Alumnae Feature - Taylor (Favorite) Weidinger ‘15

Published: August 31, 2023

Taylor (Favorite) Weidinger ’15 describes herself as an “animal fanatic.”

“When I was in high school, I would volunteer to walk dogs twice a week at the Humane Society, and I always fostered puppies and kittens,” she shares. Her love of animals led her to the University of Findlay, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in animal science.

But it was the internship she served at Cleveland Armory’s Black Beauty Ranch in Texas that would lead her to her passion, and her future career as owner and president of her own nonprofit farm animal sanctuary: Favorite Oasis located in Risingsun, Ohio.

“I knew when I got back to Ohio that this was my ultimate goal – to start an animal sanctuary,” she recalls. “There was nothing like it in northwest Ohio, and I saw a definite need.”

After three years of meeting with attorneys to gain tax-exempt status, and other research and education, Favorite Oasis became a reality. Today, the sanctuary cares for horses, goats, and pigs who have come to Taylor either through owner surrender or because of neglect or abuse. “It can be hard to see the unfortunate bad side of humans who treat animals this way, but I’ve also learned that we can be the good to counteract that behavior,” she reflects.

Not only does Favorite Oasis provide lifelong care for these animals, but the organization also partners with assisted living facilities to provide animal therapy programs for adults and children with developmental disabilities. In fact, these partnerships often lead to some of Taylor’s favorite
experiences. “They can’t have animals in those facilities, so we’re able to connect with the residents and their stories by visiting with ours,” she says. In the future, Taylor hopes to be able to build an animal therapy center at the sanctuary itself to increase opportunities for animal therapy interactions.

Taylor’s days are long, but it’s a labor of love. Although she and her husband both continue to work full time jobs outside the sanctuary – Taylor works in the accounting department at Shumaker, a law firm in Toledo – they are awake very early every day for animal feedings and cleaning. They also do daily visual health checks on all of the animals, and take time to provide enrichment activities for them. And if that doesn’t sound like enough to keep her busy – Taylor will graduate from the University of Toledo later this year with her master’s of public administration degree.

Favorite Oasis is also a family affair. Taylor’s parents – mom Sheryl (Deindoerfer) Favorite ’80 is also an NDA alumna – helped her to create the sanctuary and are involved as volunteers. “I feel very lucky to have them and their support.”

For more information about Favorite Oasis, visit https://favoriteoasis.org/, or learn more on Facebook at
https://www.facebook.com/favorite.oasis.