After discovering the healing power of animals while fighting cancer, Vicki Amon-Higa now shares that experience with children, seniors.
When Vicki Amon-Higa was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2004, she turned to the animals she raised at home for comfort – horses, goats and rabbits, just to name a few.
“For me, the animals were always there,” said Vicki. “The animals put me on solid ground. They just want to give love.”
Fighting the disease, Vicki endured a double mastectomy and chemotherapy and received strong support from friends at Intuit, where she led process excellence teams. In the end, she beat her cancer. But it changed her. Vicki had a new outlook on life.
“I think I let small stuff get in my way,” said Vicki. “I was trying to prove things. The cancer got me to realize that all the small stuff doesn’t really matter. You only have one life. You have to figure out what’s important to you.” And to Vicki, that was children and animals.
Fast forward to 2009, when Vicki and her family launched Animal Assisted Happiness, a place where children with special needs can find happiness by getting up close and personal with animals. Vicki invited children into her Los Altos, Calif., home, and allowed them to bond with the same animals that had helped her heal.
“We’ve had many kids come over, and they won’t communicate with me,” said Vicki. “But they will be intent on the animal, and start talking to them, and doing things with them. And through that, they start engaging with me.”
AAH soon outgrew Vicki’s home. So two years ago they moved the animals to a farm in rural Gilroy, about 50 miles south of the bustling Silicon Valley. AAH now has 55 animals and works closely with a dozen Bay Area schools for children with special needs.
Sometimes schools take field trips to the farm, but most often AAH shuttles the animals to schools, usually three to four days a week. And other organizations are seeking out AAH, as well. Vicki’s rolling menagerie now visits senior centers, and is scheduled to travel later this month to Moffett Field, a former naval air station, to host an event for children whose parents are deployed in the military.
Vicki and her husband, Peter, run AAH, in addition to working fulltime jobs. Until last fall, the couple funded the efforts out of their own pockets – they’ve invested more than $35,000. It’s been a stretch, but the family has made it work.
“We have a little bit of means,” said Vicki. “And we’re not taking anything away from the family, financially, in order to do this, but we’re giving back tons.”
While AAH is going strong, it faces challenges and needs help. For starters, the farm in Gilroy is too far from the schools it serves. AAH is close to securing land for a new farm in Sunnyvale, but it’ll need money to design and build it. Plus, AAH needs volunteers: people to care for the animals, clean the barn, assist school visits and help with fundraising and development. To encourage youth involvement, AAH even has an advisory board that includes middle school and high school students.
While AAH was the result of the most frightening time in Vicki’s life, it has turned out to be one of the most rewarding. And she has never looked back.
“It only takes one person to make a difference in someone’s life,” said Vicki. “Seeing these kids interact with animals – the smiles melt your heart. It helps put your life back into perspective.”
To volunteer, donate, or simply learn more about AAH, please visit www.animalassistedhappiness.org.
Photos: Top: Vicki Amon-Higa, co-founder of Animal Assisted Happiness, surveys the barn with a friendly alpaca at her Gilroy, Calif., farm. Bottom: Vicki’s daughter, Maya Higa, introduces an AAH rabbit to a visitor from a seniors center.
