With an audience of squirrels, ducks, birds and opossums in more than a dozen cages behind them, Ted and Velvet Kitzmiller signed a property lease with Anne Arundel County yesterday that guarantees the short-term survival of Noah's Ark, their center that assists wildlife in trouble.
At a ceremony celebrating the center's future, the Kitzmillers sat at a table in their back yard surrounded not only by the animals they're nursing, but by the people helping to save the center. Attending the lease-signing were County Executive Janet S. Owens, County Council Chairwoman Shirley Murphy, and Dennis M. Callahan, the county recreation and parks director.
After learning that the center had lost its home, the three officials worked to find the couple and their center a site at the county-owned Smith Farm in Broadneck.
The county arranged a 35-month rental of a house on the farm for $850 a month, $50 less than the monthly rent the Kitzmillers now pay.
"The house is in great condition," Callahan said.
The 3-acre site is larger than the rental property in Pasadena, providing more space for equipment and animals.
With a 3-month-old opossum in her other hand as she signed the lease, Velvet Kitzmiller said yesterday that the new arrangement is "like a dream, only it's reality."
The Kitzmillers learned May 9 that they had lost the lease to their home at 45 Luke Drive in Pasadena. They were asked to move by July 1. Finding a new home seldom is simple for any family, but it was a particular challenge for the Kitzmiller family, which numbers more than 100 at most times.
The only center in Anne Arundel County that provides wildlife rescue, Noah's Ark has been devoted to helping wild animals that have been orphaned or injured since it opened in 1995. Ted, 39, and his wife, Velvet, 37, nurse the animals back to health, relying solely on volunteers and donations.
Although the Kitzmillers are not veterinarians, they have received rehabilitation training and have attended veterinary technician classes at Anne Arundel Community College. Veterinarians volunteer their services. The center has grown: Initially treating about 100 animals a year, it now treats nearly 2,000 a year.
When the owner of the Kitzmillers' home told them that a relative was going to rent the house after they left, the couple began searching in earnest for a home that would be large enough and affordable.
"We were determined to find a way to continue the program," Velvet Kitzmiller said.
As the deadline neared, the Kitzmillers worried that they would be forced to close the center and euthanize the animals. But after Murphy, a Pasadena Democrat, contacted the county's recreation and parks department, the county offered a site on the property. The county bought Smith Farm from Elizabeth Smith in 1998. Although the 12-acre estate is considered prime for development, Smith insisted that the land be preserved as open space, particularly for equestrian use, in honor of her late husband, Andy, who loved horses.
The Kitzmillers will rent a portion of the farm, leaving the rest of the land free for county use. About eight homes are under lease on the farm, officials said.
Although the new site for Noah's Ark is owned by the county, the county will not fund the center. More than $3,000 has been donated to the center since its problem became public this month.
