About The Zend: Final Farm & Sanctuary
How We Got Here...
Hello! I'm Alli. We're so happy you're here with us! Here's the story of how The Zend became the most magical life we could've imagined.
Justin and I met back in 2003 in San Marcos, TX in college. We were engaged in a year, married 6 months later on a beach in Mexico, and celebrated 19 years of marriage in March. 🤯
As youngsters, we chose to not have children and travel the world instead. We've been fortunate enough to experience some of the coolest things in life like paragliding in Switzerland twice, sailing in Barcelona, sky diving over Lake Tahoe and the beaches of Mexico. We became certified free divers on the island of Utila, we've swam with whale sharks in LaPaz and wild dolphins off the coast of Hawaii, drank black market wine in Morocco and lazed away on the beaches of Bali. When we weren't off seeing the world we lived in a house full of love with our dogs, cats, chickens, and bunnies.
I bartended my way through college earning a degree in psychology, but for the last 10 years, I was Co-owner and CEO of The Cryo Spa. We were one of the first whole body cryotherapy businesses in the country to open back in 2013. It was amazing! I loved being in the holistic wellness space, but due to the long term effects of Covid, on our small business, we had to make the difficult decision to close our doors last fall.
Justin has been a video engineer and EIC for the last 17 years working for FOX Sports Southwest before becoming Bally Sports which it still is today. Covid drastically affected both of our jobs so we decided to start a logistics company last fall. Life Tree Logistics is still getting off the ground and we hope it will allow us to be home at the sanctuary, taking care of everyone, while we run the business from home.
So, that's us. As huge lovers of the world we have both always been activists even though we didn't really know it. I was a vegetarian for years and he was always trying to save the planet by making more eco-friendly choices in our day to day life. Then, one summer day in 2017 we watched the documentaries What the Health on Netflix and Earthlings on YouTube. Those 3 hours completely changed our lives forever. Our eyes were open and hearts were devastated by what humans have done to animals, our planet, and our collective health. We chose from that moment on to never again be the reason an animal suffered. We would never again contribute to the massive depletion of our oceans and sea life. We would eat in ways that supported our health. We would go vegan. 💚
Adopting a vegan lifestyle has been the best decision we've ever made. We were about 3 months in when we asked ourselves what more could we do? Start a farm animal sanctuary, of course! We realize that isn't the natural next step, but we felt it in our hearts and had the burn in our bellies to create a space for farmed animals to live their lives in peace and be provided love and compassionate care for the remainder of their lives. We've been vegan for 7 years now and it's still our favorite choice.
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That night, The Zend was born. Once the decision had been made, I got to work setting up the 501(c)3 that would allow us to operate as a registered nonprofit. We were granted status that next summer and the ball was officially rolling.
After Covid held everything up for a year and a half, it was now 2021, and we were packed up and ready to find the property that would become The Zend. In the crazy process of selling our home, my mom, Ann, decided she would sell her home and move with us wherever it was we were going. My father died almost 13 years ago so she was in her big house, all alone, and it just made sense for her to be with us. We found our new home in Justin, TX where ironically, my mom had grown up and had some pretty deep roots set in place from her family years before. Mama has become our nursery supervisor. When we have a new baby in the house she's right there to hold, sing to, and snuggle whoever it is that needs extra love and care.
We've now been here for almost 3 years. We've rescued over a hundred animals in need by either providing a forever home here with us or by helping re-home those we couldn't take in permanently. We currently care for 75+ residents across 12 different species. The Zend is Dallas-Fort Worth's local farm animal sanctuary and we'd love to have you out for a private tour to cuddle the cows, brush the donkeys, and kiss a few pigs. You can schedule your private tour through the Private Tour tab.
As far as daily operations go, it's me and Justin all day every day. Animal care, poop scooping, vet visits, fence building, fundraising, social media, feed store runs, public events, private tours... you name it, we're doing it. We have grown our volunteer team to include several fellow animal lovers who contribute their time and love to help us with caring for the residents. We're so thankful to them and hope to continue building our team as we grow as an organization. 🫶🫶🫶
Everyday we are in awe of the life we've created and how lucky we are to share our lives with incredible beings who deserve the best life we can give them. It's insanely hard work and our hearts are broken on a regular basis, but the love we share and the reward of all the hard work make it worth it. As educators and advocates for farmed animals worldwide, we've set the stage to make as much change as we possibly can. We have big goals in store and can't wait to watch them all unfold. Thank you all so much for being here with us as we continue to love and rescue those who need it most. We couldn't do what we do without the support of donors, followers, friends, and family. We love you all so much! Thank you for allowing us to do this work and make the world a better place, one life at a time.
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How can you help?
The best ways to support The Zend is by becoming a Monthly Sponsor of the animals. Even a one time donation helps us continue our work with confidence that what we're doing is important and we have others who believe in the necessity of compassion and rescue. There are numerous links on our social media pages and this website to set up a one-time or monthly donation. Every single penny goes directly to the cost of caring for our residents. You can also like, share, and interact with our posts on our facebook, instagram, and tik tok accounts. Find us @thezendtx on all platforms. If you'd like to join our volunteer team and help make the world a kinder, more compassionate place to live, one animal at a time, simply click below to answer a few questions. The animals and the humans look forward to meeting you.
See you at The Zend!