Hi friends! Reef the fox here with your special 2023 recap of Reef’s Report. Boy oh boy, what a year it has been with so many incredible things happening at Pawsitive Beginnings in Key Largo.
It is safe to say that the official launch of our animal-assisted therapy program is the biggest accomplishment for us this year. Realizing that we foxes have the ability to help heal hearts and minds with our stories of survival, from fur farms to freedom, has been incredible to watch unfold. I know I speak for everyone here when I say that we live in the most incredible community in the world and the support we have received has been overwhelming. So I would just like to share some quotes from letters we have received from various partner organizations and other members of the community.
“Our children find moments of peace and build trust through their interactions with the foxes,” said Ben Kemmer, CEO for the Florida Keys Children’s Shelter, which helps runaway and at-risk youth throughout the island chain. “They learn about the foxes’ backgrounds and see how they live now, often drawing parallels between the foxes’ stories and their own experiences. Witnessing the transformation and resilience of the foxes allows our children to foster hope, envisioning a future that can be different from their current realities.”
“After every visit, patients request and yearn for more of these visits. The patients appear to feel warm, safe, calm and have an increased level of self-compassion during and after these visits,” said Joan Lorenz, executive director for Kinder in the Keys, a mental health treatment service for women. “Patients love having their pictures taken with the foxes and find immense gratitude in the experience. We enjoy working with Pawsitive Beginnings and support the mission of the nonprofit organization.”
“The Pawsitive Beginnings Human-Animal Bond Fox program is a novel and never-before-seen experience that has already shown positive change in the individuals founder Nicole Navarro has interacted with. I fully support Ms. Navarro’s ambition to help individuals improve their mental and emotional health,” said Keys veterinarian Douglas Mader.
My mother looks forward to creating many more partnerships within our community in 2024.
Some other notable moments from 2023 would be: Channel 10 doing a feature story on us, Ridley being saved from a fur farm and coming to live with us, and of course, yours truly being named Best Local Celebrity in the Best of Upper Keys for the second year in a row.
As we move into the New Year, I can tell you that there will be more determination and focus to raise awareness on fur farming in the United States and a strong push to change legislation within Florida to help remove real fur from being sold.
Anyhow, that’s all for this year. Until next time, Reef, over and out!
