I inherited a zoo! That's correct, you heard me right. My Great Uncle Sam had owned a zoo in northern Maine. Since I had completed my Veterinary degree, he had decided that I would be the perfect person to run and maintain his zoo when he passed. I was shocked when his lawyer approached me at the funeral. He asked to speak privately with me, and once we were settled in an office, he said, "This is a letter from your uncle."
Opening it I read,
My dearest Maggie,
I want to say how proud I am of you for completing Veterinary college. You are not expecting this, but you are the only person receiving an inheritance. You are the first person in our family to graduate from college, and you're a Doctor to boot. Dr. Margaret Bower DVM. That has an amazing ring to it.
Now for your adventure. You have inherited my home and zoo located in northern Maine. There are over 250 Species in my zoo. It also contains a complete veterinary clinic with state-of-the-art equipment. My staff was briefed before my passing that you would be taking the reigns. The zoo's old vet Doctor Milly Shepard DVM was going to retire; however, she is staying on to help you find your feet and settle in at the zoo. She does rent the rooms above he garage as part of her pay. Give her grace when she goes to retire, as we are the only family she has. She has been watching your progress and I have shared all of your accomplishments from the letters you sent me. Those letters meant everything to me. You wrote me with nothing more than communication. You never asked for anything, even when you had to take out loans for school. Do not worry, those have been paid off as of this morning if Marty did his job.
This zoo can be an amazing future for you. The animals are all animals that have been rescued from horrible circumstances and they are here at the zoo known as The Sanctuary. The vet office attached to the zoo is the only clinic and emergency office in 150 miles. You will succeed with this just like you did with college. I will be watching over you from wherever I end up on the other side.
All my love,
Uncle Sam
I was crying when I finished the letter. Marty took my hand and said, "It takes a lot to run the zoo. I will teach you how, and Milly will help you run the clinic. You have this."
"He trusts me to care for all the animals," I said. "I will not let him down."
"You need to know that in order to keep the zoo running you have to run the clinic and see animals for all around. The zoo is only open to the public on good weather days. Your uncle left you an account with five million dollars in it. We have greenhouses and raise fish to offset the cost of the zoo." He said. "But a good portion of the zoo is funded by the veterinary clinic. It is very busy and we will need to bring on new vets soon enough."
"My family is going to be pissed," I said. "Well some of them."
He stood up and handed me a folder, "It has all the information for the zoo and the money he left you. Also, the receipt is in the folder for your student loans being paid off. You can verify it and make sure it is all paid off."
Standing up, we went to the funeral, and I sat next to my Mom as Marty went to the front of the room. He said, "Welcome, everyone. Sam did not want a traditional funeral. He wanted me to address something, though, before we start a remembrance celebration, I must go over the inheritance."
Everyones head perked up and my Mom squeezed my hand. Looking at her I whispered, "Did you know?"
She winked at me and we turned back to Marty. He continued, "Only one person received an inheritance, and that was Maggie. Sorry, Dr. Margaret Bower DVM. Sam was so proud of her and the fact that she did not ask for anything anytime she wrote him, which was two to three times a week. She inherited the zoo he owned and the veterinary clinic that came with it. He bragged about his great niece, who was the first one to graduate from college and veterinary school. If you were here thinking you were going to get something from Sam, you can leave; if you're here to celebrate a loving and generous man, you can stay."
About half of the room stood up and walked out. Once they left, Marty said, "Let us celebrate the life of Sam Bower."
For an hour, Family and friends told stories about Uncle sam. When I stood for my turn I said, "I never asked him for anything but his perspective. While I was away at college, I would write to tell him about the crazy college world I was navigating. He would tell me stories about learning to navigate life around base. By the way, a military base is quite similar to a college campus if I am to believe some of the stories he told me."
Pausing I heard some chuckling in the crowd, then i said, "I hope I make him proud."
$5000000- zoo $1000000-personal
Dr. Margaret Bower DVM---The Sanctuary
Uncle Sam- Doctor Milly Shepard DVM
Marty- Uncle Sams lawyer
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