November 10, 2022 – Copper’s Friends Bearded Dragon Rescue, a local reptile-based animal rescue company, is asking the community to donate to their cause in order to keep their business afloat.
Local resident Rainey Miller refuses to turn away a rescue. The only reptile-based rescue in Illinois, and one of few in the entire Midwest, her 501(c)3 organization Copper’s Friends Bearded Dragon Rescue was created to meet the needs of pet lovers and impulse buyers alike within the area.
Find them on Facebook by clicking here.
Now, forced into debt by the overwhelming demand for her work, Miller is turning to her community for support. On October 17, 2022, Miller announced via the Copper’s Friends Facebook page that she needed to raise $300 in emergency funds, or she would be forced to close the rescue.
Luckily, supporters flocked to her aid, generating the donations well before the one-month deadline. Still, Miller is facing $6,000+ debt—all money that has gone into outreach and care for animals in need. Copper’s Friends is looking for animal lovers within the community whose generous donations may allow her to continue her rehabilitating and rehousing efforts.
With heartwarming tales of uniting children and affordable four-legged friends, and tragic ones of sickness and loss, there is no doubt that Miller has put her all into this organization. She was the only one willing to take on the work these animals need, but no individual can sustain the reach it has now generated. “They think I’m a miracle worker,” she says, “but I have to just do what I can.”
For more information, please contact Page Shields and Sophie Nicholson by calling 732.540.0098 or emailing pshields@millikin.edu.
