Since 2010. One family. Zero paid staff. Now a registered nonprofit taking in the animals nobody else will keep. We work with journalists, bloggers, and media outlets to tell the true story of rescue in rural Arizona.
Saint Francis started quietly—a family in Yuma making a choice that would last over twelve years. Dogs nobody wanted. Cats the shelters had no room for. Horses that cost too much to keep alive. Old animals. Broken animals. The animals that fell through every other safety net. They built a farm sanctuary and said yes when the answer was supposed to be no.
In 2024, they couldn't do it alone anymore. The costs were unsustainable. So they filed for 501(c)(3) status—made it official, made it public, made it a mission anyone could join. Today there are still zero paid staff. No office. Every dollar given goes straight to feed, veterinary care, and the upkeep of a sanctuary that operates entirely on volunteers and community support. They're still saying yes to the animals everyone else has given up on.
When the shelter says no. When the costs are impossible. When the animal is old, or sick, or broken beyond what the system can handle. We don't turn them away. We don't have an ending date. We say yes.— What drives Saint Francis to keep showing up
We live these narratives every day. Pick one. Come visit. Let us show you.
Since 2010. Hundreds of animals. Zero salaries. A Yuma farm sanctuary runs entirely on volunteers, donations, and the stubborn refusal to let an animal die because there's no money left.
How do you scale compassion when there's no paycheck?A family kept animals alive out of their own bank account for twelve years. In 2024, they made it official—registered with the IRS so they could stop burning through their savings and start building something permanent.
The evolution from family secret to public mission.Old. Sick. Terminally injured. Hard to place. These are the animals shelters have to turn away. At Saint Francis, they become permanent residents—not on death row, but on the path home.
What happens to the animals when the system says no.Saint Francis operates in the desert with farm buildings and volunteer labor. A real facility—shelter from the Arizona heat, professional medical space, proper enclosures—would transform how many animals they can save.
Why infrastructure is the next frontier for animal rescue.Saint Francis Rescue and Sanctuary of Yuma is a 100% volunteer-run, 501(c)(3) nonprofit farm animal rescue founded in 2010. Located in Yuma, Arizona, it provides permanent sanctuary to dogs, cats, horses, and other animals that shelters cannot keep—the old, the sick, the injured, the hard-to-place. EIN: 99-0599742.
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Legal Name: Saint Francis Rescue and Sanctuary of Yuma
EIN: 99-0599742
Status: 501(c)(3) Nonprofit
Founded: ~2010 (registered nonprofit in 2024)
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