Our Founder

I’m often asked, “What got you into rescue in the first place?” Well, of course, I love animals. I see them as often defenseless in an often-cruel world and I want to protect them. I also think I feel a particular connection to them because of my own experience with the cruel world many years ago.

In August 1986 at the age of 12, I lost my mother, brother and sister in a plane crash that happened before my eyes. My family was visiting friends in Cerritos when debris from a horrific mid-air collision fell on our friends’ house. My father and I were saved, albeit traumatized and devastated. The next few years were so difficult. But instead of crawling into the void created by the tragedy, I decided to try to focus my energies on helping others. Those others turned out to be animals.

During my first year in college, I woke up one morning with the strangest urge to get a puppy. I knew nothing about the millions of animals being euthanized in municipal shelters every year so I started calling pet stores…$1,200 for a puppy?!...and then went to a shelter. And another. And another. It was a sudden and harsh lesson in a sad reality I never knew existed. At the end of the day, I headed home with a three-month-old shepherd mix completely covered in mange—and a resolve to make this world a better place for homeless animals.

Initially, I was a dog person. I liked cats, of course, but had little experience with them until the night a stray kitten appeared on my doorstep with no mama in sight. Pretty Girl, now 17, was my introduction to the poignant world of cats left to fend for themselves, abandoned through no fault of their own. Over the next several years, I volunteered with several animal groups, learning the ropes, the obstacles and the full, sobering extent of the overpopulation crisis. Dogs, cats, rabbits, even a bird—my rescue work was fast outgrowing my home. And that is how Heaven on Earth Society for Animals was born.

When we started Heaven on Earth in 2000, the no-kill movement in animal welfare was in its early stages. Rescuers were still trying to figure out exactly what “no-kill” meant and how to make it happen, while the public was just being introduced to the idea and the animals themselves were seeing the first true glimmer of hope. To me, no-kill means that every companion animal, unless irremediably suffering from a terminal illness or untreatable condition, deserves the chance for a safe and healthy life.

In the decade since, we’ve seen considerable focus on saving “adoptable” animals, often with little or no mention of the others. “The others?” you may ask. They’re the ones with physical disabilities, chronic illnesses or behavior issues; they are feral cats, FIV+ cats (kitty AIDS), even just cats and dogs who aren’t young and cute any more. These are the animals that drew me into rescue. These are the animals that need you and me the most.

I’ve always felt this is what sets Heaven on Earth apart from so many other rescue groups. We truly believe that every life is worth saving. We also believe the pet overpopulation crisis is due to the irresponsibility of people and it is, therefore, the responsibility of people to resolve the crisis. Companion animals are not homeless because of choices they have made and they should not have to pay with their lives.

Sometimes I am not sure how we manage to maintain our main programs—spay/neuter transport, adoptions and our cage-free sanctuary—during

these economically difficult times. Yet our determination continues to grow and as long as we can find the support to go with it, so does the number of lives saved. Please join us in our efforts to improve quality of life for homeless animals and end pet overpopulation. Your gift now is a life-saving one.

Sincerely,

Eri Kriteman