By Heath Miller | Founding Director
We look back at 2020 as a challenging year, yet a year that you enabled Support Util to lessen that burden for many on Utila. We closed out the year helping lift everyone's spirits, by distributing holiday food bags complete with chickens to over 600 homes on Utila, along with handing out children's gifts on Christmas Eve.
Thanks to our donors, Utila's medicial facilities have continuously been receiving additional medical supplies and devices needed to better control and treat Covid-19. The island is now better equipped than it has been, complete with an onsite oxygen concentrator, for on-demand oxygen 24/7.
Often forgotten is the impact of the pandemic on animals. A pet faces the same food insecurity of their owner, and the lack of tourism is still causing overcrowding at Jasper's Utila Animal Shelter. Those who have donated to our animal welfare program have helped lessen, but not not eliminate, the challenges the shelter faces and provide food for pets in need. We may now be facing a new challenge, as new regulations for pet air travel are allowing airlines to charge $125+ per animal for travel, as well as limiting the size of carry on animals, which we expect will add difficulty to adopting animals off of Utila.
We optimistically look to 2021, hopeful that we are past the worst of this past year, but staying prepared to respond as needed and provide the additional support to continue helping Utila through these trying times.
Thank you once again for choosing to Support Utila.
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