Vafa, which began as a small shelter, has grown tremendously over the past twenty years, weathering many challenges along the way. Throughout these years, countless individuals have dedicated their time and effort to Vafa, enduring harsh weather, and times of both abundance and scarcity. Whether through physical presence or financial support, they stood by Vafa in every circumstance, ensuring it never faltered. The hopeful eyes of Vafa’s furry residents motivate us to persevere on this challenging journey. Stay with Vafa, so that together, we can continue to enhance the lives of its beloved animals.
Vafa: Twenty years of effort, twenty years of memories, twenty years of challenges, twenty years of building a culture of compassion for animals, twenty years by your side to rescue, treat, and care for the most beautiful and loyal creatures on Earth—dogs. This slideshow is a drop in the vast ocean of these tumultuous twenty years.
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Poster Designer: Sahar Azimi
A short video has been made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Vafa Shelter. The focus of the video is on the remarks of Ms. Fatemeh Motamedi, the founder of the Vafa shelters (Hashtgerd and Qazvin). She has been residing in Canada for over a decade and oversees the shelter’s management from afar. In her speech, Ms. Motamedi thanked the participants for attending the 20th-anniversary celebration of Vafa. She said, “I can’t believe twenty years have passed, and I’m still sending messages from afar. I can’t believe that we started Vafa twenty years ago with three mud-brick rooms with wooden beams, and now we are here. What a delightful journey it has been with you all. Our goal was to help animals, the most vulnerable and voiceless creatures and that became the meaning of our lives. All of us who embarked on this path knew it wouldn’t be easy, full of obstacles, barriers, and ups and downs, but none of that discouraged us. Instead, we joined hands and overcame most of the obstacles, transforming those three small mud-brick rooms with a tiny yard and ten to fifteen dogs into two branches of Vafa and the thousands of animals we rescued and the countless good deeds we accomplished. The reason we grew was that none of us lost hope, and none of the hardships could stop us from continuing. All of these successes are truly due to the wonderful volunteers who helped us from the beginning, and without them, we wouldn’t have achieved this success. Addressing the volunteers, Ms. Motamedi said, “You are all heroes to me. I know how difficult it is for you to come to the shelter. The shelter is not really accessible, and only love can bring someone to the shelter. I know you come from far away, enduring many hardships, giving your all. I know your cars wear out, the road is long, you have to endure traffic, but you are passionate people, and that helps you overcome all these obstacles. Another wonderful aspect of this journey was getting to know other kind-hearted people, people who thought like us and wanted to help animals, and this is no less important than any other aspect. Like how I found you, became friends with you, and worked with you from afar. At the end of her speech, Ms. Motamedi referred to the book “The Story of Vafa,” saying that it is not just her story but a book they all wrote together, and she dedicates it to them. At the celebration, Ms. Farah Azari spoke briefly with the participants about the limitations and challenges of shelter work, and several volunteers shared their experiences with Vafa. Many volunteers were busy preparing for the event from a few days before the ceremony until Friday, August 30. We want to thank Mr. Farzad Shabanpour and Ms. Farah Azari, the shelter managers. Also, we appreciate the following individuals who each played a part in organizing a wonderful celebration: Karam Fakouri, Ali Mohammadi, Maliheh Gholinia, Paymaneh Tavakkol, Mina Forouzan Pajouh, Niusha Etminan, Noushin Etminan, Rana Ashough, Majid Houshmand, Kiumars Farahani, Davoud Mohammadi, Milad Rezaei, and, of course, the hardworking shelter workers. We also express our deep gratitude to Ms. Abdollahi, who donated a large number of disposable items, including cutlery, plates, cups, tissues, and trays, helping to meet the needs of the celebration. Thanks also go to Reza Moghadam for live streaming from the shelter and Mahtab Vakil for creating the birthday slideshow. This video was produced by the film company RecView, and we are very grateful to Mr. Mehdi Saleki and Mr. Milad Rezaei for their voluntary cooperation.
