The Gentle Barn will be celebrating its 25-year anniversary with a soiree on Aug. 24 starting at 6 p.m. at the organization’s Santa Clarita Valley location. The nonprofit will be celebrating two milestones: being open for 25 years and welcoming a million people through its doors.
Ellie Laks, founder of The Gentle Barn, said it has been her dream since she was a 7-year-old girl to start the sanctuary. What began in her half-acre backyard has grown exponentially into a three-location business.
“We have started in my half-acre backyard, moved to our current location in Santa Clarita, California, been able to expand to Nashville, Tennessee, and to St Louis, Missouri, had thousands of animals that have come through our door with very unique rescue and rehabilitation stories and how they have healed to move on to save human lives and teach us about our own humanity,” said Laks.
Over the 25 years, The Gentle Barn has faced its fair share of ups and downs. Between rescuing and rehabilitating animals, welcoming thousands of people to learn about animals, and expanding locations across the nation, Laks said they faced financial ruin only to save themselves at the last minute, had to evacuate in 2007 and 2019 due to fires and pushed through the COVID-19 pandemic to come out the other end successful.
“We’ve gone through so much, and I am so incredibly proud and grateful and honored to be standing here today, still thriving with our three locations, our 200 rescued animals currently, and all the humans that have come through our door,” said Laks.
Looking forward to another 25 years, Laks said that her goal has always been, “I want to show the world how beautiful these animals are.”
With Jay Weiner, co-founder of The Gentle Barn, Laks said they would like to start a podcast, create a documentary series, have an animated TV show, and write more books in addition to her two published books.
The soiree is called “Twilight Tails: a 25th anniversary soiree of rescues and renewal.” Laks invites people to attend to meet the animals and hear the stories behind their rescues. They will be celebrating and discussing what the future holds for The Gentle Barn. Drinks and vegan foods will be offered for attendees.
There are four ticket tiers, each including different goodie bags to take home. The “Barnyard Advocate” is $150, the “Barnyard Buddy” is $250, the “Gentle Guardian” is $500, and the “VIP” is $1,000. Tickets can be purchased at www.gentlebarn.org/celebrate. For those who cannot attend and wish to get involved, Laks said they can donate on the website.
“We’re really excited for our future. We’re very proud of our past,” said Laks. “We have so much to share with people about the lessons that these animals have taught us and just the humans that have been able to share this world with us.”
The Gentle Barn is located at 15825 Sierra Highway.
