Noah’s Hope: Honoring One of Our Own
We can finally write about something happy. Brenda Iwen, one of the founders of Noah’s Hope, was honored this week with Women Aware’s annual Siouxland Woman of Excellence award for her development work in the community. Brenda was nominated by Victoria Seaman, a special agent with the FBI. Victoria works with Brenda in reservation communities and has seen firsthand her extraordinary commitment to animals. Here is an excerpt from Victoria’s nomination of Brenda:
“In 2007 Brenda partnered with another woman, Sheila Copple, and together they decided to focus on the dogs at animal control. They began to take them and find homes for them. Since they did not have a facility in which to house these dogs, they took them home. It was the beginning of the foster-based rescue that Noah’s Hope is today. Brenda remembers taking dogs, one at a time, to the vestibule at Younkers. She knew the gentleman who managed the store, and he allowed her to set up mini adoption events there. Brenda would stand all day and talk to people as they came and went, looking for someone to adopt the dog. One by one, she found homes.
Brenda realized that helping one dog at a time was not the solution. In 2007 Brenda organized an advisory committee for animal control, the first committee of its kind in Iowa. The committee included the police chief, a local vet, the pound master, and several other concerned citizens. As a result of this group’s work, the city now has a new, state-of-the-art animal shelter and a budget for the humane treatment of animals during their stay, including vaccinations and basic health care.
At the same time Brenda began to find others who were interested in animal rescue, and she enlisted them in her cause. People follow Brenda as naturally as dogs do because she is passionate about what she’s doing, and she is a good listener. Brenda really wants to hear others’ ideas, and she takes the time to encourage and give credit to others. Initially Brenda was nervous to be singled out and nominated. She quickly noted so many people who have helped her dream become reality and wanted to ensure everyone would receive acknowledgement because she could not have developed the organization into what it is today without the help of others. Brenda is the epitome of a selfless, quiet hero.
As others joined Brenda in her rescue work, Noah’s Hope started to coalesce. The group continued to pull underdogs from animal control and find them homes. They set high standards for the care and adoption of the dogs. All Noah’s Hope adult dogs are spayed or neutered, fully vaccinated, and micro chipped. Any dog that comes to the rescue with health issues is treated. Surgery or physical therapy that might cost thousands of dollars is performed if the procedure can give the dog a chance for a good life. In the early years, Brenda and her small group often had to find the money in their own pockets to pay vet bills. The group also implemented strict adoption criteria. Adopters are required to complete an application that describes the kind of home they will provide for the dog. The application is evaluated, and if the home is not right for the dog, the adoption is turned down. Home visits are also required for most adoptions.
It was still not enough. Brenda realized that to help more animals, she needed a larger organization, and to apply for grants or do fundraising in general, she needed to become a legal nonprofit corporation. In 2010 Noah’s Hope Animal Rescue became a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit animal welfare organization.
Today Noah’s Hope has 65 volunteers, over 15,000 Facebook fans, and 20 registered foster homes (the maximum allowed by Iowa law). If the foster system is overcrowded, NHAR has developed a network of regional rescues where dogs can be placed. Noah’s Hope has two transport vans and volunteer drivers who take dogs as far as Minneapolis. The rescue holds regular adoption events at Petsmart, as well as several annual fundraisers. Most important, the rescue saved 585 dogs last year, unwanted dogs that most likely would have died without NHAR.
One question haunts Brenda, and she hears it frequently: Why do you spend so much time and energy on saving dogs when there are children suffering in this world? And so I asked her the question. She says, ‘I’m all for helping children, but I choose to help dogs. The true measure of a society is its kindness and compassion for its most helpless creatures, and dogs are definitely among the helpless. We made them dependent upon us, and then we turned our backs on them. We let them become overpopulated, and then we kill them. I can’t accept that, and it’s what I choose to do to help my community. To those who ask me this question, I turn around and ask them: And what is it that you’re doing?’
For all of the above reasons, I nominate Brenda Iwen for the Siouxland Woman of Excellence Award. I cannot think of anyone who deserves it more.”
We can’t either. Congratulations, Brenda, from all of your devoted volunteers and fans.
Noah’s Hope Animal Rescue (and Thrift Store)
2601 Myrtle St.
Sioux City, IA 51103
712-253-8394
Visit our Facebook page or website for more information:
https://www.facebook.com/NoahsHopeAnimalRescue
Noah’s Hope Animal Rescue is an all-volunteer, 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation. We rescue the underdogs: the old, the sick and injured, the used-up by breeders, the forsaken and misunderstood. We nurse them, bring them back from the brink, and give them another chance. We believe they make the very best pets because somehow, they understand and are grateful.
About the Author
Noah's Hope -- Barbara Gross Barbara Gross is a writer, filmmaker, and volunteer for Noah's Hope Animal Rescue.
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