A stiff apology is a second insult... The injured party does not want to be compensated because he has been wronged; he wants to be healed because he has been hurt. Gilbert K. Chesterton

It's been a whirlwind the past 48 hours, fielding messages, phone calls and writing up additional statements for the family that was wronged as we patiently wait for the right. The right that may never come.

Nonetheless, the staff at Lady Luck Consulting doesn't mind late nights, early mornings and busy days because if you "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." - Confucius

The hardest part of putting yourself out there, even when it is to right a wrong, you take risks, low blows and hard punches.  All in a day's work. Nothing can deter you from something you wholeheartedly believe in. With this I bring you, press release number two this week from Shorty's Charities:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Tom’s Farms responds to accusations of discrimination against autistic child’s pit bull service dog
Shorty Rossi says this is not good enough. All the Santos family asked for was for an apology and to educate, enlighten and inform this business establishment of their discriminatory practices

Corona, California, US September 18, 2013

You have yet to make a public apology to the parents, child and, YES, even to the service animal.  While you state you have changed the policy (without stating said changes) please understand that a policy and a law have nothing to do with each other therefore your said changes are irrelevant. “Clarify(ing) (y)our policies and provid(ing) specific training to (y)our staff” have nothing to do with the fact that you are not above the law.  Mr. Santos came to you over 45 days ago to let you know about how a manager treated his mentally handicap daughter and her service animal with absolutely no response from your company, your managers, your owners nor your staff. The Santos family came to you on a friendly basis (we have well documented communication) to help you understand what you chose to put his daughter through. The Santos family even offered to assist with training your employee during that time (we have well documented communication) yet your business establishment chose to ignore the offer. So alas, we do not see anything that has changed for the better as of today, 46 days later, however we look forward to seeing something soon. 

Statement from the Santos family:

“It has come to the attention of the Santos family that as of late, Tom’s Farms has been provided with an abundance of information in regards to the laws that pertain to the disabled and their Service Animals. We understand that there are many laws/rules/regulations that may be hard to understand and implement.  We fully understand that we cannot force you to want to be better or to do better.  That is a choice; one that is on the shoulders of your business needs to make for itself.  However, always remember that our previous offer to work alongside you in regards to the PROPER employee training on such sensitive topics will always be available to you.  While visiting Tom’s Farms is not something we plan on doing any time soon for obvious reasons, please know that we will do so if it means that we will be helping you train your employees so that we are the ONLY family to every go through such discrimination and humiliation.

“Here is to an open mind and a patient heart.

Signed,
The Santos Family, also known as Pup-Cake’s leash racks”

In summary, Shorty Rossi advised the Santos family that “in the future, just call the police,” since according to California Code - Section 54.1(a)(1)  Access to public conveyances, places of public accommodation, amusement or resort, and housing accommodations:

Individuals with disabilities shall be entitled to full and equal access, as other members of the general public, to accommodations, advantages, facilities, medical facilities, including … places of public accommodation, amusement, or resort, and other places to which the general public is invited, subject only to the conditions and limitations established by law, or state or federal regulation, and applicable alike to all persons.

Shorty’s Charities has been assured, since the beginning of its involvement with Pup-Cake the Service dog and the Santos family, that they have not once threatened to file a lawsuit against nor have they sought money from Tom’s Farms. They have consistently sought to educate, enlighten and inform Tom’s Farms’ in regards to service dog treatment and requested an apology from the staff that subjected their daughter to unnecessary distress. The Santos family sees no other choice, at this time, than to contact the California Department of Justice and file a complaint.  All because the human element was removed for public relations’ statements; all because they wanted to hear “I’m sorry. How can we make this better for everyone?”

END

###

If you would like more information or to schedule an interview, please call Julie Hernandez at 818.850.2310 or email julie@shortyscharities.org

Julie Marie Miller-Hernandez

Director of Marketing & Public Relations

Secretary, Shorty's Charities Inc., a nonprofit corporation
www.shortyscharities.org

Seems simple enough, doesn't it?

To show support for my personal friends and family subjected to this set of circumstances, please like
www.facebook.com/PupcakePitBullServiceDog

Downloadable versions of our press release on behalf of our client, Shorty's Charities

To donate to Shorty's Charities, visit www.shortyscharities.org/help-us-help-them

BLOG POST AUTHORED BY: Julie Miller-Hernandez, President of Lady Luck Consulting
 

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"I said 'Somebody should so something about that...' Then I realized I am that somebody. "~ Lilly Tomlin

When you're born a fighter and retire (for lack of a better term) there comes a point where you have to step back into the ring for your own sanity.

This week has been a week of juxtaposition; great joy and great sorrow with reminders of days long gone.

I took a step back into the rescue world this week, much to my dismay, to find that not much has changed just the pace in which information can get out across the airways.

There is a uniting force that comes upon you when you mesh with the right people and an overwhelming bitterness that runs deep when the so-called-do-gooders rear their heads.

It has been four years, two months and 30 days since I officially left the world of daily rescue. The real rescue world where you go to shelters to pull dogs that have no time left. Death row dogs where you become their only chance at life; sickness, behavior concerns, veterinary and training bills.  On December 4, 2008 I shut it down. It took three years to even tip toe back in and I started with two young puppies, scheduled to die and I was their lifeline.  That became a bittersweet situation where one went into the perfect home and the other pup died in my arms - a painful reminder of why I had to stop. Cold turkey.  This event would also be my leap in coming out of the closet - a leap that I was ready for... go public with my rants, my mission, my long-buried soul. 

Then I had an epiphany and thought of a much larger way I could make an impact, without getting my hands so dirty and feeling the pain of loss, literally in my own arms.  I created the A Dog A Day campaign with Shorty's blessing.  I could find dogs across the nation in need of a home, cause we all know an adoption means two lives saved - the dog that finds a home and the dog that takes its place from the certain death of a shelter.  365 chances per year to make a difference without having a single dog step foot inside my home, or my heart for that matter.  I got the blessing and we were off...

You see, I consider myself a former rescuer turned writer.  I knew, back in the day, that it was my daily blogging (on MySpace) that pulled in the money necessary to fund our work.  The volunteers were essential, the donors even more so and the adopters, so we could keep moving forward.  During a chat with my boyfriend this evening, we discussed the similarities and differences between his work and mine; he being a filmmaker who takes videography work to make ends meet and me being a writer, who runs social media sites to make ends meet.  He was asking about a recent project for a client in which a dog was burned in a fire - asked how she was recovering and where she was now. I explained that she was still in the care of my client and that her bill exceeded $30,000. He knew I'd done a fundraising campaign for this dog last month and commented, "wow, I had no idea, how much were you able to raise?" My reply "twenty-five"... "only twenty-five hundred?" "No, thousand."  Then his stunned silent pause... "how is it that people give to animals and not children with cancer or kids with cleft pallets in Vietnam?"  You see, I designed a campaign for his documentary that only needs $60,000 to be turned into a feature film. Funding is at a standstill.

I couldn't explain to him why people are inclined to give to helpless animals in lieu of helpless children, but was able to tell him my experience in fundraising and why I've been able to get people to part with their money, five dollars at a time, for the tune of hundreds of thousands of dollars for years.

Doers. Donors. Minions.  The three key elements to fundraising.  I went on to explain that my marketing and networking strategy is what enabled me to saved nearly 600 dogs from death row all across the state of California for years on end.  How my rescue efforts were funded and how I am able to continue to raise funds for animals in need.  Yes, he was slightly disillusioned and dismayed, yet proud of my ability to help bring in $25,000 in the matter of one week for a dog.  But you see, it's not me, it's the story.

What I'm getting at, is that we all need each other.  We all have our roles.  The Doers must do what their souls crave whether it be providing surgery to countries without medical care and children who would suffer, or individuals who give up nice homes in trade of fur everywhere to feel that feeling of saving "just one" to the tune of hundreds.  The Doers cannot "do it" alone - I am a former Doer.  The Doers must have donors because frankly, everything costs money.  But how do you connect the Doers to the Donors?  The Minions. The most important piece of the puzzle.  Some might perceive minion as a term with some condescension attached to it, or that they are lesser. Quite the opposite - they are the most important piece.

What I then went on to explain was that (for his documentary) he had the Doer and I'm positive there are Donors. He has no minions.

In animal rescue there are minions everywhere.  People who are unable physically, emotionally, psychologically to do the physical rescue.  Those of us that MUST DO SOMETHING but cannot take on the daunting task of rescuing, rehabilitating and re-homing which really is a lifelong commitment - at least for the life span of that dog.  The rescue does not end when the dog is no longer on death row.  The rescue is a commitment to this dog's welfare for the rest of its days.  That commitment comes with great cost.

ad·ver·sary noun : one that contends with, opposes, or resists : enemy

al·ly verb : to unite or form a connection or relation between : associate

Funny (not ha ha, but ironic) that this is a status I would post from precisely one year ago...

There are as many critics in rescue as there are when discussing politics or religion in an open forum.  I have blocked more people in the past week on Facebook due to what I refer to as "desktop rescuers" than I had to when I was in the midst of the criminal case last summer.  Critics who voiced their opinions, quickly, fiercely and loudly as they called in their minions to accuse "us" (me and my rescue partners) of scamming people for funds for (what we knew would be) an expensive and risky save.  We planned to do it anyway until someone else stepped up to bat and we bowed out gracefully, letting the reputable, experienced rescuers take on the project of a bait dog that needed some serious recovery time, rehabilitation and care.  But we didn't just walk away, we asked "who needs out the most? who deserves a second chance?" And that's the dog we saved, who is now safely in our care.  There is never a shortage of dogs in need of having their lives saved, especially in the world of pit bull rescue.  The story of our save, now known as Livvy (aka Olivia, is online, no need to rehash it here.

"Do what you feel in your heart to be right - for you'll be criticized anyway."~Eleanor Roosevelt

I drive my boyfriend nuts, I'm sure.  I'm 90% sure it annoys him how (seemingly) easily I can raise funds when he's sitting on more than one film that simply needs the backing of funds to get it out there; important things, documentaries, moving story lines.  I don't work in film though and this is where I step back to become the supportive girlfriend in lieu of his marketing executive.

What this week has brought me is the dreaded fate of being pulled back into rescue... I spent an hour reading the story of Cindy Marabito tonight and by the time I got half way through, tears were streaming down my face from the venomous attacks she is facing.  Then I think back to last year and the tears that streamed down my face due to the responsibility I felt and ultimately weakened defeat in the case of Lennox. Yet there are hundreds, thousands of these cases, these stories. Dogs dying needlessly, venomous wars online between rescuers. Stories of sanctuaries turned hoarders, yet people are so desperate to save a dog's life that they lose their humanity... anything for the save.  ANYthing so that they can post "SAVED" and move on to the next dog... but what happened to that dog after you moved on?  What happens when you send a dog off to live out its life elsewhere and never follow up?

Out of sight, out of mind?  Or do we, as rescuers, have an obligation to comprehend the definition of
com·mit·ment noun : dedication; application.

I realize I'm all over the map with this blog post tonight but it reflects the emotions and experiences of this week. I have had the distinct pleasure of meeting and partnering with some amazing human beings; kind, selfless, generous. I have also had the reminders of the opinionated, arrogant, it's-my-way-or-your-name-is-mud-desktop-do-gooders that blast, bash, "save" and run (on to the next dog).

In closing, thank you to the ones who see the big picture. Thank you to those of you who get it. Thank you for the tireless, aggravating efforts to get the real saves accomplished.

"He  who passively accepts evil is as much involved in it as he who helps to  perpetrate it. He who accepts evil without protesting against it is  really cooperating with it." ~Martin Luther King, Jr.

A Short Story

Despite having complete control to do so, 365 days a year, once a year I give myself permission to post something that has not been approved by Mr. Shorty Rossi. That day would be his birthday - February 10.

The way I came to be introduced to Mr. Rossi and his show, Pit Boss, was through a deaf Pit Bull named Ciera.  You see, I've rescued a few dogs in my lifetime - nearly 600 to be more precise - and Ciera was one of those.  She found herself dumped in a shelter I frequented and I was told that she was "very pregnant and deaf" and dumped by her owners.  I took her out of that shelter on a fostering contract straight to my vet where it was determined that she had a "massive uterine infection" - there were no puppies and she was near death requiring emergency surgery to save her life.  Her rescue was sponsored by Pinups for Pitbulls and she became their cover girl for the 2009 Pinups for Pitbulls Calendar.

Ciera was ultimately adopted and her adoptive mom posted a status in early 2010 stating "Ciera is going to be on Pit Boss tonight"... I asked "what the hell is Pit Boss?" then tuned in to watch an episode during which I spent the next half hour yelling at the television screen.  I had spent many years rescuing dogs (from four pound Miniature Pinschers to 140 pound Fila Brasileiro) with many, many Pit Bulls in between.  All I could think was, "who the hell IS this guy? And where did he come from?" So I added him as a friend on Facebook to watch, learn, see what he was all about.

He posted a status asking for help writing a business plan to which  I responded, offering my help and advice.  He called me the next day and we spent an hour on the phone; we became fast friends with a comfort that we both felt instantly.  As I do with all people I have first business meetings with, I Googled him, to discover that he was a felon. When we scheduled our first meeting I asked him "Shall I bring a body guard?"  To which he sent his first of hundreds of responses that simply said "LOL!"

It's been three years now and I am not only blessed to work with someone who I respect and admire, but someone, who in all the years I've personally been involved in rescue, has made such a huge impact on the breed I have come to adore; I couldn't imagine not being part of Shorty's.  A man who takes this platform that I have never before seen receive such attention in all my years of rescue. He has made the word "pit bull" a name that crosses the lips of families in their living rooms. He is changing minds and changing lives.  A man that is hard working, passionate, compassionate and driven that inspires me to work harder. The man who didn't fire me when I refused to be on his show. The man who lets me do what I love, behind the scenes, exactly where I like to be.  A man who treats me, and my children, like family. A man, whose show, despite having raised dozens of pit bull puppies in my own home over the past ten years, who inspires my children now to exclaim enthusiastically "I want to own a Pit Bull!" (rolls eyes and SMH)

On the anniversary of his birth, I give myself the leeway to post the only post that I do each year that involves me simply saying THANK YOU. On the anniversary of his birth, I take a moment to pause and think of all the things that have transpired since that first meeting three years ago.  Things I won't share here but are beyond anyone's wildest dreams... a little shift in the course our lives were taking.

On the anniversary of his birth I want you to know that this man, who many call Pit Boss, is genuine, sincere, giving and kind; the man you see on TV is real, yes, yes he is.  He swears, he smokes, he drinks (too much at times). The Shorty Rossi I know is very kind, generous, loving and committed to his friends, his dogs and his cause beyond anyone's imagination.

Happy 44th Birthday Mr. Rossi.

~Julie for Shorty's

“A friend is someone who understands your past, believes in your future, and accepts you just the way you are today.” ~A. Lincoln