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2022 Annual School Resource Guide ...... 10-15 A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the Farm: Funny Farm Animal Rescue
A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Farm
The Story of Funny Farm
By Mari D’Albora Dattolo
Tucked away in a quiet corner of Mays Landing, miracles happen everyday. To experience over 600 rescued animals roaming free on the compound is in itself a joy. Realizing the remarkable true life story behind this ‘labor of love’ pulls at your heartstrings!
As a young mom, Anne McNulty made the courageous decision to leave her abusive husband. Her family’s survival would depend on her tenacity. With four children in tow and without a steady income, their struggle often became desperate. It was Anne’s passion for animals that kept her children distracted as they navigated their uncertain future. Anne secured a position as an animal control officer, exposing her to the sad reality of lost and abandoned animals. Extermination. Disheartened, Anne began rescuing those scheduled for euthanasia long before it became a popular trend on social media. Although they lived sparingly, what they had they shared with their extended family of dogs, cats, bunnies, sheep, goats, pigs and chickens. Some had missing eyes, feet, legs, and tails but Anne did her best to save them all and give them a
happy life. She would affectionately refer to her menagerie of misfits as the Funny Farm. It was a title that would live on long after those early years.
It was Anne’s dream to one day own a sanctuary where animals would roam free, knowing compassion and love, food and shelter–all while receiving necessary medical care. A permanent, safe and healthy environment, offering adoption for some and for others a forever home. It was a tall order for a woman with little means. It would take a miracle to bring her dream to fruition and the clock was ticking. Anne was battling cancer.
Anne’s children, then in their 20s, were blazing their own trails. Her daughter Laurie was an art major and found success as a graphic artist with a governmental agency. With the news of Anne’s diagnosis, Laurie made it her mission to fulfill her mother’s life goal. The future suddenly had a date stamp: 2000. She needed to find a home with an expansive property that could easily accommodate their thirtysomething adoptees. Her search brought them to a rural area of Mays Landing in Atlantic County, NJ. Fifteen acres of property, just off the rail bed
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of the historic West Jersey Railroad and Route 40. She had found their new home. Two weeks shy of settlement, Anne lost her courageous fight. Her resilient daughter picked up the baton and sprinted to the finish line. Alone with a wheelbarrow and a rake, day after day year after year, Laurie carried on Anne’s legacy, maintaining the farm while working her full time job. Guided by her mother’s tenacious spirit, Laurie has brought thousands of people together with her animal family.
Today, as founder and CEO of Funny Farm Animal Rescue, Laurie Zaleski extends community outreach programs and in the summer months, offers “Critter Camp” for local students. Future plans include the addition of a Welcome and Education Center. Recently she published her own journey of her years on the Farm in:
As a 501(c)(3), Funny Farm graciously accepts donations and welcomes the following wish list items: Hand sanitizers, apples, lettuce, carrots, paper towels, Clorox wipes, puppy pads, mealworms, Tractor Supply gift cards, Gatorade & water for volunteers Funny Farm: My Unexpected Life with 600 Rescue Animals now enjoying national and international praise. Governor of New Jersey, Phil Murphy even called Laurie to personally congratulate her on the tremendous success on the book’s release and thanking her for her contribution to her ATLANTIC SHORE HAMILTON TOWNSHIP Hamilton Township community. Through twenty+ seasons, Laurie has maintained her full time career in e d i t i o n photography to ensure that her “family” of 600+ is adequately provided for. Funny Farm
Atlantic Shore Living is always interested does not charge admission to the visiting in helping the Hamilton Township community. public, giving every child the opportunity to experience the magic of Anne’s Dream!
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