WHEN Kelly Hennessey-Ford and Peter Gill first decided to turn their small holding into an animal sanctuary they never realised that the animals would bring people and the community together.

The couple made a strict rule in running the Pen Y Bryn Animal Sanctuary that they would never over stretch themselves financially, with the space they have and the time at their disposal or the energy they have.

Kelly and Peter believe that this was most fundamentally an important commitment to make and said: “If we failed in any of these issues we would ultimately fail the animal residents that we have offered homes to.

“We originally believed that the sanctuary would be our project and the total weight of responsibility would always rest solely upon our shoulders.

“We still very much hold to those values, but we realised very early on that our project was not going to remain ours alone.”

What neither Kelly or Peter anticipated was the support that they would receive from neighbours, friends, family, strangers, foreigners and anonymous benefactors that effectively have shown solidarity with their beliefs and goals.

“The sanctuary has very much become a community effort which binds us all together,” Peter said.

“Our donations box outside our gate is filled almost daily with rich offerings of support – such as grown produce, old towels or duvets, or no longer needed pet food.”

Whilst the sanctuary is not open to the public, the sanctuary does welcome to local community groups from Rainbows to residents of care homes to learn, meet, experience and savour in the peace and calming atmosphere of life amongst our animals.

To keep the sanctuary going it has a host of volunteers giving up their time to aid the couple with the welfare of the animals, who vary in age from Duke of Edinburgh participants from John Kyrle High School to retirees.

Together they have developed wonderfully positive working relationships with a host of like-minded organisations such as Ross’ Zero Waste Stall, National Star, the Woodland Trust, Hope Support Services, Talk Community Hereford, GEM Hildersley, Step A Side and Herefordshire Council.

The Pen Y Bryn Animal Sanctuary may have started out as a two-person project but soon it proved to those behind the scenes that animals bring people and communities together.

People not just from Ross-on-Wye have invested themselves in the sanctuary, but people from the county and many counties around the country.

They have all become part of the sanctuary spiritually and physically without for the vast majority actually visiting.

One of the sanctuary’s fund-raising streams is recycling ink cartridges via the Recycle4Charity programme, as each ink cartridge recycled via the programme, the sanctuary will receive up to £2 donation. More information from the website recycle4charity.co.uk.

If you want to read more about our other residents or how you can help the sanctuary then visit the sanctuary’s website and read their blog ‘Tales From Pen Y Bryn’ at penybrynanimals.co.uk.