How can people do this? No, I’m not criticizing. I’m asking with a level of honest wonder and gratitude.

This is not the first story about people who make time, spend their money, raise cash all in the idea of helping senior dogs in their final days. A few of these stories have wound up on these pages, and there seems to be more organizations of every size popping up around the country to house, care and feed these senior pups.

I ask that question because these people like Kimberly Cooonis in Idaho are to be admired for their dedication and compassion. What they do isn’t cheap, and for me personally there’s a line with death. I don’t know if I could handle dealing with it every day, every week, as last days turn into farewells. Emotionally, it would rip me to shreds.

Thankfully, there are much stronger people like Kimberly and her family. They do it all out of love for dogs that, very likely, came from tough years and faced the prospect of final days on a cold floor facing a needle, or a garbage dump somewhere scrounging to survive. AT her home, they have food, water, grass, smiles, and people to love them.

I don’t know how they do it, but thank God they do. We all deserve a level of dignity in our older years, and while their time is short, they go into the unknown having been loved in those final days.

God bless you, Kimberly.