Inside Apex Angels & Warriors: Dual Healing for rescued wolfdogs and veterans in central Wisconsin

Apex Angels & Warriors operates as a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit rescue and sanctuary. Located at N4704 Town Hall Road in Gleason, it is the only wolf and wolfdog rescue and sanctuary in the state. The organization is built around a unique model termed “Dual Healing” — simultaneously providing lifelong sanctuary for rescued wolfdogs and offering an unconventional, therapeutic community for military veterans and their families.
As featured in the sanctuary’s official brochure, its mission statement reads:
“To provide a Sanctuary for wolfdogs in need, and a supportive environment for Veterans seeking healing, connection, and camaraderie. Fostering mutual well-being through education and the unique bond between humans and animals!”
While rescuing animals is vital, Founder and Director Michelle Last said that supporting veterans is the core heart of the organization.
“The main thing here is the veterans. ... The secondary thing is we’re saving wolfdogs,” Last said. “The main reason we started was to have a nontraditional type of therapy for veterans and their families. ... It’s an all-encompassing thing out here.”

Location, origins, and history
The Gleason property was purchased by the founders in 2013, with official 501(c)(3) status granted shortly thereafter.
The rescue’s origin took shape after Last’s father, Richard Grond, died by suicide in 2006 following his own struggles with post-traumatic stress disorder. That tragic loss profoundly shaped her commitment to founding the sanctuary as a nontraditional therapeutic space for veterans to prevent suicide. Wanting to ensure other veterans and families had access to nontraditional support that wasn’t available at the time, Last set out to create a sanctuary where former service members could find community and healing.
The facility was thrust into full-scale rescue work after an individual from Colorado brought 15 rescued wolfdogs from across the country, dropped them off at the Gleason property, and falsely promised his organization would cover all associated expenses. When he abandoned financial responsibility — and was later connected to nonprofit fraud involving funds meant for veterans’ housing — Last and her husband funded the animals’ food, medical treatment, and housing out of pocket. Following a custody dispute in Lincoln County, a judge ruled that the animals rightfully belong to Apex Angels.
Establishing the sanctuary also required overcoming local community misconceptions. A neighboring resident spread unfounded rumors that the facility was capturing wild wolves and breeding them, Last said. In reality, the sanctuary strictly prohibits breeding, operates under Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Department of Agriculture licensing, and ensures every resident animal is neutered or spayed.

The team and volunteer perspective
Apex Angels & Warriors relies on a small, dedicated team.
Michelle Last, Founder and Director, manages daily operations full time, driven by her personal commitment to veteran suicide prevention.
Jeff, Michelle Last’s husband, is an over-the-road truck driver and military veteran who dedicates much of his income to funding sanctuary expenses.
Steve Buck is a volunteer from Milwaukee who relocated north after his Army veteran son returned from Afghanistan. Buck has been instrumental in securing vital equipment, including a donated four-wheeler from Lakeland Motorsports in Rhinelander and a newly drilled water well.

Kimberly Rivord is a volunteer who joined nearly two years ago. Recovering from two ACL knee reconstruction surgeries, Rivord assists with moral support and helps socialize new arrivals. Dealing with PTSD from her own trauma, she considers the people and animals at the sanctuary her extended family.
“I was kind of broken right now, but whatever nonphysical [activities] I can do, I just would like to come and be a part of it,” Rivord said.
She said the connection was instantaneous for her. “This is my sister,” she said, referring to Last. “This is my family here.”
“I’m not a veteran,” Rivord said. “I have my own trauma that causes PTSD issues. But this is one of the places where, when my day is low, I come here, because this is where my family is. This is where the peace is. This is the safety. ... It’s a very hidden, beautiful place to just exist when you don’t know how to.”

Upgrades and new additions

The sanctuary continues to expand its physical infrastructure and educational programs.
A new animal care room was built entirely through community donations, replacing the former workspace in the farm’s old milk house.
A newly constructed playyard in the middle of all the animal pen areas features agility and exercise equipment where dogs are brought out pen by pen to run and play. The playyard structures were built, and volunteers recently held a painting party to apply base coats, with plans to paint specific military unit insignias (battalions and platoons) representing participating veterans onto the structures.
The sanctuary introduced two young high-content wolfdogs being trained specifically as educational ambassadors for the program. Indigo, nicknamed Indi, is 7 months old and was gifted to the facility by a reputable breeder. Indi is 85.5% gray wolf and has already represented the sanctuary at public events like the Fall Ride in Tomahawk, Last said.
Rowan is 6 months old and was acquired from a zoo. Rowan is 95.1% gray wolf and 4.9% German shepherd.
The sanctuary currently houses 35 wolfdogs, plus five animals housed at Last’s home. Apex Angels & Warriors is at full capacity based on available funding and current volunteer staffing levels. The wolfdogs were rescued from states across the nation, including California, Texas, Indiana, and North Carolina, and the facility continues to receive five to 10 intake requests a week; however, at this time, it is unable to accept any additional wolfdogs.

Educational terminology and myth-busting
A core part of the sanctuary’s outreach is putting myths to rest and educating the public.
“Little Red Riding Hood lied,” Last said. She said that it is extremely rare for even a 100% wolf in the wild to attack a human. The animals at Apex Angels & Warriors are not 100% wolf but a mix of wolf lineage and dog. Last said she uses the ambassador animals to educate people that wolves and wolfdogs are not the “big bad wolves” depicted in folklore, but rather social, therapeutic, and loving creatures.
Last said that the wolfdogs at the sanctuary are not hybrids. A hybrid is a first-generation (F1) animal produced from breeding an animal that is 100% wolf with an animal that is 100% dog. That offspring is a hybrid, and such animals, referred to as F1 hybrids, are illegal in most areas and subject to immediate euthanasia.

The wolfdogs at the sanctuary are all multigenerational animals that contain a percentage of wolf in their lineage, but they are not first-generation hybrid animals.
Staff and volunteers use a couple of other terms you might be unfamiliar with: “singing” and “wolf glitter.” Sanctuary staff refer to the collective howling of the animals as “singing,” describing the resonant vibration as deeply grounding and therapeutic. The shed undercoat fur brushed off the animals during tours is affectionately called “wolf glitter.”

How Dual Healing operates
How does Apex Angels & Warriors help veterans? Last said veterans are accustomed to a very structured life while they are in the military. In the military, service members rely on their platoon or battalion as a protective “pack.” Returning to civilian life often leaves veterans feeling isolated.
Wolfdogs are also pack animals. They instinctively form pack bonds.

At the sanctuary, veterans work to gain the trust of rescued animals, many of which have suffered abuse or neglect. Working with the animals mirrors the pack structure of military service, and gaining an animal’s trust restores that lost feeling of belonging.
“They have to gain the animals’ trust to get into this pack,” Last said of the veterans’ interactions with the animals.
“Once they’re in, you’re in, and this pack is behind you,” she said. “Once the veterans start working with these animals and realize those stigmas [of being dangerous or unpredictable] are not true of these animals, they go, ‘You know what, maybe society got me wrong, too.’ And they can start gaining that confidence that ... ‘I deserve to be here.’”
“When we started, I said, ‘If we can save one veteran from being a statistic, I’ve done my job,’” Last said.
“We’ve done it several times over and I’m not done,” she said. Saving veterans from suicide through wolfdog therapy has become her passion. Saving wolfdogs along the way is a bonus.
Spotlight: Veteran volunteer Jeff Yunk
As highlighted in the sanctuary’s official brochure, veteran volunteer Jeff Yunk, who served with the 1-91 Cavalry, 173rd Airborne, from 2007 to 2011, shared a powerful reflection on the connection between veterans and wolfdogs at Apex Angels & Warriors.
“We are a nonprofit wolfdog sanctuary. We also help our veterans healing with PTSD through healing with our wolfdogs,” Yunk said. “We help the wolfdogs heal from the bad environments that they came from and/or rescue them so they aren’t euthanized. The wolfdog is just like a veteran: we hunt in packs, we sleep in packs, we move in packs, and we lived with our packs.”
“We’re trying to get rid of the stigma,” he said. “All your life you’ve been told about the big bad wolf, how mean they are. ... Just like when veterans come home, people say we’re mentally unstable or that we’re crazy or dangerous. Neither is true.”
“By getting veterans in and working with the wolfdogs, there’s a sense of internal healing in us and in them,” Yunk said. “And it is amazing to see how fast a wolfdog clicks with veterans, because they understand us. If we can prevent even one veteran suicide, that is a huge win. I just wish everyone could understand and feel the love that I feel when I’m there.”

Community events, ongoing needs, and how to help
Sustaining the sanctuary requires continuous community support and volunteer effort.
Last said the sanctuary offers guided tours for the public and even private tours and events. It also holds regular events and gatherings for veterans, volunteers, and the public, like the “Howl with the Wolves” bonfires held twice a month. All are invited to gather, bring lawn chairs, and unwind in a safe environment.
Apex Angels & Warriors also welcomes donations. Each wolfdog consumes approximately 3 to 5 pounds of raw meat daily, so the sanctuary always welcomes donations of raw meat. If you’re cleaning out your freezer, or the power quits and you have to get rid of meat in your freezer, keep the sanctuary in mind. The sanctuary cannot use pork or shellfish, but most other raw meats are welcome. Call ahead at 715.921.9785 to arrange to drop off your donation. Local pickup may be available depending on volunteer availability.
Bulk mulch (in any condition) is also needed to provide ground cover, cover enclosure dig guards, and protect paw pads. Discarded Christmas trees are also accepted, as they provide sensory enrichment for the wolfdogs.
The sanctuary can also accept donations of building materials, including lumber, 2-by-4s, and fencing materials. Call ahead to talk about what you have to donate to see if it is something it can use.
Care room supplies are also welcome.
Apex Angels & Warriors also accepts financial donations, and all donations are tax-deductible due to the sanctuary’s nonprofit status.
Contributions can be made via PayPal (apexangelsandwarriors@gmail.com) or through its website (apexangelsandwarriors.org).
Finally, the sanctuary is always in need of more volunteers to help care for the animals, build necessary infrastructure (pens, fencing), interact with the wolfdogs, feed them, and help in other ways. And veterans are always welcome.
Last said veterans can call her at any time, day or night, if they are going through a rough spot. She has invited veterans to come out at 2 a.m. and stay with the animals as long as they need or desire to be with them. She truly doesn’t want any veteran left behind. And even after they return home, she wants veterans to know they belong to the Apex Angels & Warriors pack.
For more information, to arrange for a tour or an ambassador visit to your group or organization, to make a donation of meat or supplies, to volunteer, or if you are a veteran who would like to experience the therapeutic healing of spending time with the wolfdogs, call Last at 715.921.9785.
You can also “meet” the wolfdogs in the pack, see their photos, and learn the names and history of the sanctuary’s current residents at its website: apexangelsandwarriors.org.