This is a great place for a group, teambuilding event to help the less fortunate in the…read moreJacksonville area. I came here with my employer to volunteer as a group. There were roughly 60 of us, and we packed 1000 boxes of food. That only took about an hour, so we were also given a tour of this impressive facility, which helps other local organizations and serves a part of the local emergency services. I came away feeling good about my employer for organizing the event and donating to a good cause.

Thank God for them !!!! Kindd, wonderful caring organization, They provide the help families need.read more

3/25/26. I want to help where I can and this local foodbank (not city run or any corporate…read moreaffiliation). We are open M, W, F from 9-11:30. Clients need to have proper ID-social security cards, zip code for our area and such. People volunteering are just trying to help in some way to those in need.

I so appreciate the service they provide to the community. I…read moreappreciate the merchants that donate the goods to help those of us that really need it. Some of what I get I cannot eat due to dietary restrictions, but I donate them to neighbors that appreciate and can use them.

I went there for a visit on a night time feeding. It was a neat concept. They have to feed the…read moreanimals anyways, so why not invite people to educate and raise money for the sanctuary. The animals seem well taken care of and happy. The have mostly tigers but also a lion and some smaller cats. They even have two foxes and two bears! This is different than a zoo, because they have these animals as a way to save them. Some of them were from private owners and some were form closed zoos. The workers and volunteers were all happy as well.

You've never been to a place like this before... and at first, I wasn't even sure what to expect…read more The sign outside is nicely done, but when you walk in, the tables and chairs look like they're 50 years old... clean and organized, but the area clearly needs an upgrade. But that's actually the point... every dollar this nonprofit earns goes directly to animal care, facilities, and expansion. Nothing is wasted on appearances. And that mindset defines everything about this place. We signed up for a tour and arrived early to walk around a bit on our own. By chance, we ran into Curt Logiudice, the founder and owner of the sanctuary... a remarkable man who has devoted his life to this mission. Hearing him explain how it started, how it's grown, and his vision for the future was inspiring. Watching him interact with the bear they have was priceless... playful, natural, and full of trust. You couldn't tell who was enjoying it more... Curt or the bear. What they're doing here is truly admirable. Their mission is the rescue of exotic animals from serious and often tragic situations. Once an animal arrives at Catty Shack Ranch, it has a home for life. They do not breed, trade, sell, or buy animals. The sanctuary is home to tigers, a bear, lions, pumas, leopards, lynx, foxes, and coatimundis... all cared for with dignity and respect. The guided tour is absolutely worth it. The staff is knowledgeable, the experience is educational, and you get surprisingly close to the animals while still feeling completely safe. The atmosphere is calm, respectful, and not overcrowded. I noticed families with kids whose eyes were wide with amazement... it's that kind of place. This is privately funded, and even veterinarians volunteer their time to care for animals in need of medical treatment. If you see Curt on the grounds... and you probably will... stop and talk to him. His passion, humility, and genuine love for these animals is unmistakable. Please visit. Please support this place. What they're doing here truly matters. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Shoutout to our local community heroes!! I had the honor of meeting a few awesome volunteers like…read moreWalter, Shelly, Eli, and Mack. This faithful group may fluctuate of volunteers, food availability, and people in need... but the Love is a constant!!! The lines start early and the set up starts even earlier. This team is run like a well-oiled machine and are efficient, effective, and willing to share Love with their acts of service. Food is organized for the purpose of providing for the appropriate amount of food for the appropriate amount of people. The food comes from a lot of different sources, but with the same heart of Love and Hope. There is a group of volunteers that also like to help out by providing prayer support to the individual cars as they are awaiting their turn in the drive thru line. May God bless all that are involved and may this be a Lighthouse to the community!!

Pet It Forward/Gina deserves the award of the year from our household! We have a precious…read more(ShihTzu) little girl named Princess who desperately needed to be seen by a VET ASAP because I thought she was having a seizure & have bloodwork done due to something she got into. Frantically I called Gina & to my surprise she started making calls for me. Not only did she help find somewhere affordable to take Princess, but stayed in communication w/me the entire trip as well from beginning to end. Even during the VET'S actual visit, to ensure that we received excellent care @11pm at night. Which we did & Princess was able to come home with/a clean bill of health after the scariest night ever! Without Gina walking me through this, idk what I would have done. It's not often that you call a complete stranger & the person on the other end, ends up being an Angel! Gina words truly cannot express to you what you've done for our family. I will certainly not ever forget & will shout from the rooftops that there is certainly still hope for our pets through folks like YOU. P.s. Pretty sure you'll be wearing a cape when we finally meet! #petitforward #shihtzuluv #angelsindisguise

From the owner: Pet It Forward is a non-profit foundation that helps keep pets and their owners stay together! As…read morea 501(c)3 status Pet It Forward helps pay a portion of vet bills, food, spay and neuter to the less fortunate in the Jacksonville, Fl area. (other areas soon to follow) Looking for a great cause to support? Donations of any amount are always welcomed and appreciated! Together we can help the less fortunate to not have to make the heartbreaking decision to have to surrender or rehome their beloved pets due to financial difficulties. Helping one paw at a time!

Review #900 comes in the form of admiration for the Ronald McDonald House in Jacksonville. I…read morerecently toured the facility for the first time and still have goosebumps from my experience. This non profit charity does not receive any federal or government grants or funding. Contrary to popular belief, it's a completely donation-based organization, which is absolutely stunning, since they currently house 53 families free of charge. Patients and their families come from all around the world to seek medical attention in Jacksonville. When I toured the house, they spoke enthusiastically of a family who recently crossed the pond from Ireland. People might not be talking about this enough, but Jacksonville is home to state-of-the-art medical care. The house is beautiful. There's a courtyard, a full-service kitchen (larger than some restaurants), a pantry, a movie room, a play room, a prayer room, a class room, a covered parking garage, a gorgeous rooftop garden and so much more. On top of that, each employee I've worked with or met in passing has a passion so evident it's contagious. I have to admit there were times during the tour I found myself getting choked up. The mission is clear and they are truly changing lives by providing lodging, food and transportation better than most hotel accommodations. Add to the mix, families at their most stressful only emphasizes the Lord's work they're doing. Love, love, love! I encourage anyone to donate or give back to the Ronald McDonald House.

I've supported JHS for over a decade but finally had my first experience as an adopter with them,…read moreand it went wonderfully. My spouse and I decided we were ready to bring a cat into our home a couple years after our senior cat passed away, and we headed to JHS to start seeing if any cat felt like a match. The facility is beautiful and clearly designed to minimize stress as much as possible for the animals. The front desk employees were friendly and told us to look around, so we did. We wanted an adult cat, and we found that -- at least on this visit -- they were all in a special "citrus suite" that required accompaniment by a counselor since cats can be a bit spicy. It was about 30 minutes before closing at this point, but we were assured that we wouldn't be rushed out with closing and to take as much time with the cats and counselor as we wanted. Once our lovely counselor Charly was ready, she took us into the suite and started talking to us about the cats. She had detailed information about each and talked to us about what we were looking for, what our home was like, whether we had children or pets, and whether we had experience with cats. It felt very friendly but also like a good two-way evacuation (us of the cats and JHS of us), which I appreciated. One cat ended up showing interest in us pretty quickly, and we spent about 20 minutes with her. Spoiler alert: she's sitting on the couch with me now at home. Back to that day: we said we wanted to adopt her, and Charly got her into a travel box and had us wait for a few minutes at the front while she got paperwork together. She brought us our new family member and a big folder with important dates for follow-up vaccines, medical information, and even some coupons. Once we got home, they even sent us some more photos that had taken of our new cat during her time at the shelter, and the online tool they partner with was useful, too. It was definitely a great experience, and it reaffirmed my belief that the work of JHS is one of the best things about this city.

Do not come here. I…read moreadopted a 2 month old kitten from here. The day I met him, he was fearful but otherwise seemed healthy. The one thing that stood out was how visibly dirty he was. His fur was matted with grime and dirt. He was a stray, so I assumed he would be cleaned before being sent home with an adopter. I was told to come back in two days because he needed to be neutered. Two days later, I returned to pick him up. While waiting, I sat in front of his cage and watched him throw up. He looked extremely sick. I informed the front desk and decided to come back later. The shelter was closed the next day, so I returned the following morning. He looked even weaker and visibly ill. I assumed he was simply recovering from surgery. I have cared for cats after surgery before and know what normal recovery looks like. What I could not understand was why he was still filthy. He looked exactly as dirty as the day I first met him. He also had a known flea problem, yet he looked like he had gone through the entire process without ever being properly prepared for adoption. Seeing him in that condition did not make me feel confident that he was receiving the care I was told he was getting. I was assured the fleas were not a concern and that he was a perfectly healthy kitten who had received all necessary vaccinations and care. I was sent home with him that day. The next morning, my house was infested with fleas. Not a few fleas. They were everywhere. He was constantly itching and being bitten. I found fleas in my kitchen, bathrooms, bedroom, and even my car. I had to treat my entire home while caring for a recently neutered kitten who could not be bathed normally. He suffered because of a problem I was told was not an issue. Within two days of bringing him home, everything went downhill. He stopped eating. Then he stopped drinking. Then he stopped moving. He would stand unsteadily, lower his head toward the ground, and remain there completely unresponsive. I remembered being told to bring him back if anything went wrong after surgery, so I did exactly that. Instead of receiving help, I was told these issues were not pre-existing conditions and that I needed to take him to a veterinarian. So I did. The veterinarian was appalled that he had been allowed to go home. The exam revealed a 104 degree fever, severe dehydration, infection, mild anemia, and neurological symptoms, including seizures. Seizures. In a 2 month old kitten I had adopted less than a week earlier. I spent $255 on the exam and bloodwork alone, and he needed even more treatment than I could provide. That not including the 30 dollar flea treatment for my home and the Capstar medication worth 43 that I bought. This should never have happened. When I brought the veterinary records back to the shelter, I expected concern, accountability, or at least an explanation. Instead, I got excuses. The person assigned to speak with me repeatedly explained that she was not a veterinarian and could not answer many of the medical questions I was asking. That left me wondering why she was handling a complaint involving a critically ill kitten who had just been adopted out. The final conversation left me disgusted. I was told I could either pay for treatment myself or surrender him. I chose to surrender him because he clearly needed more medical care than I could provide. Almost immediately after signing the paperwork, I was told, "Just so you know, if we can't help him, we're going to euthanize him." I had spent the previous week trying to save this kitten, paying veterinary bills and treating my home for fleas, only to be told that surrendering him might mean he dies. When I asked why he had been sent home with me in the first place, I was told they did not have the neurological resources necessary to identify conditions they could not immediately see. I could have been told he needed additional monitoring before being adopted out. Instead, he was sent home while suffering from anemia, infection, dehydration, fleas, and seizures. I was also told it was better for him to be in my home because the shelter had too many animals to closely monitor them all. That statement alone says everything. He was adopted out before anyone knew or bothered to find out how serious his condition was. Anemia. Fleas. Dehydration. Infection. Seizures. What a memorable adoption experience. Instead of focusing on moving as many animals through the system as possible, make sure the animals being adopted are healthy enough to survive the process. The lack of concern shown throughout this entire situation was shocking. Disgusting disregard and recklessness of the wellbeing of a helpless animal. I have attached photos from the day I brought him home and videos from my final day with him. Yes they're unnecessary and should be private, but words alone do not show what me and the poor guy had to go through. My boy deserved better. "Humane society." How ironic.

HABIJAX has been a great place to spend our days off from work to volunteer whether it is at the…read moreReStore or one of the home build sites.

Great place , great atmosphere and great prices. Would highly recommend for D.I.Y oriented people…read more The people are friendly and for a great cause.

Every Saturday, from 10-3, under the bridges in Riverside, many of the best food and craft vendors…read morein the area, along with performers, local residents, and Jacksonville's greatest dogs, converge for a great weekend event. RAM is just a vibe. We make this a weekly stop and bring our dogs. There is something for everyone here. The outside lanes are devoted to local food vendors and food trucks respectively. Tons of great bakeries, produce and coffee selections. Inside, art, jewelry, and on stage, local talent weekly. Some of my favorite food vendors are 1748 Bakehouse and Mixed Fillings. The art vendors differ week to week and we've made a few purchases. Most importantly, this is THE highlight of the week for my dogs. They get to mingle with other dogs and people and they smile the entire time we're there. This is THE event to start your weekend in the Jacksonville area. If you haven't been, I highly encourage you to visit RAM.

An amazing experience alot of Duval artist out to showcase their talent and sell goods reasonable…read moreprices alot of fun for adults and kids and tons of food trucks Great customer service!!!!

Recently my company volunteered at the Sulzbacher Center to prepare and serve lunch to those in…read moreneed. And believe me, there are a lot of people in need at this center; from homeless living on the streets of downtown Jacksonville to the few residents that live at the Sulzbacher. It is not a pretty sight at all, so we who are fortunate enough should give our time and effort to help these people. We can change lives! The kitchen at the Sulzbacher is small, but has everything you would find in a professional restaurant kitchen. The food that local businesses and individuals donate is what the staff here has to work with. So it's also important that they receive donations to help keep the center open. I will say if volunteering at Sulzbacher parking can be a real nightmare, like every other place downtown. So you'll probably have to park on Catherine St like we did. Remember love your neighbor no matter what!

Sulzbacher is a wonderful non-profit serving the most needy in our community. Please consider…read moredonating to keep their kitchen stocked and their extraordinary services for the homeless ongoing well into the future.