Help Us Help Animals Nonprofit Assists Groups

“We have an 8-week-old puppy suffering from head trauma whose back legs don’t work. Could Tim Kelley’s group Help Us Help Animals offer assistance?” That was the message he’d recently received from a local humane society.

Could he help? Yes, he could.

The world didn’t need another rescue group. There were plenty of those. So Kelley and his wife founded Help Us Help Animals (HUHA), a nonprofit organization that has become a much-needed resource for animal rescues, shelters and even private citizens.

The puppy has a name, Sarah, and a foster home, and thanks to HUHA and Kelley, the pup has a chance at adoption and a new life with a specially designed wheelchair that HUHA provided for the pup.

The wheelchair has a history of its own, being the result of a major fundraising effort last year for another Cherokee County Humane Society puppy in need. That puppy, Tahiti, was born without the ability to use her lower half. Through HUHA’s tireless efforts, Tahiti received the wheelchair and later became strong enough that eventually she no longer needed it and it was returned to HUHA. And she has since been adopted.

“That was a great feeling,” said Kelley. “To get an unsolicited text of a photo with a pup curled up in a bed you donated or playing with a toy you just gave them, that warms your heart.”

And like the wheelchair that has helped more than one pup, the groups themselves work with HUHA to help each other.

“We have received multiple donations from the very rescues we donate to when they receive a surplus of items that goes beyond their needs,” said Kelley. “They pay it forward and we get these items to others that need it.”

But HUHA’s reach has expanded to the point that local volunteers are greatly needed. There are several positions including administrative, accounting and pickup/delivery of donations. Additionally, donations are always in high demand.

• cleaning supplies
• puppy food
• puppy training pads

There are some special supplies needed for specific rescues, such as a rabbit rescue or a cat-only rescue.

The idea of HUHA began back in 2014, when Kelley saw his wife scrolling through her Facebook feed. “I saw post after post of rescue groups begging for donations, food, crates, volunteers etc.,” recalled Kelley. “We could have volunteered for one of these groups, but I felt like we could cast a broader net and help not only multiple local rescues but their fosters as well.”

HUHA began helping only a few local shelters and rescues but in just three years has grown to helping more than 200 rescues, shelters and individuals. The group’s reach is not limited to rescues and fosters. HUHA provided disaster relief in 2017 for hurricane victims as well as earthquake victims in Puerto Rico. They have given food and items to families in economic need and to individuals trying to manage feral cat colonies with spay/neuter catch and release techniques. HUHA also helped a local coalition to get an anti-tethering ordinance passed in Cobb County last year.

Kelley is looking forward to receiving the good news of when Sarah is adopted. But there are many more animals in need. Please visit HUHA’s website at www.huha.org to see how you can help. You also can check them out on Facebook.