An Aldergrove farm is selling pumpkins to raise money for an animal rescue program.
This is the first year Kensington Prairie Farm, located at 1736 248 St., is selling pumpkins to raise money for their animal rescue program.
The 45-acre farm, started as a small alpaca farm by owners Catherine Simpson and Jim Dales, which quickly grew into a farm with more than 30 different kinds of animals.
In 2016, the farm took in their first rescue, an alpaca named Silvester. Dee Martens, farm manager and granddaughter of Catherine and Jim, said they haven鈥檛 stopped bringing in rescued animals since Silvester joined the farm.
鈥淎t first we were rescuing one or two animals per year, but for the past two years, we鈥檝e been bringing in about 20 animals per year,鈥� added Martens.
Kensington farm works closely with the SPCA to rescue as many animals as possible.
鈥淪PCA will call us and tell us they found an animal that needs care and we go, pick them up, bring them back to the farm and help them with any medical needs they have,鈥� said Martens.
Last year the farm rescued an alpaca, Daisy, that needed an $8,000 surgery.
鈥淟ots of people get alpacas to get farm status and then don鈥檛 know how or don鈥檛 want to take care of them, so they come to us,鈥� said Martens.
When the pandemic started, the farm needed support to continue to run, which is when they transitioned from free admission to a general admission fee.
A general admission ticket costs $5, and 50 per cent of that goes towards the rescue animals while 50 per cent goes towards a charity called Quechua Benefit.
Quechua benefit is a non-profit organization that helps the people of Peru through educational programs, medical care, efficient farming practices, and social justice programs.
鈥淲e鈥檝e been working with Quechua Benefit for years, and they really rely on us and our donations,鈥� said Martens.
This year, Martens decided to start selling pumpkins at the farm to raise more money for the rescue program.
鈥淭he only reason we have pumpkins this year is to raise money for the animals. Everyone gets pumpkins to carve so I thought it would be a good way to raise money for the program,鈥� said Martens.
All the proceeds from the pumpkin sales goes towards the animal rescue program.
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