THE FUTURE IS NOW

With 64 years of serving the San Diego community, Rancho Coastal Humane Society (RCHS) reached a major milestone with the completion of our campus expansion and makeover. In October 2024, we celebrated with a Ribbon-Cutting and VIP Reception, followed by a Grand Opening Festival, welcoming 1,500 of our closest friends, neighbors and supporters.  

Unleashing PAWSibilites  

This building project was more than a decade in the making— with a few starts and stops along the way.  With the tremendous and ongoing growth of our surrounding community, however, it was clear that the “little yellow house” was no longer enough to meet the growing demand. 

Longtime supporters Pam and Jerry Cesak encouraged RCHS to build a new Medical Center, and the project grew to a modernization of the entire RCHS campus. There were significant challenges: securing permits, preserving wetlands, power, sewer and infrastructure upgrades, buildings to demolish and reconstruct, animal welfare concerns to address and an “open during construction” plan to formulate.  In 2021, once the building project regained momentum, RCHS opened its fundraising campaign called Unleashing PAWSibilities, with an initial goal of raising $14 million.        

“I knew we would find a way to get the project off the ground. RCHS had long outgrown its quaint cottages, and our community needed expanded services and a new medical center to be able to offer affordable veterinary care to our rescue partners. Persistence became our way forward.” Judi Sanzo, President and CEO, RCHS.

Celebrating PAWSibilities 

December 15, 2022 marked a pivotal moment as RCHS finally broke ground. It was a brilliant day for RCHS and the community – the start of a new era in animal welfare. Today, the transformation of our 5-acre campus is complete with the new Charlotte’s Medical Center, Vivian’s Learning Center, Brock’s Community Pet Food Bank, Behavior & Training Office and a refreshed FOCAS Adoption Center.   

The future is now, and we can’t wait to share with you more as we begin to expand our programs and services to meet expectations as a premier animal welfare organization.