Meet Help Save One!
Help Save One is a registered, non profit organization that functions as an advocate for dogs who are in danger of being gassed. HSO is really made up of just two people, with a large support system. Two people who devote all their time, efforts, and basically their lives to saving these dogs. Marissa and Meghan spend hours a day on the phone, on email, and in their cars, saving lives. They are normal people, with normal lives (or lack thereof).
Marissa and Meghan met one day, picking up dogs from a transport. This was all before Help Save One. Meghan was picking up a beautiful husky for her fiance, that had come up from a terrible shelter in North Carolina. Meghan and her fiance, Chris, had endured a house fire in March of 2008, and lost their beautiful 8 month old husky, and 2 year old Pomeranian. In April, Chris decided he was ready for a new pup, so Meghan went searching. Luckily someone had posted an ad on craigslist for a shelter needing help. She had always known that shelter down South gassed, but didn't really realize how bad it was until she became involved in getting their new dog. An email went out to all the people picking up dogs, and she realized that Marissa, who was also picking up a dog, lived right down the road. Marissa had also seen an ad on craigslist, and was picking up a pup that she was going to foster. And so, the pair met. After meeting at the transport, they decided that something had to be done, and Help Save One was born.
This rescue started out very small, and has since expanded to half of the US. HSO's foster network ranges from Georgia to Maine, and every state along the way. Their foster and support network is the most amazing group of people you will ever meet, and we all know that HSO wouldn't be alive today if it weren't for them.
Help Save One, Inc.
Marissa Stracaluzi
President and Co-Founder
I am a Rhode Island native and was born in Warwick RI. I attended Pilgrim High school and graduated from the University of Rhode Island. I have always loved animals but a certain dog named Mikey changed my life. I remember seeing him for the first time - a little Boston Terrier with one eye. He immediately came over, jumped on me, and wanted me to pick him up. He literally changed my life. Mikey is the reason I do what I do everyday. He is a puppymill survivor and has opened my eyes to the injustices our companion animals face everyday.
I then met a 13 year old Boston Terrier named Betty who I adopted. She was deaf/blind and rescued by another organization that means the world to me, Friends of Homeless Animals. If I ever had any doubt what I wanted to dedicate all my time to she solidified that for me. How anyone could bring her to shelter and leave her for dead I do not know. She had two good months with me and left me with a lifetime of memories. I knew I wanted to be in animal rescue so dogs like Betty and Mikey would have a chance.
Next into the family came Reba, she is a senior blind pug who is also a puppymill rescue. She is my little shining star. She makes us laugh and smile everyday. Always protective of her wrinkles, always looking for food no matter how much she ate, and always kind. There is not a mean bone in Reba's body despite her years of suffering.
Finally, Bugs a senior Boston Terrier joined the pack. If she sees a leash she does a "boogie down" dance where she shakes her little behind in excitement. She's in charge, takes no bull, and is the official couch patrol should any dog try to sit on there without her permission.
I run this rescue for the dogs - not for any human. Some do not agree with our graphic website and our need to tell people EXACTLY what happens to these dogs but we feel it is absolutely needed. People NEED to know how dogs are gassed, how they are thrown away like garbage and die with no dignity or sense of peace. Many people are appalled when they find out this practice is still going on. Our companion animals deserve to live out their natural lives and not be dumped or bred by irresponsible people. We need to spay/neuter and treat these animals that are in our care as family members.
I could not tell you the exact moment Help Save One became what it is today. I think back and wonder when Meg and I decided we were partners and this was something we had the same vision on. Was it from the first dog? Was it when we named the rescue? Was it when we became incorporated? Was in when Channel 12 was in our face? Was it when we had the discussion and decided we were going to keep going no matter what? No, I think it was when Meg called me and told me to stop updating the website without her permission or she was quitting. Quitting? Well that must mean we work together - that must mean we are a team. Hence HELP SAVE ONE, INC.
These dogs have taught me more than anyone or anything. They also brought me to the most compassionate, kind, and caring human being I have ever met - Miss Meghan Barry. She has become my best friend and her loyalty to this rescue and to our friendship is something rarely seen in people today. You can always depend on Meg to tell you the truth - even if you do not want to hear it. Meg is the other half of Help Save One. Without her Help Save One simply would not exist.
One story that will sum up the type of person Meg is I recall clearly. I had been on the go for about 18 hours and came home and literally fell into bed. The phone rang and on the other end was a lady telling me I HAD to pick up a dog IMMEDIATELY and would not wait until morning. There was no reasoning. The lady lived almost 2 hours away and I could barely move. It was already 1AM so that would mean I would get home at 5AM to turn around and leave for work at 6AM - after the day I had I just did not know how I was going to do it. As always Meg called me (we always talk around midnight every night without fail) and I did something very out of character - I burst into tears. I wanted to quit rescue. I hate my life. Blah Blah Blah. Meg calmly told me to shut up and go to bed. Her and her fiance Chris then got into their car and did the 4 hour round trip drive and kept the dog at their home. Meg did this after her day had not been any better than mine. She is truly the type of person you can depend on when you need something. As I write this Meg has been on the road for 30 hours doing a transport for 7 puppies asking nothing in return. Those 7 lives make it all worth it. These dogs have quite an advocate on their side.
Help Save One also could not be what it is today without our foster homes, volunteers, and the overwhelming amount of support we receive. Thank you does not even scratch the surface but it is the only way I know how to express my everlasting gratitude.
One special family I have met is the Dubey's. Jay and Andrea and their wonderful children have been a constant support to Help Save One even when faced with overwhelming obstacles. Their daughter amazes me with her kindness and love of our dogs. I do not know how Andrea does it. I do not know how she puts up with us sometimes. I do not know how Jay does it either. We ask alot of our fosters because they are all we have. Without them we could not function and the dogs that are not ready for adoption would not have a chance.
I am not an overly religious person but I believe in God. I do believe we will need to answer for what is happening to our companion animals everyday.
Quite frankly, I think God is quite pissed off and he should be.
PS....one last quick story. Everytime I think about it I smile.
This is when I knew I was in good company. Anyone who has followed HSO from the beginning knows we were attacked by some in our local (and not so local) community for rescuing out of state dogs and it caused a big firestorm for a few weeks. Well one of our supporters organized a rally in our support during the height of it - but I did not know this. All I seen on Craigslist was "RALLY - HELP SAVE ONE". Meg called me up and said "They are having a rally in front of my house". All I could say was "Is it with angry people"? Her response: " No, its like with normal people ".
 Betty... RIP bean!  Reba and her wrinkles! |  Mikey the Spoiled Brat!  Buggs the Queen! |
Meghan Barry
Vice President, Director of Adoptions, Webmaster, Co-founder
I'm also a Rhode Island native, born and raised. I remember being in Kindergarten, making a time capsule. We were asked to write what we wanted to be when we grew up, and I wrote "I want to help animals." Animals have been my passion since I was a very small child. I was always the kid bringing home the stray animals, the baby birds that fell out of their nests, the frogs with the broken legs. It drove my parents crazy, but luckily they gave me the freedom to explore the animal kingdom, and build up my love for animals.
One of my favorite stories of me as a child was when I was 4 years old. I was at my neighbors cookout, and they lived right on the beach. We were having lobster, and I had asked my neighbor if I could see them. She took me over to the bag of live lobsters, pulled one out, and said "Here ya go, Meghan! Have fun with him, he's going in the pot soon!" and promptly walked off. My mother recalls watching me stare at the lobster, pick it up, walk down to the water, pull off the rubber bands and throw the lobster into the water, yelling for him to swim free. Meghan Barry, animal activist at age 4. Needless to say, my neighbors were quite annoyed, my parents were proud, and I didn't have lobster for dinner that night.
Ever since I can remember, I've had pets in my life. I've had cats, dogs, ferrets, hamsters, chinchillas, alligators, snakes, lizards, hedgehogs, rabbits, gerbils, birds... you name it, I've had it. Although my parents often got annoyed with my pets, they were understanding and let me have them. I will be forever grateful to them for that, as it gave me the base for my current career path.
I graduated from The Prout School in 2005. I'm currently an Animal Science Major, at the University of Rhode Island, set to graduate in December of 2009. I have worked in animal shelters, kennels, on farms and walking dogs. Anything I could throw myself into that involved animals, I was all over it. I ran a ferret rescue for about a year, and it was a great success. We ended up shutting down the shelter because it was impossible to run a shelter while in school, but I hope one day to reopen my ferret rescue, in conjunction with Help Save One.
My fiance Chris has been the best blessing I've ever had. He puts up with my crazy animal antics, and usually just rolls his eyes at me when another pet enters the house. He is an animal lover like me (though he'll never admit it), and has been a huge help to this rescue. We even met because of our animals! I know he's putting that story in his bio, so I'll let him explain ;-)
I have a house full of animals, and I wouldn't want it any other way. We have cats, ferrets and rabbits, a hamster and a fish tank. Then we have our dogs.
My dogs have always been my companions, my loves, and my lives. When we lost our dogs in the house fire in March, I thought my life was over. I rescued my Pomeranian Toby from an extremely neglectful situation, where he had been abused, neglected, and ignored. I saved him, and he became my life. I worked with him for months to help him, and he had come so far at the time of the fire. He was my heart and my soul, and I still miss him every single day. Chris's husky was also lost in the fire, at a mere 8 months. Chris had wanted a husky his entire life, and Koda was his shining star. I rescued her from someone who could no longer keep her, and surprised Chris with her on his birthday. I have never seen his face light up like when that dog walked into our house. The fire destroyed both of us mentally and emotionally, but time does heal.
We are now owned by 3 dogs. Fennore started this entire shindig. She was the husky we picked up when we met Marissa. She is a gorgeous, amazing, sweet girl, who is a perfect lady. She's a husky mix, bright white with a blue and brown eye. We love her so much, and she has helped us heal so much.
Chewie was the next addition, a Pomeranian/Chihuahua rescued from a puppy mill. He is a spunky little son of a gun, with crazy hair and an adorable underbite. That's Chewie and I, in the picture above... we have matching jackets! When he came into my life, I realized that it was ok to have a new dog, that he would never replace Toby, and he was what really got me through the months after the fire. He was my saving grace, and he helped me more than I think even I know. He is also our official mascot, and greets every foster dog we have with open arms, and a huge grin.
The latest addition is little Marty. I adopted him from New Beginning's Rescue, in MA. He was found as a stray a few years ago, and was turned into New Beginnings. He was adopted, and all was well. Two years later he turned up, scared, malnourished, near death, under a deck. No one knows what happened to him in those two years, but he was a sad little bean. Karen from New Beginnings worked with him for 10 months before I found him, and adopted him. He is a mere 6 pounds, and he shakes like a leaf. He is always scared, but he tries to hard to be brave. He has stolen my heart in the short time I've had him, and already couldn't imagine my life without him. It is a joy to see him as we gain his trust, when he headbutts my hand for attention, or gives me a quick little kiss. The first time he played with a toy, the first time he jumped up and actually asked me to pick him up. He is a sweet little man, and I love him dearly.
My pets have gotten me through the toughest times in my life. They are my everything. When we started Help Save One, I knew from the beginning that we were going to make a difference. We devote everything we have to saving these dogs. I don't do it for the fame, I don't do it for the fortune (please, I'm broke all the time), and I don't do it for the praise. The look I get when a dog walks off transport, into his new owners arms... the look of complete and utter happiness, knowing that he is finally safe, with someone who will love him forever... the look of a wonderful, loving, gorgeous dog who knows that his life has been saved. That's all I need. That's enough for me.
Our network of foster homes, supporters, donaters and volunteers is the most amazing group of people I have ever had the privilege to meet. Our adopters are also an amazing group of people. The more I work with this rescue, the more I see that there are great people left in this world. I want to thank anyone who has ever helped us, in any way shape or form. It is because of all of you that we continue to be able to save these dogs, and I am eternally grateful to you all.
 Toby Won Kenobi... RIP my love. |  My little Marty Man! |
Our Wonderful Support Network
Christopher Kirtlink
I grew up in sunny Southern California with 2 dogs: Moose, a Rottweiler/Malamute mix, and Bear, a huge black poofball that I think was a Chow/Akita mix....not small dogs. I loved my dogs, but once I graduated from Upland High School in 1999, I went into the military which promptly sent me to South Korea for a year. I stayed there for an extra year (it's a wicked fun country) and came back stateside in 2002, where I left the service and roamed the country for a year, seeing most of the south east. I joined the national guard in late 2004, just in time for my new unit to deploy for a year in Iraq. I got home from Iraq in 2006 and moved into my shiny new apartment....which promptly fell apart. Moved to a house in Coventry and got the first of the brood, Kodo and Podo, my ferrets.....which is where my love enters the picture.
I went on craigslist to find a sitter for my ferrets while I was away in California with the military, and found a post by someone who had just rescued 2 ferrets and was looking for a forever home for them. I emailed that poster asking them if they knew of a place that would board ferrets for two weeks while I was away with the military. Meghan NEVER watched pets for people who she didn't know, and I NEVER went on craigslist, so it was amazing coincidence that we were both on for this at the same time. We met in a petco parking lot to talk about my ferts, and over the next 2 weeks, our love grew.
Fast forward a year and a half later, we're engaged, I spent almost ALL my time at her place and my apartment goes neglected because my ferrets, my dog Fennore, my cat, Tigger, and my Rabbit, Thumper, are all housed with her critters. Fennore brought the rescue together, another happy twist of fate. When Meghan and I lost our two babies in the fire, I refused to get another dog. Meghan showed me picture after picture of huskys that needed homes, and I didn't want any dog. Then she showed me Fennore. From the moment I saw her, I was amazed by the fact that she had been looked over by so many people. She was gorgeous, and I couldn't wait for her to get Home. When she arrived, she was travel stained, underweight, and absolutely beautiful. She knew all the commands, and was the perfect lady, even when we gave her a bath and found out my little grey husky was actually a brilliant white.
She has now taken up a more permanent residence in my heart, and she is one of the reasons I help where I can with the rescue. I'm kind of the reality check of the rescue, knocking the idealistic dreams of Meghan and Marissa on the head when discussions start heading towards pulling every dog under the sun. Sadly, the funding for something like that is just not available. It's my job to take what they WANT to do, and tell them what they can AFFORD to do. I hope that one day we have the resources (both financially and logistically) to pull every dog that goes to a gassing shelter, but it's not in the cards right now.
 Koda... RIP my KodaBear |  Fennore, the Perfect Lady! |
Tammy Cameron
Hi my name is Tammy Cameron and I live in a rural area of New York, with my husband (Ken) and 2 children (Sheena 22) and (Demi 17) and all 15 fur babies. We are all major animal lovers! I have always loved animals. My parents were animal lovers so I was fortunate to have had been raised with horses, dogs, cats, goats, rabbits, ducks, chickens birds, a cow, and if you can believe it even a pet chipmunk. So I am sure that’s how my love for animals originated. You never had to look far to find me, I was always in the barn. I learned at an early age animals relied on us for everything in their lives. And I learned to cherish them for the time they were with us.
If it involves animals, my husband and I want in. We foster for our local shelter and are volunteers through the United Animal Nations’ Emergency Animal Rescue Service (EARS). All our spare time is devoted to helping animals. We currently live in a home with very little land and are looking to sell so we can buy a home with room to start a rescue. Our goal in life is to save animals. Helping Marissa and Meghan save animals brings us more joy than we can express. They may think they need us but I think I need them more. They are extraordinary people and I can only pray that someday I too will be able to do much more to help animals.
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Kerry Hume
My name is Kerry Hume and I am honored to work with such a great organization where people are truly selfless. I am 24 years old and reside in Woburn, Massachusetts. I have grown up loving animals, and had them my whole life. I have had two horses, two cats, many birds, and two wonderful dogs. I was introduced to HSO by a wonderful dog named Challenge. My friend needed a new companion, and Challenge just happened to be on Craigslist as the next candidate for euthanization. He was perfect. Not only was he a beautiful dog, but his description was what sold us both. Challenge was an all around outdoors dog who would be perfect for hunting, camping, and living in Maine. Which was exactly what we were searching for. However, this perfect dog's time was up. There was one thing in the description that was different about Challenge, he had two missing toes on his back foot, which was keeping him from finding his forever home. With communicating with Marissa, I learned that he had gotten himself caught in a trap and when found and brought to the vet, his two toes needed to be amputated. She said that this was the reason why people were overlooking him. I knew this was the dog for us, I just knew it. Within a week, my friend and I were traveling down to Warwick to checkout this wonderful dog who had just traveled all this way to meet us. Little did I know, I would be meeting one of the most inspiring and caring people in the world, Marissa. When I met Marissa, my gratitude was overwhelming. As Challenge jumped off the couch and onto the floor to greet us, we knew immediately that he would be heading back to Mass with us to his new forever home. Marissa had all of his paperwork and a brand new green collar and leash, that went on the minute we left. I can honestly say that this meeting changed my life. After rescuing Challenge, now named Stewart, I started realizing that there were more dogs like him in the same boat that truly deserved the chances Marissa and her volunteers were offering. I started communicating with Marissa more and more, and eventually started donating money to the other ones who were going to be put down. It was a feeling I have never felt before. Much more than gratitude. To know that these dogs would be pulled from an awful fate and making there way to safety always brings tears to my eyes. Marissa informed me that Help Save One would be turning into a non-profit organization and I was thrilled. Since then, I have been checking the site daily, and donating money and time to those who truly need it. This past Christmas, my present wasn't an Aquamarine Tiffany's ring that I wanted, it was the lives of 12 puppies that were looking at the end of the road. And it's the best present I have ever gotten! Working with HSO is amazing. The dogs are awesome and the volunteers are even better. I thank Marissa everyday for bringing Stewart and HSO into my life. I will continue to support Help Save One and find dogs their forever families, with hopes that someday the laws change regarding gassing facilities and that there is no such thing as an Urgent List.
Marissa and HSO - Thank you so much.
Stewart... look at that face!
Andrea and Jay Dubey
Hello all! We are the Dubey, Boggs clan. We have 4 wonderful kids, 5 dogs, 6 cats, 2 chinchilla’s and 2 fish tanks. Andrea (mom) is a vet tech at Wignall animal hospital, and I, Jason (dad) am a mechanic at Archers Mobile. We have two kids in middle school. Kelsea is twelve, and Trentton is 11. We also have a 19 month old (Bryce). We also have a 6 month old (Evelyn). All of our animals are rescues including Papi who came from Help Save One. Kelsea and Trentton both play sports every weekend including basketball and soccer, while we chase the babies around. We have all been animal lovers forever if you can’t tell. Even with all this going on, we find time to foster for Help Save One. Help Save One does an incredible job saving these poor defenseless animals and finding them homes. We are delighted to help in any way we can. Even if we only help save one animal that is one less animal that gets put down. My family can’t rave enough about Help Save One. We hope to help save hundreds or thousands more animals.
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Our Family!
Michelle Crupi
Hi! My name is Michelle Crupi and I am a pre-veterinary student at the University of New Hampshire. I will graduate in the spring of 2010 and hopefully attend vet school in the fall of 2010. I have a lot of experience handling, caring for, and treating animals, for I have been a veterinary technician for over 3 years. My hobbies include fostering dogs, riding horses, snowboarding, and spending time with family and friends. I have 2 dogs of my own, Rocky, a lab mix, and Shari, a crazy terrier mix. I have always had a great interest in animals and have always tried to find various ways to help and care for them. For me, fostering for Help Save One is enjoyable and rewarding, and it is yet another way that I can help out the animals in our society.
 Rocky, My Boy! |  Shari, Crazy Girl! |
Roxanne Taylor
Hi. My name is Roxanne Taylor and I am a native of Nashua, NH. When we were kids, my sister and I were always trying to bring animals home and begged to keep them. My Mom, who wasn’t an animal lover like us, always made us bring them back! My step father finally convinced her to let us get a dog so we had Mishka, a Siberian Husky for 14 years. I moved out when I was 18 and from that point on I’ve always had animals. Currently I have Cleo, a 15 month old Border Collie/Jack Russell Terrier, and 7 cats – Nike (17), Athena (16), Aurora (16), Isis (12), Cassie (10), and Calypso and Persephone (9 months). I got involved with Help Save One after seeing a posting on Craigslist with an adorable Lab Mix with the caption ‘PTS date 1/16/09’. That was it…I knew I couldn’t help them all but I was going to do my part to help as many as I could. I am so proud to be involved in such a great organization!
I have my MBA from Southern NH University. I own/manage an adult recreational ice hockey league in Hudson, NH. I enjoy playing ice hockey, soccer, softball, tennis, and flag football. I am proud to be a member of Rotary Nashua West with whom I spend a lot of time helping local and international charities. In my spare time (what’s that) I enjoy rubber stamping and scrapbooking.
"We give dogs time we can spare, space we can spare and love we can spare. And in return, dogs give us their all. - M. Facklam
Kristyn Gartland
Hi everyone, my name is Kristyn Gartland. I have been fostering for HSO for about 6 months now and I love it. I have always cared about animals and wanted to help out as much as I could. I am currently on a television show called Ghost Hunters on the Sci-Fi channel. It takes a lot of my time, but thanks to a wonderful boyfriend and son that help out when I am gone I am able to do this.
Marissa has been a wonderful person to meet and I am glad I did!!! I have 2 dogs and 2 cats and all are from rescues. I believe in helping a life all ready here, not breeding. These babies are so happy just to have a bath let alone some love and affection! It just makes my day to help. Thank you Marissa for bringing me on board!
