impact, and future. 📖✨
I wish I could bottle up all the love this Little Red Barn holds from all the amazing dogs in it and place it in our neighbors’ hearts just for one moment—so their souls could feel what I feel every single morning I open the barn. It’s really magical. ✨
They have real concerns, and I don’t blame or judge them for that. This is their home, and it’s mine too. If any other rescue came in and wanted to do what we are doing, I’d probably speak against it too… That’s why every day for 5 years, after saving 3,500 lives, we have shown that it’s not about what others do, but about what we do—and more importantly, how we do it, with a love so deep that even on the hardest days, when your heart begs you to stop, we keep going. ❤️
When we first started, we were new. So, so, so, so new. We’ve grown so much I can’t even describe all the phenomenal people who have come in and made sacrifices to make this a better place for all our animals. We are not just one person with a dream anymore.We are a community with a purpose and an eternal mission.
With a Board that has decades of professional, financial, and service experience, full and part-time staff members, and the most committed volunteers and supporters with the largest hearts 💕 near and far, we stand strong. They believe in our mission so much more than the fears of what others have failed to accomplish. A faith so deep that when it feels like we’re drowning, God reminds us that we are never alone. 🙏
I do talk a lot about faith, which I always smile at the irony of because eight years ago, I had lost all my faith. I didn’t and couldn’t imagine ever wanting to wake up in this world again without the person I loved most, who was gone. But my dogs were by my side every moment, and slowly, the stars aligned to lead me to this beautiful little farm with an old horse barn. Day by day, moment by moment, the kindest, most loving people on this earth were drawn to it—believing that life was still worth living and that there was so much love to give, share, and spread. And yes, some of those amazing people were, and still are, my neighbors. 🏡
I’m not sure what my purpose is in this post. I get lost in thought and just pour my heart into words, as if they could convey even a little part of the love I feel—even on the hardest days, when what used to be a falling-down horse barn is now such a gift… We just want to share that with more animals. 🐾
The Homestead is meant to be a place of peace and love… not hate. 💛 And it never will be. It’s too special. We are not like any other rescue. Not because of me… but because of all of you.
Every volunteer, staff member, board member, supporter, team member, driver—every soul that believes we can and must do better for the animals. So, thank you all. 🙌
One of my fears is that no one will show up Tuesday night to speak on our behalf, especially from Miami County. Look at the barn we are going to build and give to our county, and then look at the pound. God has to be on our side. I have to keep turning my heart to the sun—with David, Danielle, Gump, Penny, Bernie, Charlotte, Mugsy, Libby, and Sam. 🌈 With every soul we have all loved and lost, we realize that while we have an army of prayer warriors here supporting us, we also have an army of angels on the other side guiding us. 🕊️
Sometimes my faith wavers, but all of you and all the animals make my heart whole. ❤️
Not much to share this morning—the dogs are wonderful, the wind is insane, the chicken dogs pooped all over me, and I love each and every single one of them. 🐶💩😂
~ Jen
Our rescue/sanctuary focuses on making the lives of the animals we save matter and better right now, not waiting until adoption for them to actually start living. We continue to grow exponentially and only improve upon our vision, belief, and standard of care in excellence. 🐾
By a complete leap of faith and what we can only assume is destiny, Always & Furever recently purchased 40 acres of land adjacent to our flagship Little Red Barn. What started out as a simple letter to the landowners (appended below) has now turned into the manifestation of our wildest dreams. The foundation is literally ours, and now it’s up to all of us to begin building those dreams from the ground up. 🏡✨
As our founder Jen put it:
“With every fiber of my being, I see and feel Always & Furever being the name that changes rescues. Running a rescue should not be just paying a fee with the state, filing a form, and taking donations while locking animals’ cages upon cages and waiting for someone else to love them and calling that saving lives. Sadly, so many rescues do just that. Yes, it may save their life, but if that is the only life they know, is that a life worth living? 💔 Everything we ever have in this world can be stripped away—except for one single thing: love. ❤️ That is all these animals ever want, and pulling them from a kill shelter or accepting them into our care is a responsibility and privilege I do not take lightly.”
We are changing the face of rescue by our standard of care—not in the big major things, but in the million tiny little acts of kindness toward God’s precious creatures who love us unconditionally. This is an opportunity for YOU to be one of the most direct reasons why we can continue to save more and love them the way they deserve. 🐶🐱
The 40 acres of new land has unlocked every possibility we could have imagined. Our plan? To build several barns for every dog and cat in need, transforming the Homestead into a truly magical place where people from all over the world will come to visit. 🌎
💛 Spend a day at the puppy barn surrounded by 30 little puppies, showering you and your kids with kisses.
🐱 Visit the senior cat cottage, home to the beautiful old souls who will be our lifelong residents.
🐕🦺 Learn from world-class trainers at our behavior/reactive barn.
🩺 Talk with psychologists and counselors on palliative care—helping families love their pets through it instead of abandoning them.
👵🏻 Partner with human seniors who need our animals just as much as our animals need them.
🥞 Enjoy Sunday morning pancake breakfasts with the pups and spaghetti & bingo nights with the cats.
🧘 Experience puppy yoga in the pastures and gentle yoga with the older dogs.
🏊♂️ Provide FREE access to a water treadmill for dogs in need whose families cannot afford it.
🐕 Give dogs a swimming pool and play yard to build confidence and socialize.
🚪 Ensure complete fencing with double-gated entries, so we never lose a dog again.
🔐 Secure the property with a gate code, preventing former owners with criminal records from trying to reclaim dogs they mistreated.
We want to be the model of love, forgiveness, and kindness—for both humans and animals—creating an entire community, in person and virtually, that will do anything and everything for any soul in need. 🕊️
As Jen describes it:
“The best way I can describe the layout will be like a zoo—except with animals that should be domesticated, not those that should be free. I actually never go to zoos because they make my heart sink. 💔 But so many people don’t visit rescues or shelters because it’s too sad to see the animals caged and unloved all day. But our farm, this land, our future Homestead—will have an overwhelming feeling of love and peace, knowing that we are doing more than anyone has ever done to love them and make their lives matter RIGHT NOW. 🏡🐾”
We’re now 3,000 furry lives in, but if we’ve changed just one person to treat animals better, and they’ve changed one more person, the ripple effect is a beautiful thing. That is how we change the world together. One soul at a time. 🌎💖
Thank you for your time! 🙏
The A&F Family ❤️
Letter to the Seller:
Dear Sellers, First, thank you for taking the time to review our offers of your beautiful land. Second, I tend to ramble when speaking from my heart, so I apologize now for the length of this. By way of introduction my name is Jen. I purchased the 5 acres adjacent to your property just under 5 years ago. My story isn’t a typical one, life tends to lead us down paths we sometimes never anticipate venturing, but I’ve learned to always follow my heart which led me from Chicago to Boston and now to Spring Hill. I bought a little farm and started a senior dog rescue. I knew nothing about running a rescue and have zero background in training dogs. I honestly just loved them and wanted to find a way to help the ones no one else wanted. Which are the ones that are old, sick, or dying in kill shelters and give them a place to live the rest of their lives in peace. I was always the person who said when I win the lottery, I’ll buy a bunch of land and save animals. I never won the lottery, likely because I never played it, but I knew if I was going to ask others to believe in my dream, I had to go all in myself and prove that we were worthy of every single dollar donated. I took out a bunch of personal loans, maxed out every credit card I had, and took it one day at a time rebuilding the falling down horse barn on my property to an amazing open living style sanctuary today that has expanded beyond even my wildest imagination. And what started with one person has now grown to a movement, or rather a mission, to treat every single homeless or abandoned animal in need like our own, with the same love, respect, kindness, dignity, and grace, especially as they leave this world to journey to the next. After all, I think all every soul really wants in this life is to know that someone on this earth loved them and that their lives mattered and that’s what we strive to do and who we are. From one little red barn became a community, a family, of the most amazing volunteers and staff, fosters and supporters to where over 3,000 animals have been saved since we opened our doors just 3 years ago. If you’re still reading this you’re probably wondering why I share all this… good question. Our dream is to keep saving more lives now and to build more barns to house all the souls no one else wants. No animal deserves to die at a kill shelter just for lack of space or resources and so many animals end up homeless when their loving owners go into a nursing home, hospice care or pass away, we take every single one we can in and love them like their owners would. The goal is always to find them a home but if we don’t then we are their family. Too many rescues just go by the numbers, stack dogs in kennels upon kennels and push them out the door claiming they saved a life. While that is in fact true, in the time those animals waited for a home was that really a life worth living? And what if today was their last day, did they make the very most of it and were they surrounded by love? We’ve learned the very hard way that tomorrow is never guaranteed, and every moment is truly a miracle and life is about treasuring the moments with those we love. While we are a senior focused sanctuary, we also never put an age on saving a life, if there is a way to help, we will find it and that’s where your land comes in. If you were to accept one of our offers it would be the first step towards thousands upon thousands of animal’s new beginnings, a second chance at life and with our mission, love, and support, a life worth living. A place where all lost souls are welcomed and no soul leaves untouched with love. It’s amazing how so many people have found a way to come together and truly make a difference, this would be just one more piece of a bigger puzzle. I know that we are all somehow connected, and you would directly be responsible for not only saving lives but spreading love and sharing the joy, heartache, sorrow, and true beauty of helping a rescue animal. And before I forget, which I always do, we also now save cats as well, so with the new property we plan to put up a kitten cottage, puppy barn, senior barn, behavior barn, and medical barn. We have big, big dreams, beyond our current budget right now but I know this is the first step and every step along the way I’ve never truly known how we would get there but walked each one in faith. If you’re an animal lover you may want to even check our website www.alwaysandfurever.org or on Facebook, Always & Furever Midwest Animal Sanctuary so you can see first-hand how we treat our animals and I will always believe with all my heart it really is never too late for happily ever after. I know if this is meant to be it will all work out and we will find a way. Your land is truly beautiful and would serve an amazing purpose. Thank you so much for your consideration and best wishes to you on your next steps, which I hope are in the same direction as ours.
The Homestead Legacy Project
The Homestead Legacy Project is located at our original sanctuary in Spring Hill, Kansas. 🏡🐾 While we have faced many roadblocks along the way, our commitment to this special place has never wavered. ❤️
Important Note: This project should not be confused with our new Homestead EAST project in KCMO. Homestead East is being built in the same spirit and incorporates many of the ideas, plans, and dreams that first took shape here. 🏗️✨
Though Homestead East allows us to expand our mission in the present, The Homestead Legacy Project remains in the works for our future. 🌱
The challenges we face with the Homestead Legacy Project are teaching us invaluable lessons, shaping our journey, and strengthening our mission. 💪🐶🐱
Keep reading to learn more about its story, impact, and future. 📖✨
Read Our Homestead Legacy Narrative
Support our Go Fund Me
I wish I could bottle up all the love this Little Red Barn holds from all the amazing dogs in it and place it in our neighbors’ hearts just for one moment—so their souls could feel what I feel every single morning I open the barn. It’s really magical. ✨
They have real concerns, and I don’t blame or judge them for that. This is their home, and it’s mine too. If any other rescue came in and wanted to do what we are doing, I’d probably speak against it too… That’s why every day for 5 years, after saving 3,500 lives, we have shown that it’s not about what others do, but about what we do—and more importantly, how we do it, with a love so deep that even on the hardest days, when your heart begs you to stop, we keep going. ❤️
When we first started, we were new. So, so, so, so new. We’ve grown so much I can’t even describe all the phenomenal people who have come in and made sacrifices to make this a better place for all our animals. We are not just one person with a dream anymore. We are a community with a purpose and an eternal mission.
With a Board that has decades of professional, financial, and service experience, full and part-time staff members, and the most committed volunteers and supporters with the largest hearts 💕 near and far, we stand strong. They believe in our mission so much more than the fears of what others have failed to accomplish. A faith so deep that when it feels like we’re drowning, God reminds us that we are never alone. 🙏
I do talk a lot about faith, which I always smile at the irony of because eight years ago, I had lost all my faith. I didn’t and couldn’t imagine ever wanting to wake up in this world again without the person I loved most, who was gone. But my dogs were by my side every moment, and slowly, the stars aligned to lead me to this beautiful little farm with an old horse barn. Day by day, moment by moment, the kindest, most loving people on this earth were drawn to it—believing that life was still worth living and that there was so much love to give, share, and spread. And yes, some of those amazing people were, and still are, my neighbors. 🏡
I’m not sure what my purpose is in this post. I get lost in thought and just pour my heart into words, as if they could convey even a little part of the love I feel—even on the hardest days, when what used to be a falling-down horse barn is now such a gift… We just want to share that with more animals. 🐾
The Homestead is meant to be a place of peace and love… not hate. 💛 And it never will be. It’s too special. We are not like any other rescue. Not because of me… but because of all of you.
Every volunteer, staff member, board member, supporter, team member, driver—every soul that believes we can and must do better for the animals. So, thank you all. 🙌
One of my fears is that no one will show up Tuesday night to speak on our behalf, especially from Miami County. Look at the barn we are going to build and give to our county, and then look at the pound. God has to be on our side. I have to keep turning my heart to the sun—with David, Danielle, Gump, Penny, Bernie, Charlotte, Mugsy, Libby, and Sam. 🌈 With every soul we have all loved and lost, we realize that while we have an army of prayer warriors here supporting us, we also have an army of angels on the other side guiding us. 🕊️
Sometimes my faith wavers, but all of you and all the animals make my heart whole. ❤️
Not much to share this morning—the dogs are wonderful, the wind is insane, the chicken dogs pooped all over me, and I love each and every single one of them. 🐶💩😂
~ Jen
Our rescue/sanctuary focuses on making the lives of the animals we save matter and better right now, not waiting until adoption for them to actually start living. We continue to grow exponentially and only improve upon our vision, belief, and standard of care in excellence. 🐾
By a complete leap of faith and what we can only assume is destiny, Always & Furever recently purchased 40 acres of land adjacent to our flagship Little Red Barn. What started out as a simple letter to the landowners (appended below) has now turned into the manifestation of our wildest dreams. The foundation is literally ours, and now it’s up to all of us to begin building those dreams from the ground up. 🏡✨
As our founder Jen put it:
We are changing the face of rescue by our standard of care—not in the big major things, but in the million tiny little acts of kindness toward God’s precious creatures who love us unconditionally. This is an opportunity for YOU to be one of the most direct reasons why we can continue to save more and love them the way they deserve. 🐶🐱
The 40 acres of new land has unlocked every possibility we could have imagined. Our plan? To build several barns for every dog and cat in need, transforming the Homestead into a truly magical place where people from all over the world will come to visit. 🌎
We want to be the model of love, forgiveness, and kindness—for both humans and animals—creating an entire community, in person and virtually, that will do anything and everything for any soul in need. 🕊️
As Jen describes it:
We’re now 3,000 furry lives in, but if we’ve changed just one person to treat animals better, and they’ve changed one more person, the ripple effect is a beautiful thing. That is how we change the world together. One soul at a time. 🌎💖
Thank you for your time! 🙏
The A&F Family ❤️
Letter to the Seller:
Dear Sellers, First, thank you for taking the time to review our offers of your beautiful land. Second, I tend to ramble when speaking from my heart, so I apologize now for the length of this. By way of introduction my name is Jen. I purchased the 5 acres adjacent to your property just under 5 years ago. My story isn’t a typical one, life tends to lead us down paths we sometimes never anticipate venturing, but I’ve learned to always follow my heart which led me from Chicago to Boston and now to Spring Hill. I bought a little farm and started a senior dog rescue. I knew nothing about running a rescue and have zero background in training dogs. I honestly just loved them and wanted to find a way to help the ones no one else wanted. Which are the ones that are old, sick, or dying in kill shelters and give them a place to live the rest of their lives in peace. I was always the person who said when I win the lottery, I’ll buy a bunch of land and save animals. I never won the lottery, likely because I never played it, but I knew if I was going to ask others to believe in my dream, I had to go all in myself and prove that we were worthy of every single dollar donated. I took out a bunch of personal loans, maxed out every credit card I had, and took it one day at a time rebuilding the falling down horse barn on my property to an amazing open living style sanctuary today that has expanded beyond even my wildest imagination. And what started with one person has now grown to a movement, or rather a mission, to treat every single homeless or abandoned animal in need like our own, with the same love, respect, kindness, dignity, and grace, especially as they leave this world to journey to the next. After all, I think all every soul really wants in this life is to know that someone on this earth loved them and that their lives mattered and that’s what we strive to do and who we are. From one little red barn became a community, a family, of the most amazing volunteers and staff, fosters and supporters to where over 3,000 animals have been saved since we opened our doors just 3 years ago. If you’re still reading this you’re probably wondering why I share all this… good question. Our dream is to keep saving more lives now and to build more barns to house all the souls no one else wants. No animal deserves to die at a kill shelter just for lack of space or resources and so many animals end up homeless when their loving owners go into a nursing home, hospice care or pass away, we take every single one we can in and love them like their owners would. The goal is always to find them a home but if we don’t then we are their family. Too many rescues just go by the numbers, stack dogs in kennels upon kennels and push them out the door claiming they saved a life. While that is in fact true, in the time those animals waited for a home was that really a life worth living? And what if today was their last day, did they make the very most of it and were they surrounded by love? We’ve learned the very hard way that tomorrow is never guaranteed, and every moment is truly a miracle and life is about treasuring the moments with those we love. While we are a senior focused sanctuary, we also never put an age on saving a life, if there is a way to help, we will find it and that’s where your land comes in. If you were to accept one of our offers it would be the first step towards thousands upon thousands of animal’s new beginnings, a second chance at life and with our mission, love, and support, a life worth living. A place where all lost souls are welcomed and no soul leaves untouched with love. It’s amazing how so many people have found a way to come together and truly make a difference, this would be just one more piece of a bigger puzzle. I know that we are all somehow connected, and you would directly be responsible for not only saving lives but spreading love and sharing the joy, heartache, sorrow, and true beauty of helping a rescue animal. And before I forget, which I always do, we also now save cats as well, so with the new property we plan to put up a kitten cottage, puppy barn, senior barn, behavior barn, and medical barn. We have big, big dreams, beyond our current budget right now but I know this is the first step and every step along the way I’ve never truly known how we would get there but walked each one in faith. If you’re an animal lover you may want to even check our website www.alwaysandfurever.org or on Facebook, Always & Furever Midwest Animal Sanctuary so you can see first-hand how we treat our animals and I will always believe with all my heart it really is never too late for happily ever after. I know if this is meant to be it will all work out and we will find a way. Your land is truly beautiful and would serve an amazing purpose. Thank you so much for your consideration and best wishes to you on your next steps, which I hope are in the same direction as ours.
Sincerely,
Jen