Beloved Companions North Carolina

31/07/2024

Dear Friends, after two years of being part of the Ardmore Art Walk, I'm wait-listed for this year's sale. Selling ByrdieArt at this wonderful event is the single most lucrative source of funding for The Little Pet Chapel Project as well as for tracking equipment and community outreach, including helping under-served populations meet their veterinary needs.

The AAW footprint is smaller this year which means there are not as many yards available to host artists, so fewer artists have been accepted. It was a juried event this year as well, so maybe there wasn't as much room for outsider art like mine.

The way it works is that artists who live in Ardmore are the first to be accepted, then those who have lived there in the past are given second priority. Those who have no connection are third to the well. At least that's the way I remember it stated on the application. Same as always.

My Ardmore resume looks like this:

We moved a lot when I was a kid, including out of state a couple of times under cover of darkness. I attended five elementary schools between first and sixth grades, including Moore, Ardmore, and Latham in Winston Salem. I lived in nine different Ardmore houses with my family, and the first house I bought as an adult was on Madison Avenue.

I skint knees and elbows flying down Sunset on my Rat Fink skateboard, kissed my first boy on the bleachers behind Ardmore School, smoked my first cigarette and my first joint in backyards on Hawthorne, learned how to swan dive off the high board at Sherwood Pool, and received my first dog bite on Ardsley across from the little pink store. I felt so bad about shoplifting an Archie and Betty comic book from Andrews that I took it back and turned myself in.

I'm an old Ardmore brat.

My art is well-received.

I'm asking those of you who live in Ardmore and are within the AAW footprint to please open up your yards for the local artists who depend on this show to get things done.

Perhaps this show can be expanded if you do.

17/07/2024

Dear Fellow Animal Lovers and Rescue Friends, many of you have received help from animal communicator Mary Lemons when you've been in need. How fortuitous for us that Mary is offering a mini online workshop Thursday evening, July 25 from 7p until 8:30p! I've signed up and hope to see you there, too. It costs $25 to attend. If you would like to go and need financial assistance, please PM me. Beloved Companions NC has 2 scholarships available! Let's join Mary and learn how to dig a little deeper into the lessons our Beyond Humans are waiting to teach us. To learn more about Mary, please visit her website at healingwholeself.com.

Presented by: Mary LemonsAnimals are one of your most overlooked resources for your spiritual growth. Open yourself to the magnificent world of the animal kingdom. Learn different ways animals can influence and guide you. It is unnecessary to have a personal pet to experience the companionship of an...

07/07/2024

For those of you who keep up with statistics, I just took a look back at the number of my tracks, assists, and coaches for the first half of 2024, including through today, July 7 at 7pm. (The night is young.) Here are the numbers:

88 total tracks, assists, and coaches

Of the 87:

55 were resolved (reunited!)
21 are unresolved (no closure for the missing pet's person)
7 were found diseased
5 cases are still active

I'm upgrading my equipment. I now have 5 spypoint trail cams, and the two newest ones have video capability. I have unlimited photo plans for each of these cameras. Each plan costs $120/year. Each camera uses 8 AA batteries to operate, and each battery costs 48 cents. Each battery change costs $3.84. Sometimes the changes come pretty quickly, depending on the track. While I would LOVE to use rechargeables or lithiums for these cameras, they don't work well. Actually, rechargeables aren't an option for camera viability, and the lithiums are a joke right now. We recycle and while it's not ideal, it's okay.

And I want to continue to add to my toolkit. My next goal is to purchase a FLIR (forward looking infrared) which is a handheld device that works similarly to a thermal imaging drone but doesn't fly. Good ones can be had for under $1,000. Great ones are quite a bit more. So, I'm doing homework on FLIRS and I sure would like to speak with someone who knows about them and can advise regarding best and most efficient FLIR model for field use.

I'm called to track, assist, and coach very often these days, and after not charging for many years, I'm now working on a sliding scale - from $0 to $400/day. I will always charge a fee for travel and for tracking Shaman. But I remain dedicated to coaching and assisting people who can't afford to pay a dime but who will maybe make me a pie. I can't imagine turning someone away because they have few resources.

You can always grease the wheels of this operation by buying my art, or by making a gift through VENMO: patricialynn-byrd. Maria Wood, I'm doing this because you said I should. Sells of ByrdieArt support the Little Pet Chapel Project, tracking expenses, and just generally being a resource for our rescue community as best I can.

So there you have it! It's a lot. I'm humbled by this work, and grateful for the million zillion spirits who guide me and keep me safe.

08/06/2024

My friend Brian Gorelick reached out to me this morning about an question in today's WS Journal AskSam column regarding a pet memorial in Long Creek. I've just sent this response by email to answer the question. Share as you wish!

Pet Memorial in Long Creek: I have the scoop!
Lynn Byrd

12:26 PM (0 minutes ago)

to AskSAM

Hi,
My name is Lynn Byrd and I'm the founder of The Little Pet Chapel Project. A contract with the City of Winston Salem, signed by both the City Manager and the City Attorney, was notarized on June 30, 2021. My husband Jamie Cheshire builds the chapels, I gussie them up, and an ace city crew helps us install them in various city parks. Currently, Winston-Salem is home to four chapels, three of which are accessible: Miller Park behind the small parking lot off Snyder Garden Road, Hathaway Park at the end of the parking lot on Anita Drive, and The Muddy Creek trailhead off the gravel parking lot near the end of Jefferson Elementary School Lane off Robinhood Road. The very first chapel is located at Long Creek Park (a former golf course in Bethania) and is a mile walk in from the parking lot, up and down some steep hills. The structure started life as a water station when the golf course was active, but had sat empty since the course was abandoned. We "adopted" it by cleaning it up, and then painting and stocking it with supplies. Then I called my old friend Sam Barbee, former Director of Parks and Recreation for the city, who gave me a contact. Next I called and gave the little pet chapel elevator pitch to Leah Friend. She liked the idea and suggested that I write a proposal. Regarding William Royston's involvement, he signed the Contract Approval List on May 18, 2021, but that's all he had to do. That Mr. Royston doesn't remember this project or where the Long Creek little pet chapel is located isn't surprising, considering his workload and the documents passing across his desk everyday - he's probably signed hundreds of park project checklists since 2021. But the people who visit the chapels remember them. One day, we hope to build a new chapel for Long Creek, one that is larger in scale and accessible to all park visitors. In the meantime, learn more about The Little Pet Chapel Project by visiting the website: littlepetchapels.com.

I can be reached at 828-707-3647. This is more information than you probably need, but please call if you have questions.

Sincerely, Lynn Byrd
I'm always doing things I can't do. That's how I get to do them. - Pablo Picasso

littlepetchapels.com

https://www.wxii12.com/article/remembering-man-s-best-friend/46819396?fbclid=IwAR0GHx-DsqQBcJBSvCWaNeyx_w_891d1ln_R6--8B3R-1yfacor0zRtP1Lo

plynnbyrd.myportfolio.com

Lynn Byrd spreads love throughout the parks

13/12/2023