Why This Work Needs to Be Someone’s Job.
Kerri doesn’t do this work because she enjoys seeing animals in crisis.
She does it because she is fueled by the animals’ progress.
The fear starts to fade.
The animal receives care.
The light comes back into their eyes.
And, eventually, they realize they are safe.
“Watching the light come back into the animals eyes” is one of the things that gives Kerri the most satisfaction.
But there is another reason she keeps showing up.
The work isn’t only about one animal.
It is about building a better response for all animals.
A Job That Used to Depend on Availability
For years, AIR’s emergency response capacity relied heavily on volunteers.
Those volunteers are incredibly committed.
But volunteers have jobs.
They have families.
They have animals of their own.
They have lives outside of AIR.
When an agency needs help, the need doesn’t necessarily arrive at a convenient time.
An email might arrive at 4:30 in the morning.
A phone call might come in the middle of the day.
An agency may need guidance that same day.
Historically, a volunteer might not be able to get back to the agency until days later.
Kerri’s role changes that equation.
With a dedicated Emergency Services Manager, AIR can work toward responding to agencies within hours for guidance instead of the previous 72-hour timeframe.
That is not simply a faster phone call.
It can mean the difference between an agency having a plan and an agency still trying to figure out what to do with limited resources.
The Numbers Tell Part of the Story
The volume of work behind AIR’s emergency response is significant.
Kerri estimates that AIR receives approximately 120–150 hours of emergency services-related work each month during non Response months.
That’s nearly a full-time job
During one major case and deployment, the workload exceeded 200 hours in a single month, with nine consecutive days spent on site.
While Kerri is away, her family helps care for her own animals.
That is the personal commitment behind the position.
But the bigger story is what happens because the position exists.
An agency gets a response.
A law enforcement officer gets technical information.
A seizure gets a more carefully developed plan.
A volunteer team gets coordination.
A rescue partner is identified.
A potentially dangerous situation gets assessed before people walk into it.
An animal has someone advocating for what is safest and best.
The Human Side
The emotional side of this work is real.
Kerri sees animals in distress, neglect and fear.
Her approach is to give herself time to decompress every day and to remind herself of the larger picture.
When she arrives at a scene, she knows the whole context.
But she tries not to remain focused on where the animals have been.
Instead, she focuses on where they are going.
Somewhere better.
Her own animals—her horse, chickens and dogs—also provide a source of grounding and support.
And ultimately, she keeps coming back to the same purpose:
The work is for all animals.
Not just the one case.
Not just the one animal whose photograph happens to touch someone’s heart.
All of them.
What Your Gift Makes Possible
Kerri’s position is AIR’s first paid role dedicated to Emergency Services and Animal Cruelty Investigation.
That is a milestone.
It is also a challenge.
A position like this can only continue if the community sees its value and chooses to invest in it.
That is why North Texas Giving Day matters.
Your gift can help AIR sustain the person behind the phone call.
The person who reviews the evidence.
The person who helps law enforcement understand what they are seeing.
The person who helps an agency plan a seizure.
The person who builds the network of vetted rescue partners.
The person who coordinates volunteers in the field.
The person who knows when it is safe to move forward—and when it isn’t.
And the person who can help turn a crisis into a plan.
This Is What Capacity Looks Like
When donors support an animal rescue organization, it is natural to think about food, veterinary care, shelter and the visible needs of animals.
Those things matter.
But responding to cruelty and large-scale animal welfare emergencies requires something else, too:
Capacity.
Capacity means having someone available.
It means having expertise ready.
It means having systems in place before the emergency begins.
It means building relationships with agencies and rescue organizations before a crisis requires them.
It means being able to answer the phone.
Kerri’s position is AIR’s first step toward making that capacity sustainable.
North Texas Giving Day is an opportunity to help AIR continue taking that step.
Because when the next call comes, the question shouldn’t be whether someone is available to help.
The question should be:
How can we help?