This blog has carried many of my dreams over the years: community, healing, faith, and the land. Today I am giving it a new and clearer purpose. All Beings Sanctuary will be the home of something I have longed to see for a long time: an animal rights group that serves as an umbrella for all the groups and individuals who care about the well-being of animals.

What inspired me

This September, hundreds of people took part in the March to Abolish Animal Testing. From September 12 to 26, marchers walked 207 miles across New York, from Albany to North Rose, the small town where Marshall BioResources breeds dogs for laboratory testing. Some walked a few miles and some walked the whole way.

I was deeply moved by the people who organized it. They brought together scientists, faith communities, longtime activists, and ordinary people who simply love dogs, and they kept it peaceful. They showed me what becomes possible when people who care about animals stop working alone and start walking together.

Why an umbrella

There are so many good people working for animals: sanctuaries, rescuers, wildlife rehabilitators, vegan cooks and teachers, people fighting animal testing, people caring for the strays on their road, and people of faith who believe God loves every creature. Yet many of us work in our own small corners. We burn out. We sometimes argue more with each other than we work together. Many of us feel isolated, especially out here in the country.

An umbrella does not replace anyone’s work. It shelters it. My vision is a network where groups and individuals can:

• Find each other and share what they are doing
• Support one another through encouragement, resources, and volunteers
• Learn from people with different approaches, without needing to agree on everything
• Join together for larger actions when the time is right
• Care for the people doing the work, so they can keep going for the long haul

Chapters that are umbrellas too

As the network grows, I envision local chapters in towns and cities everywhere, and each chapter will be an umbrella in its own right. A chapter brings together all the groups and individuals in its area who care about animals: the rescue down the road, the vigil group, the sanctuary volunteers, the vegan potluck, the person writing to lawmakers. Each chapter shares a local calendar, shows up for each other’s events, and makes sure no one in that place has to work alone.

Each chapter will be led by a facilitator, not a boss, someone who serves the group and is mentored and supported by the wider network. Our first chapter will be a pilot that meets online, based here in Northwest Arkansas, so anyone in the region can join from home. Once it is working well, we hope to help new chapters start wherever people want one.

How we will treat each other

How we do things is as important as what we do. I want this group to be known for compassion toward animals and toward people, for honesty and integrity, and for respectful dialogue, even with those who see things differently. Groups like Braver Angels have shown that people with very different views can listen to each other. I believe animal lovers can learn to do that too.

Starting with baby steps

I am starting small and starting here, in the Ozarks. My dear friend Barbara Hulley, whose love for animals helped inspire this group, will serve as an advisor. Over time, I hope to build an online community as well, so that people who feel alone in their love for animals can find friends who understand.

If this vision speaks to you, I would love to hear from you. Perhaps you lead a group, rescue animals, or simply care deeply. Perhaps you would like to be an early supporter or endorser, or help start a chapter where you live. Please reach out through the Contact page, or subscribe to follow along as this grows.

To see how many groups are already doing this work, take a look at our Directory of Animal Rights Organizations.

A few insights

• Many people are already doing beautiful work for animals. What is often missing is connection.
• A movement grows stronger when its people care for one another, not only for the cause.
• Starting small and local is not a weakness. It is how trust is built, one chapter at a time.

How this article was written

I wrote this article together with Claude.ai, an AI from Anthropic. I am Patricia Mikkelson, a resident of the Living Springs Log House. I shared my vision and what inspired me, and Claude helped organize my thoughts and draft the text in my voice, which I then reviewed.