North Dakota
Fans worldwide give over $372K to save North Dakota pet rescue property — and the money keeps coming
ST. JOHN, N.D. — Keith Benning still can’t really believe it.
When he posted a video plea Dec. 23 to ask supporters of his Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue to donate $300,000 so the organization could buy the rescue’s building and land, he could barely say the number out loud.
Surely, that was an impossible request, he thought. Obviously, this was more than he could hope to raise — especially by the end of January. But it was the bare minimum needed to buy the property before the landlords sold it to someone else.
Without the building, Benning said in the video while cuddling a litter of tiny puppies, the nonprofit would have to close.
But he underestimated the following of this “accidental rescue,” which started 11 years ago when Benning took home two skinny, sickly strays. Today, the Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue has completed over 8,000 rescues, placed pets in 35 U.S. states plus two Canadian provinces and amassed a worldwide social media following of over 600,000.
By New Year’s Eve, over $200,000 in donations had flowed in. By the morning of Jan. 1, the rescue met its $300,000 goal.
Still, the donations kept coming — to the tune of over $372,000 by Friday, Jan. 3.
“I’m shocked, amazed, awed and very appreciative of it,” Benning told The Forum. “The generosity of people in such a small amount of time has been amazing. I’m still nervous because the deal is not done yet, but it puts us in a better place because every dollar we go over is less we have to take out of savings.”
Contributed / Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue
Benning figures a combination of donations and the rescue’s savings will be needed to buy the rural Rolla, North Dakota, property, which will cost substantially more than $300,000.
Donors can now opt to earmark their gifts for badly needed upgrades and repairs inside the 2,400-square-foot building that houses its operations. “We use a lot of duct tape and zip ties,” he said. “This can go toward building more permanent things.”
Poverty + vet shortage = overpopulation
Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue has come a long way since 2014, when law enforcement officers found two malnourished, mange-riddled dogs in the freezing cold.
Benning, then a Rolette County deputy, volunteered to take them home.
Word quickly spread about the new deputy’s soft spot for homeless animals. His one-bedroom house became a de facto sanctuary for sick, abandoned and unwanted animals. “It kind of exploded,” he said.
Benning learned as he went along. “I really didn’t know anything about rescue,” he said.
But he saw strays were rampant in the remote area. The closest rescue was 118 miles away. The only animal control was a dog catcher, who euthanized all stray animals caught because there were so many of them.
Contributed / Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue
The area’s isolation, coupled with widespread poverty fueled by a lack of job opportunities and public transportation, led to animal overpopulation. The locals actually already rescued many animals, he said, because so many of them took in these strays as pets. But local vets were scarce and people couldn’t afford veterinary services, so many animals weren’t spayed or neutered.
“Anytime you get a combination of lack of affordable vet care and a situation of higher jobless rate, you’re going to have animal overpopulation,” he said.
Other independent rescuers before him had tried to help but typically burned out within a year. Benning recalls a dispatcher pulling him aside to say, “Hey, you’re a good guy and what you’re trying to do is a good thing. I have lived here for 40 years, and I have seen so many people try, then burn out. Don’t put yourself through it; just accept it for what it is.”
Benning responded by betting the dispatcher a 12-pack of beer that he would build an animal shelter. “I’m not buying him that beer,” Benning says today.
Adds pet food bank, neuter clinics
By 2015, Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue became an official nonprofit. A year later, Benning was able to move the operation into a 40-by-60 building on more than 200 acres of land northwest of Rolla.
After a major cleanup, it was furnished with donations, cast-off equipment and garage sale finds. A 1990 Dodge Ram van with holes in the floor transported animals to and fro.
Contributed / Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue
There was no lease. The out-of-state landlord just wanted someone to live there and keep an eye on the property. But Benning knew the location could be sold at any time.
“Luckily, the owners have been really cool with us,” he said. “But I’ve lived in fear for years that we were going to get a call that said, ‘Ok, we’re going to need you to go.’”
All the while, Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue grew,
adding a network of 150 volunteers,
offering advanced first-aid to animals and rescuing cats and horses as well as dogs. They also bring a Kansas veterinarian to the area four times a year to conduct free spay-and-neuter clinics and partner with the online pet-product company Chewy and the Humane Society to offer a pet food bank when owners need temporary help.
As a contingency plan, the rescue invested in a 30-acre plot of land and started drawing up plans for a new facility. But the process took a long time. They had no experience in proper shelter design until Benning could visit shelter-medicine facilities in Wisconsin and Berkeley, California. It was hard to find contractors to work in the remote area. And numerous efforts to drill well water on the new property failed to find water that wasn’t contaminated.
That means they own a shell of a building on the site, which has no electricity, water or HVAC.
So when the call finally came in December to tell them the rescue’s facility would be sold, Benning knew they were in no position to relocate.
But there was light on the horizon. As soon as Benning’s first video dropped, Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue’s supporters rallied. A special Facebook group, called We Love Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue, was instrumental in spreading the word and generating donations. “They’ve just been working like crazy, and it’s really amazing the kindness and generosity of people,” he said.
Donors stepped up with matching funds. People from as far away as the United Kingdom and Italy watched the video. “The weird thing is the following overseas. We have people that watch the videos in 52 different countries,” he said.
Benning believes Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue fans are attracted to the transparency of the operation. “We don’t just show the good stuff but the bad stuff too. We show a lot of behind-the-scenes and how much work it is,” he said. “I think people appreciate that: being allowed to be let in and see how things work.”
He admits it’s been a tough road and he’s felt burned out many times. “I have wanted to give up, to quit, to go back to having hobbies and free time without the looming dread that I’m failing the animals because I’m only working 14 hours instead of 16 hours.”
But something always arises — a puppy battling mange or an owner who was able to save their dog — to keep him moving forward.
And so it looks like he won’t be buying anyone that 12-pack anytime soon. “That slowly transformed into a saying I came up with: ‘You can’t fail if you don’t quit,’” he said. “So don’t quit.”
Give to Turtle Mountain Animal Rescue at
https://shorturl.at/ZIcC2.
Vernon Dale Krause, 93, of Fargo, ND, formerly of Wahpeton, ND, passed away peacefully on Friday, July 10, 2026, at Heather’s House in Fargo, ND, under the care of HIA Hospice.
A Celebration of life will be held on Monday, July 20, 2026, at Vertin-Munson Funeral Home, Wahpeton. Visitation will be from 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m., followed by a service at 10:00 a.m., with burial immediately following at Fairview Cemetery in Wahpeton.
Vern was born on February 16, 1933, in rural Wyndmere, ND, one of eleven children born to Theodore and Ella (Rohl) Krause. He grew up in Wyndmere and attended Wyndmere Public School, where he left his studies behind to volunteer for the United States Army. Vern proudly served from 1953 to 1956 before transferring to the Army Reserves. He was awarded the National Defense Service Medal and, throughout his life, carried great pride in his years of military service.
He married Jean (Carey) Krause, and together they built a life and raised their family in Wahpeton, where he would spend most of his years. They were blessed with two children. In his later years, after developing severe dementia, Vernon moved to Fargo so he could receive the care he needed and be closer to family.
For 41 years, he worked for the City of Wahpeton Water & Sewer Department, where he was highly regarded and known for knowing every inch of the city like the back of his hand. Even after retirement, he continued to volunteer his time and expertise whenever the City needed him. Among the accomplishments he was most proud of were his early years helping develop the Chahinkapa Zoo.
Above all, he cherished his family. He loved anything to do with his grandchildren — from crafting chairs out of tree trunks and splitting wood, to watching their sporting events and helping them grow into who they were meant to be. His great-grandchildren were a true blessing to him — even if their energy made him a little nervous, he always looked forward to their visits. His nieces and nephews brought him great joy as well especially in his later years and he loved being an uncle to them. When his brother Leyone “Spud” moved to town, Vern couldn’t wait to deliver him the daily newspaper and share a chat. He loved tinkering in the garage, always engineering new ways to drain water, and he was the biggest Green Bay Packers fan around — proud to call himself a team shareholder. After moving to Fargo, Vernon was grateful for the time he was able to spend with his sister, Carole Jean, who had always been his protector.
Vernon will be remembered for his steady hands, his quiet devotion to family and community, and the example he set of showing up — for his country, for his city, and most of all, for the people he loved. He will be deeply missed.
Vern is survived by his son, Mark Krause, Fargo; two sisters-in-law, Priscilla Krause and Donna Krause; two brothers-in-law, Ron Carey and Don Carey; eight grandchildren, Carey, Danielle, Margo, Jodi, Nikki, Kevin, Brad and Tracee; 13 great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by his parents; his wife, Jean Krause; his daughter, Deb Christopher; five brothers, Alfred, Donald, Willard, Kenneth and Leyone Krause; five sisters, Dorothy Peterson, Loretta Dable, LaVelle Odegard, Lucille Kruchek and Carole Jean Johnson-Bohlken; sisters-in-law, Viola Krause, Marleen Krause, Amy Carey and Linda Carey; brothers-in-law, Elroy Odegard, Robert Johnson, Willis Bohlken, Pete Peterson, Johnny Kruchek and Frank Dable; granddaughter, Robyn Krause; and grandson, Jack Bollman.
GRAFTON, N.D. — Two North Dakota men are speaking out about a 38-year-long alleged mistake that altered their entire lives.
The men and their families are suing Unity Medical Center in Grafton, saying the hospital is responsible for
switching them at birth in 1988
. The hospital denies the allegations.
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There are moments that remind us exactly who we are as a community, and the recent fire at Antelope Creek Bar and Grill in Mooreton was one of them. Many already know the awful loss that unfolded. It was a brutally hot day, the kind where the sun feels heavy and the air is so thick, and social media quickly filled with photos, videos, and comments documenting the devastation. Heartbreaking. Gut‑wrenching. A place that held memories for so many suddenly only visions smoke and charred remains.
But even in the middle of all that loss, something else rose up, something that always seems to show itself around here when life gets hard. Kindness. Pure, steady kindness.
The volunteer firefighters were the first reminder. They never cease to amaze me. They drop everything … work, family, whatever they were in the middle of and suit up in layers of gear despite the heat and humidity. They’re regular people with regular jobs, yet they show up like it’s the most natural thing in the world. No spotlight. No applause. Just service. Just heart.
Then came the folks who arrived with water, Gatorade, and anything they could think of to help ease the burden of those battling the blaze. Nobody organized it. Nobody asked. They simply showed up because that’s what people do here. That alone would have been enough to warm my heart.
But it didn’t stop there.
As the day went on, I saw posts from other regional businesses, specifically other bar and grills, reaching out with messages of support. These are places that could easily be seen as competition, yet there they were, offering help, extending care, and standing shoulder to shoulder with the owners who had just watched their livelihood disappear. “We are here. How can we help?” they wrote. No rivalry. No hesitation. Just neighbors being neighbors.
If you ever need a reminder of what makes this valley special, it’s moments like that. People who could have stayed quiet choosing instead to lift someone else up. Businesses that could have focused on themselves choosing instead to stand with another in their darkest moment. It’s the best of us. The part of small town life that doesn’t make headlines but makes all the difference.
We talk a lot about community, but this, this right here is what it looks like. It looks like firefighters sweating through their gear on a 90‑degree day. It looks like strangers handing out cold drinks. It looks like business owners reaching across the aisle to say, “You’re not alone.” It looks like compassion showing up before anyone has time to think twice.
Loss has a way of revealing character. And what I saw in the wake of that fire was a valley full of people who still believe in showing up, still believe in helping, still believe in each other. In a world that can feel divided and loud, this quiet, steady goodness is worth noticing. Worth celebrating. Worth holding onto.
Because when the smoke clears and the debris settles, what remains is the strength of a community that refuses to let anyone face hardship alone. And that, more than anything, is the story worth telling.
That is the true Best of the Valley. The people.
Bobbi Steffens resides in the Southern Valley and discovered her passion for writing through an unexpected path.
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