That means every weekend and many nights and lunch hours, Mary is busy finding homes for Goldens who’ve lost theirs for one reason or another. “The hardest part is talking to a family that loves them and doesn’t want to give them up but is in a situation that they have to give them up. We’ve had a couple that have come to us because of fathers and mothers being deployed to Iraq.”

Mary fosters Goldens and finds other people to do the same. Currently, she has about 15 foster families who help her. She matches the foster dogs with loving owners. “She can just read the dog’s mind and figure out where it might be happy,” says Bob Jorgenson, a foster dad for GRRR. About 300 dogs come through GRRR every year. Mary makes it a point to be at every one of the adoptions.

Often, Mary rescues a dog from a bad situation, but she says it’s worth the heartbreak when she sees the dog get the medical attention and love it needs. “It’s the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done,” Mary says. “They give you so much back, and they don’t ask anything of you.”