I'm Melinda, and I am asking for help to support one of the finest young humans I know. If I could tell you just how much this kid has given to me, to creatures great and small, to her family and friends. She's been hit hard by tragedy this week, and I want to ask as many hands as I can to help pick her up.

Kaya is just a shining person. A senior at Thetford Academy, my coworker at Dartmouth Health, an equestrian, a lover of critters, a crafter. Caretaker on her family farm. She makes immersive outdoor experiences for her young sisters to play in. She will get in a car and drive across state lines, for 36 hours straight, to foster a litter of rescue puppies. Or horses from a kill shelter. She makes elaborate pastries for her classmates. And all that just in the past year. She has been there again and again and again for me when I needed help. She's mild. She's spicy. She's my favorite honorary daughter for many, many years now.

Kaya loves her creatures with every fiber of her being. And this week, she had to experience the agony of having to shepherd her two most beloved out of this life--her puppy Keno and her horse Paisley. Anyone who knows Kaya knows how much energy and care she puts into all her animals-- when they're sick, when they're naughty, when they're on loan or rescued or lifers. Keno's illness was long and at first a mystery--and she and her family explored every resource, far beyond their capacity to. They tried everything. But ultimately, he was unable to fight off the infection in his kidneys and she made the compassionate decision on Monday, Sept 23.

Her beloved Paisley was looking great this year, after her time at the fair, and all the work she and Kaya had been doing this summer. I loved her video posts about their adventures all summer. She started showing signs of great injury on Tuesday and was relieved of the suffering of her fractured leg the day after.

I don't know if I totally remember just how great and terrible your first loves and losses are, as a teenager, but I do know if this were my experience, I'd be needing all my tribe to bear the loss. And y'all, the COST. It's such a huge endeavor to provide for the creatures in our care, but she's just a kid. No, a young adult. Who already works, goes to school, gives more than she should to people and animals in need. And its already not easy. And this week just isn't something I want her and her family to bear alone. They work hard. They love the animals and do so much already. Let's give them a hand.

Someday, Kaya girl with be ready to look for love again. My hope is that she might have a little something to help make that easier, when the time comes.