3 Million Dollars!
Dear passionate people and or friends around the world,
Having money does make things easier. But it’s not impossible to achieve our goals without money. There are people with money and achieve nothing also. The secret is to start doing it whether you have money or not. If you don’t have money, start small scale and talk about it on social media. Exposure helps as you don’t know what kind hearted person is watching. If you start, and you keep doing it, you never know if someone may come along and help you or somehow you find the help yourself. Sometimes we ourselves find a way or sometimes someone comes along and helps us. We don’t know. But if we are afraid to start, then we will never find help. There is no failure if we keep trying because it’s all a learning process. Money can’t help us learn. In fact money can stop us from learning sometimes. So don’t lament about lack of money, but replace that with will power, hard work, consistency and focus. Some of the most successful people in the world started out with no money. Some of the most successful people in the world also died without much money, but the benefit and impact they had during and after their lives, touched millions. Money is not the key. But the drive to do something and go all the way with it is the key! After all, there is no failure because by doing nothing we failed already so why be afraid of something that we are already ‘doing’? By trying, we only work towards success! 🙂
Please read this story and rejoice as I did.
Thank you, Tsem Rinpoche
The Animal Welfare League of Clark County was founded in 1959 by a small group of animal lovers to help homeless dogs and cats. Jeff Guerini/Staff
Man leaves $3M to start animal shelter in Champaign County
By Kate Norman
URBANA — An Urbana resident who passed away in December left his $3 million estate to establish an Animal Welfare League in Champaign County.
David Robert Wetzell, known as “Bob,” left specific guidelines in his will for establishing the shelter, which will be modeled after the Animal Welfare League of Clark County in Springfield, said Ronald Tompkins, executor of Wetzell’s estate.
Wetzell left instructions in his will for Tompkins to sell his assets and use the money to establish the shelter and purchase a secluded farm in Champaign County. It is to be used as an animal preserve, pet cemetery, dog training facility and rehabilitation home for unwanted pets. Tompkins said he will file soon file inventory on Wetzell’s assets, which he estimated to be valued at $3 million.
Wetzell left no family behind when he passed away Dec. 6, 2014, at the age of 80, except for a few cousins who life far away, Tompkins said. He described Wetzell was a devoted pet owner and animal lover.
“He thought about it and that was something that was greatly on his mind,” he said.
This project will be a big undertaking, said Libby Adams, who runs Clark County’s Animal Welfare League with her husband, Ray.
The shelter, based in Springfield, was started in 1959 and is run by a board of 12 members. The shelter currently houses around 45 dogs and 90 cats.
“I know it will take a while to build up to what we have,” she said. “It’s not going to happen overnight. Ours took a few years to get to what we have now.”
Dianne Jones, a kennel worker at the Animal Welfare League of Clark County, holds Cupcake, one of many cats that are available for adoption. Jeff Guerini/Staff
Tompkins said he is seeking candidates to establish an initial board of five members and will help it through the legal process of getting established as a non-profit organization. Once the board is set up according to Wetzell’s instructions and is legally constituted, Tompkins said it will become self-operating.
The board will comprise of five members who are Champaign County residents and members of the Springfield Animal Welfare League, according to Wetzell’s instructions. Tompkins said he will recommend that the board follow the Springfield model and go up to 12 board members once the initial five members have things running smoothly.
Tompkins also said he spoke to Barely Used Pets Inc., a dog rescue in Urbana, about the possibility of cooperating or merging, if it’s deemed appropriate. But he added that ultimately it will be up to the board, once it is constituted, as to how it wants to continue.
Cecelia Walter, who started PAWS Animal Shelter in Urbana and had known Wetzell since high school, said she thinks he wasted his money.
“I liked Bob tremendously, but I don’t think this is the best decision,” Walter said.
She said the money would have been put to better use if Wetzell had donated it to the Animal Welfare League in Springfield rather than setting up a new shelter. A lot of the money will go toward expenses for organizing the program, things that aren’t helping the animals, Walter said.
“I’m sorry he did it the way he did,” she said. “What he wanted to do, and how he set it up, I don’t think it clicks.”
Adams spoke fondly of Wetzell and his love for animals.
“Bob was very fond and proud of our organization,” Adams said. “He would come down on occasion. He was a member of our league for as long as I can remember and supported us.”
Wetzell left behind a dog, six cats, seven chickens and a 20-year-old parakeet. Tompkins said he kept the dog, Blondie, and found homes for the other animals.
Adams said Wetzell often told her his dream was to start a kennel like the one in Springfield. And she wanted him to get it started while he was still living.
“He didn’t quite know how to go about it, so I hope this guy will get that done,” she said. “Good luck to Mr. Tompkins.”
Tompkins said he is still looking for people to get involved in the new shelter. He said anyone who was a member of the Springfield Animal Welfare League as of Dec. 1,2014, and is a current Champaign County resident, will receive a priority seat on the board.
Source: http://www.springfieldnewssun.com/news/news/local/man-leaves-3m-to-start-animal-shelter-in-champaign/nkFQW/?ecmp=springfieldnews_social_facebook_2014_sfp
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Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this inspiring article.Not many people will be able to do what Mr. Wetzell did.saving money till the very end to help the welfare of animals.He left $3M to start animal shelter in Champaign County.That’s wonderful, hopefully more people will follow him.A good advice from Rinpoche….. There are people with money and achieve nothing also. The secret is to start doing it whether you have money or not. . There is no failure if we keep trying because it’s all a learning process,
Thanks again with folded hands.
We should always start what we believe and is passionate about. Because as Rinpoche says by starting we have 50% of success, by not starting we have 100% of failing.
In my opinion, it is really great to see things like this happening more and more, especially in these couple of years. People treating animals just as how they would treat their own children. It is certainly heartwarming to see this. Many people always think that life must be about having a relationship, have kids and live rich. But how many of them would actually prefer having a pet as a family member? I believe there is a lot of them nowadays, you don’t always have to worry about them, train them properly with love and care and they will follow pretty much everything you ask for. Isn’t it just amazing? Hahahahaha
If I would want to get a pet, I would definitely adopt. There are bunch of unwanted pets at animal shelters, if you’re looking for an adorable puppy or kitten, fear not. Animal shelters always have plenty of puppies and kittens waiting to be adopted. Buying pets from pet stores is only going to encourage breeders to breed more, and many pet breeders don’t actually take good care of the pets. Every year, hundreds and thousands of pets are left behind on the streets, no shelter, no need, no love. The lucky ones are either adopted or brought into animal shelters, the unlucky ones usually live on the streets through harsh environments, mistreated by passerby, some are being road killed, some died due to disease, lack of food and etc. The worst part is that most animal shelters do not earn money, they usually rely on sponsors and the numbers of pets will only increase. But if everyone stops buying animals from pet stores and start adopting, we will definitely be able to relieve the stress of shelter owners and animals will have better conditions to live in.
Charitable legacies are the foundation for many good causes and are vital in continuing their work. This is especially true when it comes to charitables that help animals.
It’s a common myth that only the rich and famous leave money to charity when they die. We can make a difference too by setting aside a small sum in our will, or setting aside a small amount monthly to donate to them. If we do not have a lot of money, local animal shelters are usually in need of materials and resources to take care of the animals, or sometimes just extra pair of hands.
Animal welfare charities do a spectrum of work, from wildlife conservation, to providing shelter for the abused/abandoned, sponsoring spaying/neutering, to lobbying for anti-cruelty legislation. Many have worked very hard to protect pets, farm animals and wild animals from abuse and neglect.
Well, I guess leaving money for animal charities is better than leaving money for just our pets, as this amount takes care of and helps so many more beings. I read that Oprah Winfrey’s pet dogs stand to inherit £30 million at her death!
I agree with Rinpoche that the secret is to start doing it whether we have money or not. We can start small with what we have and create the causes to grow and be successful. With sincerity, hard work, perseverance, and the wish to benefit others, our work will bear fruit. Who knows, one day, somebody might come along and help us. But we should not wait for this day to come. What is important is to continue to help others.
I rejoice upon reading Mr Wetzel’s good deed, it is very rare to find people who truly care about animals nowadays. He is setting up such a good example for those people around him and even to us, the younger generation who are still learning and exercising the moral ethics in life.
He is truly an inspiration, he could have used all the money he had on fun, drinking, traveling while he was alive, but instead he saved all his money in order to take care of the animals that nobody wanted. There’s a lot of people who claim to be animal lovers but very few prove their words with actions. As cliche as it may sound, actions speak louder than words and I’m truly inspired by Mr Wetzel.
Terraforming Project is a good undertaking for the rich.
I want to have a big impact for animals when my time passes too. Even though this kind and compassionate man has beaten me to it, I want to have an impact for animals to be good and big. Animals are not treated well by most people so that is the least I can do, one person that cares is better than none.
I have learned compassion for animals, I have become a vegetarian, I care for animals. This is because of what I learned from my guru, he taught me that they are alive too and they feel too. They don’t want to die, they don’t want to be hurt. They are like us so they deserve proper meals, a home and a proper life. They deserve what we have because we are all earthlings, we are all lifeforms.
I pay respect to the man that passed and I say good job to him. I also hope the people there look after the animals well.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this article.
It is interesting to know that Bob who has a very compassionate heart to donate all his assets worth 3 million to set up an Animal Welfare League.
His contribution will definitely benefit and help so many animals. I hope the board committee will set up soon so they can take action and estabilish the welfare league.
Also thank you Rinpoche for your reminder “…there is no failure because by doing nothing we failed already so why be afraid of something that we are already ‘doing’? By trying, we only work towards success!” I will always remind myself and keep trying and working hard.
Thank you.
Thanks Rinpoche for sharing the interesting article.
When there’s a will, there’s a way. In this case, it’s the last will of Bob is to spend 3 millions for the benefit of the animals after he passed away. This is a great way to leave a legacy behind that continue his mission to benefit animals while he was alive.
I am very glad to read that there are getting more animal shelters in the world, and the supports and resources are getting more for those who cannot speak for their own rights — the animals.
I remember Rinpoche said before that animals can’t say “thank you” to us, so helping animals is something that without personal agenda that expect something back from them. Seeing all these animal shelters and rescue works, it’s a sign that more people are practicing selflessness, that take other’s life more than their own.
This is so heartwarming and I hope there are more stories like this happen everyday 🙂
Thank you Rinpoche.
Jace
This is an interesting article. I applaud Bob’s will in leaving his money of the amount US$3mn to the setting up of a separate animal shelter. It may be of personal preference whether good or bad, but it is certainly for good cause. I hope that the setting up of it and the running of the operations will be in good hands so that Bob’s US$3mn will benefit those who he intended to. Thank you, Bob. I shall take this opportunity to say a little prayer for you, may you have a good rebirth.
Thank you Rinpoche for the message; money should not be the excuse for us not to do something / start doing something.
Humbly, bowing down,
Stella Cheang
Dear Rinpoche,
This is so amazing story of unconditional love Bob provided with to the animals. How inspiring that he left his property worth of $3 million only for the animal welfare.
It is heart warming and wish I could do like him in the near future._()_
Dear Rinpoche,
Thank you for sharing this article.
Bob is indeed a man with a big heart for animals. Being a man with no family and only pets, he must had been very kind and very close to his pets which are family to him. His compassion for animals had drove him to plan his will to benefit his pets as well as other animals.
Bob is indeed a compassionate animal lover. However, what made me ponder is that why he had to wait until he passed away to make a move on his dreams? He had lived to a ripe age of 80 with no family around, and there is a chance that he could had completed his dream way earlier than he hit 80 if he had started to work on the project early.
I have learnt from this article that we have to move fast and treasure the time we have left. Human life is short, so we need to stop wasting time and do whatever that means the most to us. If we keep procrastinating, we might end up dead before we even started working on our goals and dreams.
Humbly,
Chris
Thanks Rinpoche for sharing. “It is much better to try and fail than not to try at all, because in trying we already won”~extracted from 108ways to grab my apples. The money left by Wetzell must be allocate to a fund foundation .
Cecilia Walter statement on Wetzell is wasting money on setting up new animal shelter will not stop Tompkins from carry on this project . In my point of view , the most important we do good things is base on our good motivation and the outcome failure or success is not so important. In this worlds, not everythings we did will success but take it as a lesson for our future .
时常都会听到有人提起“钱不是万能的，但没钱就万万不能。”一般人的想法是，要努力的打拼来满足物质的需求。而其实大多数人会如此的拼命追求，难道这不是一种信仰吗？因为他们会相信当他们得到这些物质上的保障之后，幸福就会随着而来。
其实，如果再想深一层，当一个人死亡之后，世界上任何财产、名利都带不走，只有业报随身。而我们真正可以带走的，也只是我们的慈悲心、智慧心和功德。
感谢仁波切分享此博文，让我钦佩 Wetzell 先生所做的决定之外，也从此博文得到不一般的启发如下：
1. 做好准备
Wetzell 先生清楚的明白到他往生之年，他是带不走任何财产。因此，他预先立下遗嘱，吩咐Tompkins出售他所有名下的财产然后用此金钱来设立动物的庇护所和农场。
2. Wetzell 先生的慈悲心
Wetzell 先生一直以来对动物有爱心的老人家。在他往生时，他也留下了一只狗，六只猫，七只鸡和一只活了二十年的鹦鹉。
3. 选择设立新的动物的庇护所和农场的用意
Wetzell 先生选择了将所有的财产来设立新的动物的庇护所和农场。本人大胆的推断Wetzell 先生有此决定是希望可以帮助更多的动物。而Wetzell 先生不选择将此可观的财产捐赠予其他动物福利的机构，就如Cecelia Walter所说的那些机构可能会用此捐款来缴还其他的费用，而这间接的帮不到更多的动物。
Dear Rinpoche,
Thank you for such an insightful article.
Though it is questionable to how Bob uses his money to save animals..the act of doing through Tompkins is highly commendable. He is a good example of someone leaving a “legacy” behind.
I truly believe setting up the shelter will benefit the animals at the county. As Rinpoche wrote.. It is not a matter of trying and fail.. It is a matter of not even trying.
Thank you.
Money can buy convenience and the necessities in life. Money in this case can provide hope and some comfort for animals. It can also educate others the importance of animal welfare.
The work of Animal Welfare League inspired Wetzell to donate all his wealth to start a new animal shelter. If we are focused and determined with our projects, it will rub off on to others. Although the money wasn’t donated to the existing animal shelter, starting a new shelter will help more animals.
So it’s good news for the animals.