Animal Rescue Foundation

Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation (ARF) is a nonprofit organization founded by Elaine and Tony La Russa,based in Walnut Creek, California. ARF rescues dogs and cats from public shelters where they would otherwise be euthanized and adopts them into new homes. Their programs include a spay and neuter clinic, training classes, service dog training for military veterans, a volunteer therapy dog program, and humane education programs for children.[1]

ARF
ARF's headquarters
Founded1991
Type501(c)(3)
Location
Key people
Tony La Russa, and Elaine Lee Co-Founders Elena Bicker, Executive Director
Websitewww.arflife.org
Formerly called
Animal Rescue Foundation

On May 7, 1990, during the opening game for Major League Baseball teams Oakland Athletics and the New York Yankees, a stray cat wandered onto the playing field at Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum. The game was halted as the cat ran around the field. La Russa (then manager of the A's) coaxed the cat into the dugout, and began looking for a local shelter to re-home the cat.[2] Tony and Elaine could not find a shelter, and learned that the cat would likely be euthanized. They decided to open their own shelter,[3] and in February of the following year, Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation opened.[2]

In 2003, the organization moved to Walnut Creek, California, where it is headquartered in a 37,700 square feet (3,500 m2) building. By 2015, ARF reported rescuing 30,000 cats and dogs and spaying or neutering 28,000. The organization also has therapy dogs, which had made 184,000 visits as of 2015.[4] Five years later, in 2020, the organization claimed to have rescued 42,000 cats and dogs and spayed or neutered a similar amount.[2]

References
  1. "Making a Pitch for the Sake of Animals". The Los Angeles Times. 1998-12-22. p. 42. Retrieved 2020-08-21 – via Newspapers.com .
  2. "The Cat That Changed A's manager Tony La Russa's Life". Sports Illustrated: InsideTheAthletics. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
  3. Gay, Jason (2013-10-03). "A Manager and His Cats". Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved 2020-08-21.
  4. "Feline's dash during 1990 A's game left lasting legacy for pets". The Mercury News. 2015-05-07. Retrieved 2020-08-21.


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