The excited voices of children drifted through the shady live oak trees on a sunny Sunday afternoon. Nearby, Nancy Paris stepped back from the goat pen as the little ones breezed past.
“Kids love it here … everyone does,” she said, nodding. “I sure do. Every animal here has a story.”
Paris discovered the Farm at Oatland North after relocating to St. Simons Island. There, she joined the ranks of volunteers working tirelessly to care for the animals who call the nonprofit home.
That currently includes a menagerie of 10 horses, three donkeys, four goats, three pigs and 11 cats. Paris does much of the regular work — feeding and cleaning for instance — but she also uses a pretty special skill all her own.
“I do reiki, so I do that for the animals. Scarlett the pig wasn’t feeling well, and I came out and did that for her,” she said.
Reiki is a Japanese energy practice believed to promote healing. And Paris feels like it’s made a difference.
“She’s feeling better. She’s moving around now,” Paris said smiling.
The animals can use all the good vibes they can get. The vast majority of the residents have heartbreaking stories. And Diana Scarborough, the executive director, knows each one by heart.
“This one was found just wandering down the street in Camden County. He was super skinny,” Scarborough said, stroking the horse’s nose. “This one is blind.”
While supporting the animals in the way they deserve is no easy task, it’s a mission that Scarborough has been committed to for years. But it didn’t begin with her — it started with Barbara Murrah.
She established the 501c3 in 2012 on land that her grandfather purchased in the 1940s. Originally, the site was Oatland Plantation. Scarborough met Murrah when the two were working as nurses at the hospital and the two women became fast friends.
“This place has been a riding stable. It was once Cannon’s Point riding stable,” she said. “But they eventually transitioned this to an animal rescue center.”
Murrah and her family started the rescue with her first horse, Lightning. Over the years, they continued to expand, welcoming cows, goats and cats. Some came from abusive situations or simply from families unable to continue to care for them.
“She operated as kind of a family farm for about 20 years. It just grew and grew,” Scarborough said.
Sadly, Murrah passed away after a brief battle with cancer in 2013, but Scarborough and an army of volunteers are dedicated to carrying on her work. It’s been a labor of love ever since.
“We have tried to keep the farm going and it was a little bit of a struggle at first, but we think we’ve been really successful continuing the mission,” she said. “We started out with a handful of volunteers, and now we have 25. We just try to take good care of the animals and offer the service to the community, allowing them to come out and meet them.”
The Farm is open to the public from 2 to 4 p.m. on Sundays and by appointment. It’s free to guests. But aside from visiting the animals, there are other ways the community can help.
“Of course, it’s always about the money because we can’t function without proper funds to buy food, hay, and of course, the vet bills. I mean, we spend about $300 a month in the summer just on fly and insect control,” she said.
“But we can always use cat food. We don’t take horse food because they all have special (dietary) needs. We can always use gift cards to places like Tractor Supply, Lowes or Home Depot. We have to buy lumber and tools … so those are always helpful,” she said.
While keeping the nonprofit going is always challenging, Scarborough wouldn’t have it any other way. She relishes being able to continue Murrah’s mission. And she feels that connecting with the animals is mutually beneficial.
“For me, I always grew up around horses and animals but there’s a limit to what you can take care of as a working adult. A lot of people haven’t been around them. It’s great to be around them and take care of them. It’s a passion of mine and of the other volunteers. Some of them had never been around animals until they came here,” she said. “It’s so peaceful and so rewarding.”