story by Mona de Crinis
photographs by Ryan Siphers
Laurelee Blanchard sips coffee as dawn spills across eight lush acres nestled in the embrace of Haik’s wild jungles. Looking through the window of her cheery yellow cottage, she sees ducks and geese splashing happily in a pond as guinea pigs by the dozen emerge from cozy shelters curious about the new day.
A tribe of animals — goats, sheep, deer, pigs and a donkey named Lehua — meanders from barn to pasture for some early morning grazing. In a nearby aviary, turkeys and chickens peck and scratch at the straw-covered floor in anticipation of breakfast.
Watching this scene unfold day in and day out, there is no doubt in Blanchard’s mind that ditching a lucrative career to launch a sanctuary on Maui for abandoned, abused and orphaned animals was the best decision she ever made.
In her former life as a successful Southern California commercial real estate broker, Blanchard might have opted for a luxurious Newport Beach penthouse. Today, her palace of riches is a little cottage perched on a hill in Haik surrounded by animals she adores. As founder and director of nonprofit Leilani Farm Sanctuary, Blanchard is on a mission to inspire compassion for all living things no matter the sacrifice.
“I no longer measure success by how much money I make, how many deals I broker or how I can out-earn my competitors,” she said. “I now find fulfillment in animal rescue and humane education, work that aligns with my deepest, heartfelt desire — to do all I can to reduce suffering in the world.”
Named for the farm’s first resident donkey, Leilani Farm Sanctuary evolved as an extension of Blanchard’s cat rescue efforts. After witnessing the abuse of “food animals” in “factory farms,” she wanted to provide a safe place for chickens, turkeys, pigs, goats, sheep, cows and other often mistreated animals.
Her first rescued farm animals were a pair of newborn goats whose mother had been shot. “They were the size of cats, and their umbilical cords were still wet.” As she did not yet have a barn or fencing on property, Blanchard kept the kids in the house with her, diapering and bottle-feeding them around the clock. “I felt so much love for these little beings.”
Providing a space where the public can interact intimately with a variety of animals, Blanchard hopes to instill a collective understanding that a goat, cow or chicken is not that different from the dog or cat curled up at home.
“Many people love animals in general, but their circle of compassion generally doesn’t include farm animals, assuming as I once did that the laws in place ensure the ethical treatment of animals raised for food,” she said. “They rarely do.”
Employing a largely volunteer workforce to help care for the property and her flock, Blanchard and her team hope to change hearts and minds through weekly farm tours and educational programs that teach empathy and respect for all life. Introducing youth, particularly those at-risk or with special needs, to rescued animals can have a profound impact on a child’s future, Blanchard said. “Exploring how abused animals have learned to forgive and overcome their pasts, the animals become role models,” she continued. “When we share their stories with children, it helps them relate to and better manage their own pain.”
There’s Charlotte, a pink pig with brown spots rescued after getting caught in a snare, who zips around the sanctuary on her three good legs with attitude to spare. And Dorothy, the “spent” dairy cow with big brown eyes that was saved from slaughter at the eleventh hour.
Other animal ambassadors include an impressive turkey named Matthew who thinks he is a lap dog, and Berney, the wild boar orphaned as a piglet with the soul of a poet. “He’s the gentlest pig on the farm and helps dispel the myth that boars are inherently vicious and mean,” Blanchard said. These are only some of the many stories told during the farm tours as participants discover the idiosyncrasies that define each animal as a unique individual.
Visitors are typically greeted by one or more of the sanctuary’s many cats that live in harmony with rabbits, guinea pigs and other small creatures considered prey. More feline love can be found in the cat lounge where comfortable seating invites languid communing with assorted rescued kitties.
Every evening at sunset, Blanchard sprinkles catnip along the red walkway leading up to her cottage and watches with delight as kitty happy hour ensues. She grows the catnip in raised garden beds along with spinach, basil and parsley and other greens that the animals love to eat. Ornamentals and other food plants — papayas, pineapples, bananas, berries — help round out their daily diet and round down the sanctuary’s bottom line. Each month, Blanchard spends thousands of dollars just on feed.
A more immediate pressing financial quandary is the sanctuary land itself, which Blanchard currently leases. Although she purchased the acreage in 1999 with her life’s savings, circumstances later forced the sale of the property and future uncertainty.
Blanchard is determined to buy back the land, which will require considerable funds in addition to monies raised through tours, fundraisers, private donations, sales of memoir Finding Paradise: Leilani Farm Sanctuary of Maui (available on Amazon and at the sanctuary) and a dedicated Promise Fund.
“By owning the property, we can ensure that sanctuary animals always have a home,” Blanchard confirmed.
Experiencing this home, this sanctuary, is well worth the tax-deductible donation. Red and white barns dot gentle slopes of green pasture that rise and fall in perfect harmony. To the north near the entrance, thickets of towering bamboo stand sentry like a garrison of slender wooden soldiers. A knoll stretches across the western edge revealing a brilliant expanse of Pacific blue. Etched into the red earth, a well-worn path snakes along the ridge to the fields below.
Dubbed Animal Alley, the rutted trail runs directly behind the cottage where Blanchard sips her morning coffee as goats, sheep, deer, pigs and the donkey named Lehua parade outside her window.
Blanchard’s metamorphosis from driven, designer-suited real estate magnate to agrarian kamaina raking muck in rolled-up jeans and rubber boots has all the makings of a made-for-TV-movie — successful professional cashes in and moves to a tropical island to chase her dream. Only this is not fiction. It’s the real-life story of an impassioned activist following her true calling who willingly surrenders all in her quest to advocate compassion for all living creatures … one changed heart, one rescued animal at a time.
TAKE a guided one-hour tour of Leilani Farm Sanctuary. Tours are 12 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays; 10 a.m. Saturdays. Reservations are required. Tax-deductible donations per person are appreciated.
CONSIDER a visit to the sanctuary for at-risk youth programs, school field trips, special needs children and elder activities for a hands-on experience that stimulates social and emotional growth.
DONATE. There are several ways you can help. Sponsor your favorite resident. Be a one-time or monthly donor. All monetary donations are applied to food, shelter and veterinary care.
VOLUNTEER time, love and energy as a weekly rounds person helping with day-to-day care or on special volunteer days to assist with landscaping and property upkeep.
Visit www.leilanifarmsanctuary.org for more information and ways to help.
From donkeys and goats to guinea pigs and cats, a safe space for all life.
