WILLIAMSBURG 一A six-month-old Presa Canario mix took off from Williamsburg early Saturday on a flight to Florida, where she will continue her journey toward a new home.
Lady Genevieve was flown from Waltrip Williamsburg Executive Airport by Dog Rescue Flights as part of the Gloucester-Mathews Humane Society’s Highway to Home program, which transfers animals to rescue organizations and other facilities to give them a better chance of being adopted.
Lady Genevieve needed a placement that could accommodate her breed. Presa Canario are bred as guard dogs and typically form strong bonds with one person. The humane society found a placement for her at Camp Chaos Big Paw Rescue, a volunteer-run nonprofit in Florida that specializes in helping large-breed dogs.
Highway to Home Coordinator Marie Jondreau told WYDaily that Lady Genevieve’s previous owners fell on hard times and surrendered her, hoping she would find another family that could take care of her.
Dog Rescue Flights, a nonprofit program that uses volunteer pilots to fly rescue animals to shelters, sanctuaries and adoptive homes, agreed to take Lady Genevieve to the next stop in her journey. The pilot was Dante Antonelli, chief pilot for Dog Rescue Flights, whose passion comes from the two Great Danes his family rescued. Antonelli met the company’s founder, Rick Campana, after retiring from the military
Campana said the mission is personal for him and for the pilots who volunteer with the program.
“I feel like God sent these dogs down without wings because they’re earth angels and he didn’t want us to know that,” Campana said. “Part of my mission and passion is to save as many of these beautiful dogs as possible.”
Donations help cover fuel and food for the pilots, while the aircraft and pilots’ time are volunteered. The program has completed 300 rescue flights, helped rescue 295 dogs and cats and logged 2,600 volunteer flight hours, according to Dog Rescue Flights.
A volunteer from Camp Chaos met Antonelli at the Charleston Executive Airport in South Carolina. From there she drove Lady Genevieve to Camp Chaos in Florida, where she will meet a family who is interested in adopting her.
