Summer months see impacts of EPICS projects in community partners
Goats Louie and Louise regularly engage in play at Woodhaven Rescue, Inc. But after a delivery from one of the EPICS Pets in Action with Shelters (PAWS), the goat pair have a new dimension to their everyday enrichment: a goat-sized teeter-totter.
“They really enjoy having a more interactive structure,” said Susan Whaley, founder and director of Woodhaven Rescue. “Several times a day you will find them rocking on the teeter-totter and playing king-or-queen of the mountain. Not sure who enjoys it more: the goats, or the volunteers as they watch the goats play.”
Woodhaven Rescue Farm is a nonprofit animal rescue located in Lafayette, Indiana, offering rehabilitative care and shelter for injured, orphaned and elderly animals. The farm is open for public interaction once annually and has a regular body of volunteers. Woodhaven’s goal is to shelter as many animals as possible — which another ongoing EPICS project is addressing — and to do what is best for each animal, whether their stay is temporary or permanent at Woodhaven.
EPICS has been a partner of Woodhaven for one year, and Whaley said it’s been a delight to see the students grow in confidence and creativity through teamwork and exposure to the animals the farm cares for.
“To see how hard-working these students are has given me hope for our future,” Whaley said. “What a great enrichment to give our goats, and it’s all thanks to the Purdue EPICS team and program.”
The teeter-totter project, delivered in May 2026, was made with what is best for each animal at Woodhaven in mind. Made by hand of wood planks and tires, the structure is designed to balance, react to weight and counterweight, promote play and keep the goats stimulated. New enrichment is crucial to the well-being of animals in captivity and provides a confidence boost to animals in rehabilitation.
Another EPICS PAWS project delivered an enrichment project as well. But for animals half the size and twice as numerous: cats at the Almost Home Humane Society. A handcrafted wooden box features three levels, dangling toys, a crocheted cat hammock and small entryways. Each part has been constructed with natural cat behavior and environmental needs in mind — which gives potential owners a real glimpse into how cats play, explore and move. The top of the structure is eye level, which also gives cats the opportunity to meet new owners face to face.
The installation was delivered to Almost Home in April 2026 and has since been used by over 90 interested pet owners, who bring anywhere between five and 25 cats in daily to meet them personally.
“Providing additional enrichment was a priority because we felt our cats were lacking climbing opportunities, which many of them really enjoy,” said Emma Braun, volunteer coordinator for the shelter. “We wanted something that served multiple purposes rather than a simple cat tower. We also wanted an enclosed design that would help more cautious cats feel secure while still engaging with the enrichment. That was especially important to us, since some cats are less comfortable with open climbing towers or wall-mounted shelves.”
Though it’s only been in the visitation room for a month, most of the cats up for adoption head straight for the structure as soon as the door closes. It’s even become a regular play room. But Braun had no doubts about that; EPICS has been a partner of Almost Home for over 10 years, providing stimulation and structural projects that benefit the animals in their care and the people volunteering. It’s been a never-ending source of ideas for the shelter, she said.
“One of the most unique aspects of working with EPICS is seeing the students use their creativity to develop solutions for our shelter. As a nonprofit humane society, we typically provide ideas about ways to enrich our animals’ lives along with any necessary guidelines, but we intentionally leave plenty of room for the students to take projects in their own direction. It’s always exciting to see what they come up with.”
Habitat for Humanity Lafayette supplies manager Sue Hunter feels the same each time a new semester of EPICS students begins a project. Watching them start out as uncertain, curious first-year students and end after one semester with confidence in design, public speaking and collaboration brings tears of pride.
With the blistering summer unfolding, Hunter is grateful to only be dealing with tears of joy in the pole barn. Up until the delivery of the newest EPICS project, sweat had been a frequent eye irritant as well. May 2026 saw the completion of a yearlong circulation project to make the barn a cool, safe and dry place to work.
The first part of the EPICS project created a circulation system of fans that would move hot air out of the pole barn. The second part was the pinnacle: bringing in the cool breeze.
“This newly installed fan was to cool the space where we worked the most,” said Hunter, pointing to the tool and materials return station — another EPICS project. “So when we go to the return station where volunteers return all the stuff, the breeze hits us while we’re standing there organizing everything. It's fantastic. We've enjoyed it a lot.”
A fourth project delivered just before finals brought a similar enjoyment to Amy Prado, who serves as the vice president of the parent-teacher organization (PTO) for Klondike Elementary School.
Because the Klondike EPICS team delivered her favorite game of all time and asked her to play it with them. Until the school’s carnival in the fall and spring, she is the only one at the school who has used the new Skee-ball machine.
Prado is confident the kids are going to be thrilled. She certainly was excited.
“We can’t afford to buy these games on a limited budget, and we can’t always make them ourselves,” she said. “We had reached out to EPICS and they began helping us develop and create games for our carnival.”
The carnival is a family event with affordable admission and a priority of games that students in kindergarten through fifth grade could use and enjoy.
The Skee-ball machine is just like an arcade machine: a sturdy board, colorful with chipping protection and complete with sensors and a digital scoreboard. The best benefit to the school, though, is how compact the machine can become when not in use. Folding up into two pieces, the EPICS team delivered on what the PTO considered to be a challenging front: their limited storage space.
The annual carnival is typically in the spring, but a planned back-to-school bash in the fall may also debut the new game. It’s not the first EPICS-delivered machine, either; a football-toss game was delivered previously, as have several other well-loved games.
And, Prado said, more to come.
“We're excited to continue working with the EPICS team. We actually have them lined up to work on more things,” she said. “Pretty soon the whole Klondike carnival is going to be EPICS-made games.”
