Yes, of course. Animals too.
“We who choose to surround ourselves with lives even more temporary than our own, live within a fragile circle; easily and often breached. Unable to accept its awful gaps, we would still live no other way. We cherish memory as the only certain immortality, never fully understanding the necessary plan.”
Irving Townsend
For some of us, they may be the only family we have. For others, they may be some of the best family we have. Either way, if you are fortunate enough to have earned the unconditional love of an animal, then you understand well the tremendous loss it is when the time comes to say goodbye. At The Ever Foundation, we understand that our bond with the animals in our lives can be just as strong as the bonds we share with our fellow humans. To honor these extraordinary creatures with whom we are so lucky to share our journey, we offer free end-of-life photo sessions for people and their companion animals.
Walter
estimated age 11
Perhaps he was two years old, maybe five. Kim and Dave didn’t care anyway. They’d found and rescued true love. Walter was their faithful friend and devoted companion through everything life threw at them. They rode all their waves together (quite literally since they lived on a boat). His untold years eventually caught up to sweet Walter. When Kim and Dave could no longer keep his pain under control, they knew it was time to say goodbye. They honored their good boy with one more afternoon filled with all his favorite things.
Walter always loved his adventures in the park with his favorite humans.
“To call him a dog hardly seems to do him justice, though inasmuch as he had four legs, a tail, and barked, I admit he was, to all outward appearances. But to those who knew him well, he was a perfect gentleman.”
Hermione Gingold
Mr. Tibbits
estimated age 22
Bos’n Norbert Tibbits, the Earl of Gummington was his full name, if you must know; Tibby, Mr. T, or Chicken McThugget to his friends. He came to us when he was an estimated 16 years old. At just over one kilo, his laundry list of troubles was longer than he was. Nearly blind, toothless, permanently dislocated jaw, heart problems, compressed trachea, considerable arthritis, failing kidneys, severely malnourished. To no one’s surprise, they said he probably wasn’t long for this world. We should count ourselves lucky if we got six months with him, maybe a year. If six months was lucky, then we hit the lottery. This benevolent dictator had so many other plans, and we couldn’t wait to sign up for every single one of them.
Mr. T ruled our family for not quite six years. He lost so much along the way — his sight, his hearing, his mobility. What that indomitable force of nature never lost even once was his courage, his Great Dane-sized spirit, or his unbridled capacity to love us. We miss him dearly.
“How lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard.”
Winnie the Pooh
Leroy the Good Boy™
estimated age 13-14
The story of Leroy the Good Boy™ began ages ago. In 2013, he and 120+ other dogs were prisoners of the truly horrific Olympic Animal “Sanctuary” in Forks, Washington — for good reason, a place which came to be called the Sanctuary of Sorrow. The abuse visited on these poor animals by a man whose name isn’t worth the pixels we’d need to type it was unspeakable. So how did Leroy win his freedom? Entirely because of the Herculean efforts of a few of the toughest, most unyielding women you will ever meet, and the small but mighty army of animal rescue folks behind them.
Leroy’s journey after OAS was still a long and difficult one, full of even more heartbreak and broken promises. For so long, this amazing dog could not catch a break. Through it all however, his fiercest allies (Maggie, Heather and Erin pictured below were chief among them) never abandoned him. If Leroy wasn’t giving up, neither would they.
After years (yes, years) of searching for his forever home, at long last, an incredible family finally adopted Leroy. Dee and her husband Steve most certainly added years to his life, wonderful years that would help Leroy heal from the profound abuse and trauma he had suffered. It was a delight watching him thrive in his golden years with them.
Though he surprised everyone again and again with his resilience, Leroy finally let his family know the end was getting close. Dee and Steve threw a party in Leroy’s honor for his legion of faithful fans. We spent a wonderful afternoon smothering that well seasoned meatball with all the adoration he so richly deserved — a perfect send-off for a perfect pup.
We thank heaven every day that Leroy somehow managed to find (and keep) the people who would never give up on him, and that he eventually found his way to Dee and Steve who made his final years on earth so wonderful.
At home, surrounded by the love of his favorite humans, Leroy peacefully passed away. We miss his big goofy smile, his abundant signature chin nibbles, but especially his otherworldly capacity for love and forgiveness. When we think of dogs who truly touch our souls in the most magical way possible, Leroy the Good Boy™ is surely among them.
“Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.”
Stephen King