Some heroes wear capes - while others wear sashes and volunteer with Greater Good Charities' Good Flights.

Meet Ariana and the Adamo family (her husband Thomas, and sons, Christian and Austin). Their actions are saving shelter pets' lives and enhancing theirs in return. 

The Animal Rescue Site, Greater Good Charities, and Hill's Pet Nutrition worked together to host the Clear the Shelters Flight as part of NBCUniversal Local's Clear the Shelters month-long adoption event. The flight saved over 100 dogs and cats from overcrowded shelters in Louisiana and Alabama. The dogs and cats ranged in age, breed, and size, including a litter of Labrador retriever mix puppies.

Jack, Jake, Jace, & Jet (called the J litter) found themselves at an overcrowded shelter with little hope of finding homes. Their luck changed when they were selected as passengers on the recent flight.

Ariana shared that the family recently lost their “unicorn” rescue dog named Phil. Everyone was taking it hard, especially their other dog named Norman. He refused to eat for a week and was lost without his canine pal.

Ariana has volunteered for three years with Greater Good Charities’ Good Flights and is often up in the plane helping unload the dogs and cats after they arrive in Morristown, New Jersey.

She has seen firsthand how the flights make a difference to the struggling shelters and the pets on board. The family has rescued dogs for the past fifteen years and decided it was time again.

After reviewing the photo list of dog passengers, Jack caught Ariana’s attention. She told us, "I thought I wasn't ready, but then I said let me take a look at the Google Doc. Something about Jack in the top right corner spoke to me and I sent it to my husband, and I said I think this is our new guy."

Thomas and Ariana arrived on the tarmac on August 13 to help unload the pets and meet their new family member. The proud parents wore sashes that read “Mom to Be” and “Dad to Be”.

Ariana recalls eagerly looking at each kennel to see if her boy was in there. She was thrilled when she finally saw him in the crate and poked her head out of the plane to tell her husband, who was unloading pets on the ground, that, "it was a boy!”

The Adamo family headed back to the shelter and left that day with not one but all four of the "J" puppies. They adopted Jack and changed his name to Fred in honor of a family member who recently passed. They agreed to foster another and convinced their neighbors to foster the others - who have since decided to adopt.

Ariana said, "They made it so special, and without the sponsors for the flights none of this would have been possible, we're just so truly grateful to be a part of it."

This is the happy ending that all the dogs and cats on the flight will soon have, and we cannot thank you enough for your support.

It takes a huge team of people to make these flights a success and we thank everyone involved. A special thanks goes out to Erin Robbins, Vice President of Greater Good Charities' Good Flights,who organizes, coordinates, and accompanies the pets to their final destination.

Erin continues to be the smiling face the shelter pets and volunteers see. Longtime volunteer, Ariana, praises Erin for her dedication and said, "At the end of the day she makes this all happen, and continues to save life after life."

Ariana stresses how important it is to adopt, foster, and volunteer. Animal shelters nationwide are overwhelmed, and adoptions are down.

She told us that volunteering is her favorite day and explained why they decided to foster as well as adopt. "There's so much overcrowding. That's why we decided at this time to foster."

The family is thrilled that they were able to take part in the Clear the Shelters event by volunteering, adopting, and fostering.

She went on to say, "I do want to stress the importance of fostering, you know, it really does give the shelter a little bit of a break. It gives the animals a break. It's much easier for them to be in a home."

The family already adores Fred even though he loves to nibble on their hair. The playful pups are also helping mend Norman's broken heart. He has returned to his normal self and loves his role as big brother. He is teaching the pups how to be calm and relaxed. Everyone helps walk and care for the puppies, as Thomas said it is, "all hands on deck when you have three of them and the kids have been a huge help."

They hope to find a loving home in the area for their foster pup so the pack can still play together.

It was a life changing experience for my family and for those hundreds of dogs and cats that were on that flight," states Ariana.

Be like the Adamo family and adopt, foster, or both!

Don't forget to take FREE actions (click at The Animal Rescue Site and play trivia on FreeKibble) every day to help feed shelter pets.