Thumbs up, thumbs down

Thumbs up to Granville Homes and Fresno Humane Animal Services for its work to rescue 955 animals that were discovered dying and smothering in the 107-degree heat of a truck trailer parked in Fresno near Belmont and Hughes avenues, west of Highway 99. Among the animals were roosters, exotic birds, rabbits, hamsters, ducks and three little pigs.

The Bee’s Marc Benjamin reported that initially 18 animals died and another 10 died after being rescued.

The priority was cooling off the animals and finding housing for the little critters. A newly opened animal refuge, Granville Refuge Building, has helped save hundreds of lives, according to Brenda Mitchell of the animal services organization.

Thumbs up to the southwest officers of the Fresno Police Department for their “above and beyond” compassion for Robert Snyder, 65, a homeless man from Sacramento. They pooled their money and came up with enough money for a train ticket, according to Sgt. Mike Gebhart. Snider came to Fresno on June 24 with two other men looking for work. He told police he had been promised a job here, but after he arrived he realized his contact only wanted him to help cash a fraudulent check.

When he refused, he was left stranded. With no local criminal history, he asked the police for help getting back to Sacramento to reunite with his grandson. He and his grandson have no cell phones and no way of communicating with each other, police said.

Officer Eric Hull provided Snider a ride to the station and purchased the $23 ticket with the pooled money. Snider told police he was grateful for their help. “He was just excited and said he’d never been on a train before,” Gebhart said.

Thumbs up to Fansler Restaurant Group and patrons of Pismo’s Coastal Grill, Yosemite Ranch and Westwoods BBQ for helping to raise $107,204 to benefit Poverello House clients coping with hunger and homelessness. The “May Matchup” was established by the Fansler group with the commitment to support the Poverello House “Raise the Roof” capital campaign. Restaurant patrons were invited to submit donations online or to fill out a yellow “smiley face” envelope at their tables.

For 31 days, Fansler Restaurant Group agreed to match donations until they raised $100,000. By the end of the month, restaurant diners donated $57,204. The matching Fansler Restaurant Group donation increased the total to $107,204

Thumbs up to Sabrina Ashjian, Fresno County Deputy District Attorney, for being Wildlife Prosecutor of the Year by the California Fish and Game Commission. No, she does not put bears in the big house for pilfering picnic baskets. She was honored for prosecuting suspected human poachers and polluters. The commission noted that during many investigations of the most egregious poaching cases, Ashjian remained available and supportive with wildlife officers. She even took the initiative to ride along on patrol with wildlife officers to better understand the challenging investigations and unique nature of a wildlife officer’s work.

Thumbs up to Kelley Landano for being named Fresno County Librarian. She has been serving as interim librarian since Feb. 27. She earned her bachelor’s degree from California State University, Fresno, and a master’s degree in library science and information from the University of Alberta in Canada. During her career here, she has served as a children’s librarian, teen services coordinator and branch supervisor. If it’s true that knowlege is power, it’s smart to make friends with Landano as soon as possible.

Thumbs up to Wells Fargo for providing a $25,000 grant to Reading and Beyond. The funds will be used to support the Family Success Zone program. The program focuses on changing the current financial situation among families in high-poverty neighborhoods within the 93701 zip code by providing entire families with seamless programming.

This story was originally published June 30, 2017 at 4:01 PM with the headline "Thumbs up, thumbs down."