Volunteers hit the road to help animals in need

Rich and Linda Yates didn’t set out to become animal rescue heroes. But they did set out with a destination in mind: Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah. A friend from Utah had insisted they’d love it there, and as they cruised down the highway on a vacation road trip from their home in the Pacific Northwest, they spotted the big, orange Best Friends sign and pulled in.

What happened next felt like serendipity. “We walked into the office, and sitting there were two old friends from the wolf sanctuary we’d volunteered at back in Washington,” says Linda. The friends had just finished a volunteer stint at the Sanctuary and encouraged Linda and Rich to do the same. One tour later, they were hooked.

That was eight years ago — and they’ve been coming back ever since.

Since then, Rich and Linda have become steady and spirited fixtures in the Best Friends family. They’ve worked across the Sanctuary walking dogs (and cats), driven numerous vans to move cats from Utah to rescue partners in Portland, and most notably lent their hearts and hands to the spay/neuter clinics serving the Navajo Nation.

"We kind of make a road trip out of volunteering," Linda says. "But the clinics … they keep us coming back."

[13 stories of volunteers who save pets’ lives]

They’ve now participated in six clinics — each one a whirlwind of teamwork and lifesaving effort. “They’re strong ambassadors for Best Friends and keep volunteering at the clinics, even though the days are long and the work can be emotionally tough,” says Amy Jo Vigue, a Best Friends staff member and fellow helper at the clinics. “They love helping on the Navajo Nation, and I think it’s so cool that they travel to spend days helping repeatedly.”

Rich and Linda pitch in wherever they’re needed at the clinics, and sometimes, even after the work is done, they keep giving. Like the time they gave a ride to Amy and a dog named Lady, who needed overnight care after surgery.

“Lady had some complications after surgery, and it was decided that she would stay with me at my hotel for round-the-clock care,” recalls Amy. “Rich and Linda drove us from the clinic to the hotel and helped me get Lady settled in the hotel room — going above and beyond after an already full day.” Lady, for her part, was adorably fascinated by her own reflection in the hotel mirror. She recovered beautifully and got a clean bill of health the very next day.

Their kindness is quiet, consistent, and unflagging. And sometimes, it means making room for one more.

Yazhi, their most recent addition, was just a few months old when she arrived at one of the clinics to get spayed. “She was from an animal control agency in the area and didn’t have a home,” says Linda. The floofy, young pup had arrangements to go to a rescue group in Scottsdale, Arizona, when the clinic was over, but after Linda spent the weekend sitting beside her, she fell in love.

“We went against our policy,” laughs Rich. “We said now that we're seniors, we’d only adopt senior dogs. But ... it just happened. She’s just so cute.”

One adoption later, Yazhi made four dogs in the Yates household. The others are still adjusting to puppy energy and toothy enthusiasm, but things are going well. As Rich says, "She keeps us young."

Rich and Linda have created something beautiful: a life shaped by compassion, peppered with detours, and filled with furry co-pilots.

[An enormous thank-you to Best Friends volunteers]

Their message for anyone considering volunteering is simple: “There's such a need. And Best Friends is doing such incredible work — not just at the Sanctuary but everywhere. Being part of that ... it matters.”

From the lush trees of the Northwest to the red rock deserts of the Southwest and back again, their story is one of serendipity, service, and the kind of love that says yes — again and again.

Our goal at Best Friends is to support all animal shelters in the U.S. in reaching no-kill in 2025. No-kill means saving every dog and cat in a shelter who can be saved, accounting for community safety and good quality of life for pets. 

Shelter staff can’t do it alone. Saving animals in shelters is everyone’s responsibility, and it takes support and participation from the community. No-kill is possible when we work together thoughtfully, honestly, and collaboratively.