In Memory of Wanda June Parker

NORTH TEXAS GIVING DAY: $10,000 MATCH IN MEMORY OF WANDA PARKER

Sometimes it's difficult to explain what one person means to a rescue.

With Wanda Parker, we could start with a list.

Volunteer. Foster. Adopter. Donor. Friend.

But a list doesn't really tell the story.

So instead, we'd like to tell you about a husky named Sabrina.

Some of you longtime TXHR followers may remember her. Sabrina arrived at Texas Husky Rescue in pretty rough shape. She spent her previous life outside with very little positive human interaction. She was extremely overweight, her coat was terribly matted, and she had a lot to learn about this strange new concept called being a family dog.

Enter Wanda and her husband, Cliff.

They became Sabrina's foster parents.

And Sabrina's world got considerably better.

She moved inside.

She discovered beds.

She discovered walks.

She discovered that couches are apparently put on this earth specifically for huskies.

And, in true husky fashion, once Sabrina discovered the good life, she embraced it enthusiastically.

With Wanda and Cliff, Sabrina lost weight, her coat grew back, and—more importantly—she learned what it felt like to be safe and loved.

Eventually, Sabrina left them for her forever home.

That is fostering.

And that is just one piece of Wanda's legacy with Texas Husky Rescue.

Wanda didn't love our huskies from the sidelines.

She volunteered her time.

She adopted, giving rescue dogs a forever of her own.

And she donated, helping TXHR provide veterinary care, food, boarding and everything else necessary to say "yes" to another husky in need.

She understood something we wish everyone understood:

Rescue takes ALL of us.

The foster who opens the front door.

The adopter who says, "You're home."

The volunteer who gives an afternoon, an evening, a Saturday—or more Saturdays than they can count.

The donor whose gift pays the bill that has to be paid before another dog can be saved.

Wanda was all of those people.

And we miss her.

But this North Texas Giving Day, we have an extraordinary opportunity to celebrate Wanda in the way we think she'd appreciate most:

By saving more huskies.

We have a donor offering a $10,000 MATCH in memory of Wanda Parker. 

Twenty thousand dollars can provide a lot of second chances.

Maybe the next one will be another Sabrina.

A dog sitting in a shelter.

A dog who hasn't yet discovered beds.

Or ridiculous outfits.

Or the wonderful realization that the people around her aren't going anywhere.

Somewhere out there is a husky who doesn't know it yet, but her entire life is about to change.

That's what Wanda helped make possible.

Not once.

Not only for Sabrina.

But again and again, through every hour she volunteered, every dog she fostered, every dog she welcomed home, and every dollar she gave.

This North Texas Giving Day, we get to continue what Wanda started.

Because perhaps the best way to remember a person who spent so much of her life helping dogs is to make sure more dogs get to live the lives she wanted for them.

💙 For Wanda.
🐾 For Sabrina.
💙 For the huskies still waiting.

And from an entire pack of very grateful, slightly dramatic, perpetually shedding Siberian Huskies...

Thank Woo, Wanda.

Your legacy is still saving lives. 🐾💙