Episode 46 - Turning Your Legacy into a Lifeline for Animals with Yolanda Benoit
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In this heartfelt episode of Your Estate Matters, Nicole and Greg sit down with Yolanda Benoit, Director of Wills & Estate Gifts at the BC SPCA, to explore how planned giving can protect animals for generations to come. From funding emergency food banks and life-saving veterinary care to building facilities for rescued cats and traumatized dogs, Yolanda shares moving stories of donors whose legacies continue to change lives. Learn the surprising ways you can support animal welfare beyond cash gifts, why clear will wording matters, and how the BC SPCA is tackling the root causes of animal suffering. Whether you’re an animal lover or just curious about meaningful giving, this conversation will inspire you to think differently about your own legacy.
Nicole 00:00:02 Hello and welcome to Your Estate Matters with your house, my colleague Greg Brennand and myself, Nicole Garton of Heritage Trust.
Greg 00:00:09 Your Estate Matters is a podcast dedicated to everything estates, including building and preserving your legacy.
Nicole 00:00:16 If it's estate related, we'll be talking about it. We're having the conversations today that will help Canadians protect their families, their assets and their legacies tomorrow. With us today on Your Estate Matters is Yolanda Benoit, director of wills and estate gifts at the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, also known as the BC SPCA, where she is dedicated over a decade to building the Wilderness Estates Gifts program and helping kind supporters create a meaningful legacy that protect vulnerable domestic farm and wild animals and mobilize communities so animals and people thrive thrived together across British Columbia in her role. Yolanda collaborates closely with donors, professional advisors and executors to facilitate the fulfillment of final wishes, often navigating complex estate and legal challenges. Her expertise ensures that each legacy gift aligns with the donor's intentions and has a lasting impact on animal welfare.
Nicole 00:01:21 Prior to joining the BC SPCA, Yolanda spent over ten years in the healthcare sector raising essential funds for medical care. Yolanda loves continuously learning and is an active member of several professional organizations, including the Canadian Association of Gift Planners, the Fraser Valley Estate Planning Council, and the Society of Trusted Estate Practitioners, where she earned her Certificate in Estate and Trust Administration in 2017. Yolanda, thank you so much for joining us today. Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure to have you. Why don't you tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got into this field and ended up at the BCS VCA.
Yolanda 00:02:02 Well, I come from an immigrant family where we were blessed with assistance, and then we started volunteering and giving back to the community. So I always knew I wanted to help and give back any way that I could. And that led me into fundraising, where I could use my skills to help better hospitals or animal welfare, and help others who wanted to make a difference in the world.
Greg 00:02:30 What drew you personally to BC SPCA?
Yolanda 00:02:32 Well, growing up I had everything from cats to gerbils to chickens to rabbits to sea monkeys.
Yolanda 00:02:40 So I always had a love for animals. And when the opportunity came, when there was the opening to run and develop the Willen Estate Gift Planning program, my friend knew that I had a passion for this field and if it was something I could just focus on it would be my dream job. And then you add in the animals to that animal welfare and being able to bring your animals to work and rolling around on the ground and playing with them, and nobody bats an eye. It's normal. It was heaven on earth for me.
Nicole 00:03:13 So tell us about the BC SPCA.
Yolanda 00:03:15 A lot of people know us as an animal protection organization sheltering. But what many don't know is we started out as advocacy, 130 years ago in Victoria, I believe there was a horse drawn carriage and the horse fell from illness, age, we're not sure. But then the owner got out and started whipping the horse, and people around started yelling at this person, saying, stop, stop. What are you doing? And that's how the PCA was born all those years ago.
Yolanda 00:03:49 So they were advocating for better welfare for working animals. So fast forward to today. we've just launched our new strategic plan, and we have a plan to go to 2050, in which we're going to be looking at always being the safety net for the most vulnerable of animals, but also looking at the root causes like why is there animal abuse? Why is the animal human bond failing in some instances? And a good example to look at is what happened during Covid. During Covid, people lost jobs, lost businesses. We're told to stay at home. Now. A lot came out of that food insecurity. For one thing, a lot of people didn't have food. What food they had, they shared with their animal or gave their animal, and they went without. The BC SPCA at that point started 34 new animal food banks, pet food banks to help in that aspect. We always had one in the downtown east side. You may have heard about Charlie's Food Bank, so that's one example. So food insecurity, root cause.
Yolanda 00:05:05 Another one is domestic abuse. So there's a lot of people that are in situations where they're not safe and they have animals. But there's something called a violence link. So the person isn't the only one being abused. Sometimes it's the animal too. Therefore the person doesn't want to leave and run to a shelter and leave the animal. Because from my understanding, shelters won't accept animals and they won't leave their animal to be abused. So the BCS PCA started a program in which we work together with shelters, and we will take in the animal. We have, again a foster network that will help out. And it's called a Safe Keepers program. So that's Another not so common. A lot of people don't know about that program.
Nicole 00:05:59 Tell us. I had no idea there were animal food products. First, I didn't know. So tell us more about that. If someone is struggling to provide food for their family and their animal. Tell me about how they might access that service.
Yolanda 00:06:13 Reach out to your local community and BC SPCA Community Animal Center and ask where the nearest pet food bank is and they'll be directed to the right location.
Nicole 00:06:23 And so where do you source food? Do you get donations from pet stores? Do you purchase it with donated funds? How does that work?
Yolanda 00:06:31 We do have a partner, Hills, so they supply a lot of the food. Many people donate food and we pass that forward. So we're so, so blessed with the supporters that we have big hearts. Animal lovers who want to help others keep their animal, keep the family together, whether it's 2 or 4 legged.
Greg 00:06:56 Now, many years ago, I dealt with the case of a rancher who, you know, was basically becoming incapable and was neglecting, not intentionally, no other animals. And I worked with a branch of provincial government called brand ID, which I didn't know existed, and they looked after all registered animals. And I just wondered if you ever crossed paths with them, because in the States, we've often had to call BC SPCA because there's no survivor. And you need to make arrangements while it maybe gets adopted out. Yes. And I just wondered if you were involved in any of those situations.
Yolanda 00:07:34 I'm not familiar with the organization that.
Greg 00:07:37 Yeah. Nobody's ever heard of them you mentioned.
Yolanda 00:07:40 But no, we do. We have an animal cruelty hotline. And when people see that animals aren't being cared for, whether they're domestic or farm animals, they will call the cruelty hotline and our animal protection officers will go out and see what is happening there. And you're right. Sometimes it's just people who have gotten older still think they can look after. You know, a hundred acres and all the animals all by themselves, and they can't. Sometimes it's mental health issues. So we do get involved in those cases.
Nicole 00:08:16 So Yolanda your role focuses on wills and estates gifts. Can you explain why legacy gifts are so important to the BC SPCA?
Yolanda 00:08:23 Thank you for that question, Nicole. A lot of people don't know that the BCS PCA is funded almost 100% by donors, by supporters. We are not government funded. We might have animal control contracts in different areas of the province of British Columbia, but that's a fee for service.
Yolanda 00:08:46 So if you go to the CRA website and see government funding, that's what that is. We have been blessed and we have received recently some funding from the government for helping us to rebuild some of our older buildings because we need some capital. But yes, the gifts and will those are priceless to us because we couldn't function. We couldn't do what we do without the family of supporters that we have because we're funded by donated dollars.
Greg 00:09:21 So what percentage of the PCAs operations would you say are funded through these types of legacy gifts?
Yolanda 00:09:28 And that's a very good question because I just recently asked that of the finance department. It's approximately 33%.
Greg 00:09:36 Well quite significant. Well, when people think about leaving a gift to a charity and there will they might think of only a cash gift. What are some other ways that people can leave a legacy, such as gifts of life insurance, RRSP property or other assets.
Yolanda 00:09:52 A good one that a lot of people aren't very familiar with. And please go talk to your professional advisors.
Yolanda 00:10:00 Are gifts of publicly traded, appreciated stock? So if they transfer the gift and they could put it right in their will, that they would like to transfer this specific stock to this charity in specie, meaning don't cash it out and give them the money. Transfer the actual stock to the charity. Then there's zero capital gains and the estate will get a full tax receipt for the full amount. So that's an excellent way of supporting a charity and also getting some help with the estate's taxes.
Nicole 00:10:38 So can you share some examples of some estate gifts that have made a difference to the SPCA?
Yolanda 00:10:44 Yes, there's a couple that come to mind and it's interesting how they play into one another. We had a supporter who passed and she was very, very loving of cats. So in her will, she said this gift was to be used for the benefit of cats. So it's very general, so we could use it the best way possible at the time for cats. At the time, we didn't have a large seizure facility.
Yolanda 00:11:17 We didn't have anywhere where there's if we had a large intake of animals like we did. At the beginning of this month, 83 Persian mixed cats were seized. This woman, she donated a portion of her estate to the BC SPCA, and with the funds, we were able to have a specialist in this area of large intake like seizures do protocols like health and safety protocols for our staff, our staff and trained volunteers. And so we were ready and then with more funding from this estate, we were able to set up this facility and its. This in Surrey at the Surrey Community Animal Centre. It's the Surrey Cat intake facility, and that's where these 60 odd of the Persian mixes came to Surrey. They were triaged. Some of them had very matted hair. They have to be checked for health and welfare. And did they have any contagious illnesses? So they are kept separate. But it's still. It's a large number, but we're very blessed with that gift from this woman. Now, another gift that we received.
Yolanda 00:12:32 Estate gift. We were able to purchase two animal transfer vans. So we always had one animal transfer van. And what an animal transfer van is, wherever there's lots of animals like up north and few people to adopt. We would transfer the animals to the Lower Mainland areas where there's more people to adopt. So with two more vehicles, when we have large seizures such as we did, those animals are then transferred. First of all, we transfer animals out of community animal centers to other community animal centers. So there's one large community animal center where we can bring most of them in. So these animal transfer vans were, again, another blessing that really, really helps our mission and what we're able to do.
Greg 00:13:24 So if somebody is listening today thinking about including the BC SPCA and their will, what are the basic steps that they should take?
Yolanda 00:13:33 The first step that I would recommend is please speak to your family about your wishes. A lot of people will draft their will, not talk to their family about it.
Yolanda 00:13:43 And there is sometimes there's a lot of surprises and a lot of bitterness and family can sue. Family in British Columbia. There's again. I'm not. Here's my disclaimer I'm not a lawyer. I'm not a financial advisor, and I'm not an accountant. I'm just a willing estate geek. And I love learning that we have Wes here. The Wills, Estates and Secession Act, where a spouse or a child can sue the will in essence and change what's in the will if they do not feel that they've received enough support. And it's devastating when you see families ripped apart over that. So please, first thing, talk. Talk to your family as why what you're doing? Why is it important to you? It's critical. It really is. Secondly, reach out to the BC's PCA, the Will in Estate Gifts team and ask for well to speak to one of us. And let's talk. What's important to you? Where would you like to see your funds be used? Do you want to support the future and the greatest need? Because we don't know what that need will be.
Yolanda 00:14:57 People draft their wills and there's ten, 20, 30 years potentially that they live and they haven't updated their will. So the need at the time that they drafted into their will may not be needed anymore. So please do call your favorite charity and speak to someone about what you're thinking and how you would like your gift to be used. And then next please see a professional, a lawyer notary and get your will drafted because every will is different.
Nicole 00:15:33 So part of your work, I understand, involves working with families and executors after someone passes away. So what are some common issues you see that arise throughout the state administration with gifts and donations of this nature.
Yolanda 00:15:47 We have some really good hearted, kind people that say, yes, I will be your executor, but they don't understand the scope of the job, the complexities that can come up. So if we get the opportunity to talk to them, we do encourage them to seek professional assistance. Go to a lawyer, they'll help you with probate, go to an accountant, they'll help you with the taxes, things like that.
Yolanda 00:16:19 There's a lot of people out there struggling and they don't need to be. They don't have to do it all by themselves because there are professionals out there and the estate pays for those expenses. If they're fair and reasonable, they're certainly paid by the estate.
Greg 00:16:34 I just wanted to touch about when being named in a will. One of the mistakes I used to see a fair bit is not a correct description of the charity. And what are some of the best ways to avoid that?
Yolanda 00:16:49 The best way to avoid that is to actually call the charity. Ask them what is their legal name? Our legal name is the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. That is the actual legal name. It's not the BCS PCA that's the shortened version. And ask for the charitable registration number. Those two things should be static. There's charities that move offices. The address may change, but their name shouldn't or their charitable registration number. And you can also go on to the CRA website and look up your favorite charity and find the legal name there and the charitable registration number there.
Nicole 00:17:31 So you talked about sort of a transformational gift around helping cats. Are there any other interesting legacy gifts that have made a significant difference for animals in B.C.?
Yolanda 00:17:43 Absolutely. Lutely. There was a wonderful gift we received for Wild Ark, which is our Wild Animal Rescue Center in Moccasin, BC, which is on the island, and many, many years ago they used to truck water up. They did not have a tap where they could turn on and bring water in. They literally had to truck it up, carry it up in buckets. And a transformational gift was the installation of pipes. However, you get water up to somewhere that happened, so they no longer had to truck water up. And that was truly, truly a transformational for the Wild Ark.
Nicole 00:18:28 So what does it mean on like a human and animal level and someone leaves a gift like this behind? Tell us about what that legacy is like.
Yolanda 00:18:37 Legacies keep humans and animals together. If someone is without a house And their animal, cat or dog needs spay or neutering.
Yolanda 00:18:50 The BKS PCA can step in and give them a ticket, like a card, to get a free spay and neuter to help them, and it keeps the family together. The food banks are another example of keeping families together. Veterinarians or the lack of and increasing costs. That's becoming another root cause of the bond being broken, because some people can't afford the vet care that their animal needs, and they love their animals so much, they do what they think is best for that animal, and they surrender the animal so someone else can adopt them that can afford that vet care. So again. Legacies that help us solve these root causes in the coming years, we'll be transformational. Absolutely
Nicole 00:19:47 So what might that look like? So say someone has a family pet that needs significant medical care that they can afford. Are they able to potentially approach the SPCA or what resources might be available to them if they can't afford out of pocket?
Yolanda 00:20:03 There are organizations that will. We did actually run the numbers on that, and it was in the billions of dollars we couldn't afford.
Yolanda 00:20:14 And again, we're run by donated dollars. We'll never get that much fundraising done to be able to pay for everyone's vet care. But there are organizations that help in that aspect. But at this point, the SPCA does not. At Charlie's Food Bank, they do have a vet that goes there, and the people who don't have houses, they come in with their pets, they get food. They get a vet check if they need a spay and neuter. They'll be given a ticket if they need a halter or a leash or a bed. We have all these things that are donated. So that's at the Charlie's Food Bank. So we are able to do it in a small way. And again, for those that are most vulnerable.
Nicole 00:21:02 But can people donate specifically directed to the Charlie's Food Bank, for example? Or how might that work?
Yolanda 00:21:09 Yes they could. And again, we just ask, please give us a call. Let's talk. We can give you the correct wording for that to take to your will drafter.
Yolanda 00:21:18 And we can absolutely have that in there. And of course we would ask also that they include a power to vary clause because in ten, 20, 30 years, what if the name changes right and it becomes someone else's food bank? Because Charlie was the first dog that one of our vets saw on the downtown east side, he was asked to go see a pet for someone who didn't have a home. So that's how Charlie's and the Downtown East side started.
Nicole 00:21:51 Is it true that vet bills are getting more expensive?
Yolanda 00:21:55 That's what we're hearing. That's what our donors are experiencing. They're calling us and saying, why is it so expensive? There aren't that many vet schools in Canada. We did advocate and get more seats at the vet school in Saskatchewan. So that was huge because every vet school has X amount of seats for each province. So BC was able to get ours increased. So it is a problem. It is one of those root causes. So I know our CEO is working with vets directly and trying to address this.
Greg 00:22:34 I think there's a bit of vet specialization too. You see now with just cats or just dogs or Oh of course, also big animal vets. Yes, on the agricultural side. And I know many that have come from New Zealand or Australia. That's a big program.
Yolanda 00:22:50 Oh, is that right?
Greg 00:22:52 To Canada. Yeah. So sometimes people put off thinking about wills and legacy gifts because it feels overwhelming. They don't like to do it. What would you say are the biggest benefits of planning ahead rather than putting it off?
Yolanda 00:23:05 Oh, do it now. Do it now. As Nike always said, just do it. Unfortunately, none of us know when it's going to be our time. So it's better to get it done so you know that your wishes will be followed because you've written them down. So it's better that then your estate going intestate and following governmental rules of how your estate will be distributed, because it may not be the way you want it to. So don't put it off again. Going back to the family.
Yolanda 00:23:38 Have that discussion with your family while you're drafting the will. The way you're drafting it. Reach out to your favorite charities. Ask them for their legal name, their charitable registration number. Then call up your financial advisor, your lawyer, or your notary and see what's the best way of distributing your estate. Because different assets can be handled differently or designated, and you can decrease your probate fees or your taxes. So those professionals are out there for a reason, and it's amazing things you didn't even think of, they think of for you. And that's what they're there for. And they can make a huge difference. So unless you plan and you do it, you miss those opportunities to maximize your estate for your loved ones.
Nicole 00:24:29 So speaking of thinking of it, there is an estate that we administered at Heritage Trust and somebody passed away intestate, meaning without a will. and they had been a very hard working professional and they had a beloved dog. So no pre-planning had been done for anything, including the dog, and we were able to identify that.
Nicole 00:24:53 The longtime dog walker actually really loved this animal, and we felt that that would have been something that the person that passed away probably would have really welcomed. And this person obviously really knew this animal, but this person didn't have a lot of money, and this was an eight year old dog. So then we ended up negotiating with the siblings who were going to be the intestate heirs. And by the way, getting seven figure sums.
Yolanda 00:25:20 Wow.
Nicole 00:25:20 And they hadn't actually spoken to their sibling for decades. It was really quite something. I'm sure this person actually would have probably left money to the VCA if they had planned, but we were able to negotiate with the siblings to agree that we were able to give a sum of money to the dog walker to defray the costs of taking this eight year old animal. So we we're always going to find the best place for someone's animal to the extent that we can. And we're always going to try to make sure that there's funds allocated to care for that animal. But it would be much preferred if people could provide in advance what their wishes are.
Nicole 00:25:58 Set aside those funds and probably make a significant donation rather than funds. Just going by operation of a lot of people that they likely didn't have a close relationship with.
Yolanda 00:26:10 Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. And that is a great idea if someone is taking on the family pet because as we mentioned, vet bills are getting more and more expensive. And as animals age like humans, they get sick and they need care.
Nicole 00:26:31 So my six year old dog, his teeth were $4,000 last year. Yes, just his teeth. So yes, a shocking. But you know, once you once they're a member of the family, it's really hard to say no.
Yolanda 00:26:46 Absolutely.
Nicole 00:26:48 Anyway, we're brushing every night now. Thank you.
Yolanda 00:26:51 Your bones are good to your bones. I gave my dog raw bones from the day we adopted him. And you know, he's resting in peace now. But 15 years old. And his teeth were still great. He never needed any dental work.
Nicole 00:27:06 That's a good tip.
Greg 00:27:07 Well, get him an actor's card, and you can write that off.
Greg 00:27:09 Maybe it's nice teeth. So are there any particular areas, areas right now that need funding legacy gifts especially that would make a big difference for the BKS? Piqua.
Yolanda 00:27:22 Yes, going back to animals and people thriving together and focusing on the root causes, the more we can invest in the root causes, the better that human animal bond will be retained. It's a tricky question because Wills drafted today. Unless people are updating their wills on a very regular basis as they age. We've seen wills that come in, and they've left a gift to a capital campaign that was finished ten years ago, but it's strictly for capital and we have a new building, so that money just sits in the bank until it needs a new roof or something to do with the building itself. We can't use those funds, and I don't think that the donor, the supporter, would have wanted that. So it's very important to think long term. If you have something specific again, please reach out to us. We would ask that you include a power to vary clause in case we don't need the funds for that specific purpose at that time, but we'll use them to the nearest possible purpose that aligns with your wishes.
Yolanda 00:28:43 Or simply making the estate gift to the greatest need at the time. Because we never saw 2008 coming with a crash and people, you know, holding on to their money because everybody lost money. Covid again, people lost jobs. People lost businesses. There is great need there. So we have to be able to be flexible because we never know what's coming down the road.
Nicole 00:29:13 Do you have any current initiatives or capital campaigns right now?
Yolanda 00:29:17 Well, you can ask me that. Are you? Yes, we have the Vancouver Island Animal Behavior Center on the island, and it's the first of its kind. And it's being built to help those animals that At need the most. Training time. One on one attention. They've been through horrific circumstances. It might be a volunteer just sitting in one end of a kennel, and the other frightened animal is in the other side of the kennel, not looking at the animal for potentially weeks until that animal becomes curious. We never know what they've been through, but the effects can be horrific and they're good animals and we're not a kill shelter.
Yolanda 00:30:16 So again, unless we've done everything possible and medically there's no other solution. But we try to do everything we can for the animal so we can adopt them out again. So this Vancouver Island Animal Behavioral Center is again a first of its kind. So all of the more difficult animals will be the animal transfer van will transfer them there for care and training.
Nicole 00:30:44 So that includes maybe some breeds of dogs that are considered more dangerous or how does that work?
Yolanda 00:30:51 It's never the animal. It's always the owner. Yes. So there are certain breeds that people say, well, they are, you know, dangerous. But I could tell you, I've met many of those dogs that are considered dangerous. And they were babies. They were just melt in your lap, lovable, kind. So it really is dependent on what they've been through, how they've been raised. So yeah.
Nicole 00:31:23 What's the status of that? Are there breeds currently in British Columbia that are banned? Is that is that the case or not in BC?
Yolanda 00:31:30 I don't think so, but don't quote me on that.
Greg 00:31:33 What are some of the common myths or misconceptions you hear about legacy giving.
Yolanda 00:31:39 That oh, I'm not rich. I can't leave you a legacy. I think it's the word legacy. A legacy is a gift and will or a gift from your estate. And it's how do you want to be remembered? What was important to you in your lifetime? What causes spark that joy in you? Or you really wanted to assist and make a difference in the world by supporting that organization? That's in my definition, what a legacy is. And you don't have to be, you know, a billionaire to leave a gift in will or an estate gift. Anybody could leave a legacy. And there is an old saying, you can't make a dollar out of $0.99. So many people coming together, giving what they can change the world. They can make a huge, huge difference. Another. Another thing we hear often is, oh, I have to leave my estate. To my kids, to my family.
Yolanda 00:32:45 I can't afford to give you anything. Right. Then on the flip side, you talk to other people and they say, well, we're making your charity our third charity child. Right. So they have two kids, but the third child will be the charity. so it's just how you frame things and how you look at things. but again, many hands make light work. Many people supporting a cause can do great things.
Nicole 00:33:15 If someone's thinking of leaving something to the BCS PCA, how do they get started?
Yolanda 00:33:20 Think about what's important to you if you want to make a gift to the BCS PCA. Are you wanting to support whatever that greatest need will be in the future, whether it's a, god forbid, another Covid or whether it's, you know, a market crash or people not being able to find housing with their pets. What is important to you? And then reach out to us. Reach out to us by email, by phone, and let's have that conversation, and we'll help you get some draft wording to take to your will.
Yolanda 00:33:53 Drafter, so we can discuss whether or not we can use that type of gift in the future. And there's a great story that I have to share about nine years ago, maybe even ten. We had a family come in to the BCS, PCA, and I still remember it was my old boss and, she's young, but my previous boss, maybe I should say. And I met with this family and their parents had passed and they were fine. They were comfortable, but they really wanted to address an issue that they saw out in the world, and that was people with animals who were in domestic abuse situations, and they couldn't leave because they wouldn't leave their animal, and they can't take their animal to the shelter. Back then, at that time, we had to turn down the gift. We were not in a place set up to take on that project. We didn't have the staffing, we didn't have the expertise. We didn't have the infrastructure. We didn't have it set up. Fast forward to 2020.
Yolanda 00:35:07 This family made that transformational gift and got this program started. So that's why it's important to come and talk to us because we may not be able to use it now. We may be able to use it in the future. But there needs to be some flexibility because you never know when the need is going to arise. Right.
Greg 00:35:27 And we've been basically talking about testamentary gifts or in wills. But what about in life? Like volunteering or just seeing what programs they could assist you with?
Yolanda 00:35:38 We love our volunteers. We're actually building our volunteer program as we speak. And our foster program, we have about almost 5000 volunteers. I mean, our volunteers are. Our feet are in the ground. We couldn't do what we do without our supporters or without our volunteers. They walk the dogs, they come to the kennels, they play with the cats. They take them out of the kennels, they do laundry. They do 1,000,001 things for the BCS, PCA. And again, the foster network is huge because an animal does some do well in the kennel setting, but others don't.
Yolanda 00:36:20 And they need a family, a home environment. And there are fosters out there that will take again, it depends on the animal, whether it's a cat, whether if there's allergies, cat, dog, the type of animal, its challenges, if it has any challenges or does it just need a home. So we like to match the fosters with the animal as well. So we're really blessed. We really depend on our volunteers for sure. So we are building up that program.
Nicole 00:36:52 So if people are interested in volunteering or joining the foster program, how would they get started?
Yolanda 00:36:57 Go on to our website and look for I want to volunteer and if you can't find that, just call me.
Nicole 00:37:05 Is there anything else you'd like our listeners to know about the BC SPCA?
Yolanda 00:37:10 I'd like to thank our supporters because they are so loving and kind, and we really are a family of animal lovers, and I really, really wanted to thank them for their support. I wanted to thank the professional advisors, from lawyers to notaries to the accountants to the financial advisors.
Yolanda 00:37:31 Because it's together that we can make a difference in the world. But individuals. Need to know that they can go to these people and ask for their advice, because they're a wealth of knowledge. So don't be afraid to pick up the phone and reach out. And yes, we would love to again always be the safety net for the most vulnerable of animals. We want to address the root causes, and we want to see animals and people thriving across British Columbia together.
Greg 00:38:03 So how can people learn more or get in touch with you about your team? Request more information.
Yolanda 00:38:09 Well, you can email us at Forever Guardians. That's plural, Forever Guardians@SPCA.bc.ca, or you can call at 604 829 9189.
Nicole 00:38:30 Wonderful. Thank you so much, Yolanda, for spending time with us.
Yolanda 00:38:33 Thank you so much for having me, I appreciate it.
Nicole 00:38:36 This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be considered individual, legal, financial, or tax advice. Make sure to consult the advisor of your choice to advise you on your own circumstances.
Nicole 00:38:51 Thank you for joining us for this episode of Your Estate Matters.
Nicole 00:38:54 If you like this podcast, make sure to follow it on your podcast platform of choice.
Greg 00:38:58 Whether you are planning your own estate or your acting as executor for somebody else's heritage, trust can help partner with Heritage Trust to protect your family, your assets, and your legacy.
Nicole 00:39:09 If you'd like more information about Heritage Trust, please visit our website at Heritage Trust Company.
Greg 00:39:22 This podcast is produced by Podfather Creative.