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

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!

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.

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.

Most welcoming church I have ever been a part of.Touched by Gods presence each time.I love to be a…read morepart of this amazing family.So much different opportunities where you can serve others.

This is an incredible, multiethnic church in Jacksonville. They have multiple language services,…read morebecause they reach a diverse crowd. In addition to church, they have a bible school program that brings in students from all over the US. They are currently in middle of building a new facility, to accommodate growth. The leadership team here is trustworthy, biblically minded, and humble.

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.

Love the concept behind this place. We're moving and I had donations but hate giving them to a…read moreplace that is just going to resell to anyone. foster Closet is only for foster children and their families which I love. They also keep their website updated with immediate needs. Amazing place to give donations.

From the owner: We are unique to our community because it takes volunteers and donors working together to help…read moresupport our FREE resource to the foster care system of NEFL. YOU make a difference in helping the infant, children, teens and families we serve. THANK YOU

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.

This is an awesome Humane Society and you can tell they care about pets! It is so spacious and…read moreclean and beautifully laid out. The lady at the welcome desk was very informative.

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