POCATELLO — For more than 20 years, Nikki and Frank Jorgenson and their business Snake River Doodles have helped thousands of animals and brought community events to families across the area.

But by the end of June, they will say goodbye to Pocatello, taking their business with them to Florida.

Over two decades, the Jorgensons have welcomed more than 5,000 animals to their sanctuary in the Gate City, educating students and event attendees about their creatures and creating lasting memories at dozens of community events.

“We use those events to bring awareness to the animals that we rescue in the community,” Nikki Jorgenson said. “We make sure to bring awareness on how to keep a pet a little bit better, so that we don’t have to have so many in sanctuaries and rescues here in Idaho.”

Their company — also known as SRD — originated in Malad before the couple moved to Pocatello in 2008.

“I have a seizure disorder, and these guys are a medical alert dog program that we started here in Idaho — that’s where Snake River Doodles came from,” Jorgenson said. “We started with the dogs, and then we started doing free therapy visits to the nursing homes with them. As we trained the dogs and worked with them to work for more and more people, we added miniature horses and goats and things that we used to train the animals.”

SRD grew from there, expanding from nursing home visits to an eventual breakout at the local farmers market. Since then, area residents have dropped off boxes of baby geese, goats, dogs and even vans packed with around 40 birds.

“People know that we will not only take in animals, but that we’re a place where they can come and find an animal that needs a home,” Jorgenson said. “But we also work with a lot of sanctuaries. Some animals are not really placeable in homes — large iguanas, huge tortoises, potbellied pigs that were supposed to be tiny pigs, things like that. We make sure that they go to the special kind of place where they need to go. It definitely takes a lot of time and dedication. We get to know each animal that comes in, and sometimes we have to say no and send them somewhere else before they come to us.”

SRD also works closely with Idaho Fish and Game and the local zoo for wildlife that should not spend time in captivity. Over the years, SRD received many dogs, cats and rabbits, but over the last seven years donations have shifted largely to reptiles. SRD also partners with Tyhee-based Just in Time Rescue.

“Me and my husband, Frank, were always the kids that brought animals home, and so we’ve continued that trend,” Jorgenson said. “We just like to take care of animals. Animals take care of people. The animals especially have taken care of me — my seizure alert dog completely changed my whole life. I know the animals really give to people, so I like to give back to the animals to help them, to help people. That’s been our focus for 20 years, is to help the animals to help the people, and vice versa.”

The Jorgensons created their first large community event, Pocatello Kids Day, in July 2019, aiming to bring low-cost events to the area after raising five children here.

“We brought together 50 different local small businesses here in Pocatello,” Jorgenson said. “We had a whole bunch of food trucks, and we had just a big community celebration — a lot of teams and Girl Scouts — and we had our petting zoo. It was probably our first time that we brought the petting zoo out to one of our own events.”

This would have been the 11th year of SRD’s annual haunted house, a Jorgenson family tradition spanning five generations. The family places deep importance on large, communal gatherings.

It all started with Nikki’s grandfather, who raised her and inspired her with the grand characters he would play during the holidays — including Santa Claus at large malls in Salt Lake City.

“He brought so much joy to people and he loved holidays,” Jorgenson said. “Every holiday was big, so that’s just been big in my soul. So I like to bring the holidays I like to my family. I have five children. They like to come and participate as well. My daughters dress up as princesses. They twist balloons. We do face painting, the whole thing. It’s a family occasion as well.”

From adult proms, haunted bus tours, hayrides and haunted houses, Easter egg hunts and bunny visits, to Valentine’s Day festivals, Santa’s Winter Wonderland and Christmas lights tours, SRD and the Jorgenson family have been a fixture in providing accessible, family-friendly events across Eastern Idaho and beyond. Their dog program alone has produced more than 500 working service dogs.

But all good things must come to an end. Last summer, the Jorgenson farm caught fire in South Pocatello. Housing prices have climbed, and Jorgenson says it is proving difficult to stay in the area. The couple plans to move to Florida by the end of June.

“We are always low cost everything,” Jorgenson said. “We don’t make a whole lot of money. We’re going to be moving to where we can afford things a little bit more.”

Both Jorgensons deal with health issues. Frank has ankylosing spondylitis, a form of spinal arthritis. The warmer, lower-pressure environment of Florida is expected to help alleviate his condition.

In the meantime, SRD has stayed busy, traveling across Western states and booking shows as far away as Virginia. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission has also approved bringing their animals to Florida, where they plan to continue their program on a larger scale.

Jorgenson said the reptiles will thrive in the warmer climate. In Florida, she will also be better positioned to help green iguanas — which must be removed or euthanized under state law — by finding them homes in places like Idaho and Utah.

The Jorgensons still plan to hold a few events in the area as a final goodbye before their departure.

Adult Prom will be held Saturday from 8 p.m. to midnight at the Elk’s Lodge. Tickets are $20 for singles and $30 for couples and include refreshments. The evening features a live band, Perfect Chaos, performing upstairs and DJ J. Hill spinning downstairs, along with a cash bar, professional photos, billiards, darts and a back-to-the-80s theme. Nominations and voting for king and queen will run from 8 to 10:20 p.m., with the royal crowning at 10:30 p.m.

SRD’s Wild Reptile Adventure will hold its final Preston show Saturday at 1 p.m. at the Preston Library. The show features 14 or more exotic species, including Savannah monitors, giant Sulcata tortoises and a variety of snakes and other reptiles. Admission is $10 per person.

Southeast Idaho Days is set for May 1-2 at the Bannock County Event Center in Pocatello, sponsored in part by Idaho Central Credit Union. Friday’s events run from 5 to 8 p.m. and include free redneck games and a free baked potato bar for the first 50 attendees at 6 p.m., along with food trucks, an inflatable carnival, face painting and balloons.

Saturday’s festivities run from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and include a kids bike and walking parade at 10 a.m., an RC car track with contests from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., a pet show open to all animals at noon, Power Wheels races at 2 p.m. and a watermelon eating contest to close out the day. SRD’s Wild Creatures will also be on hand. Entry to the pet show area is $2.

The Jorgensons also plan to visit several preschools and daycares for animal shows during the first week of June, and a show in Elko, Nev., is on the schedule for their trip out.

“We just want to say a big thank you to Pocatello,” Jorgenson said. “We love it here. It’s been a great home for 20 years, and our kids will still be here and our grandkids, so maybe we’ll be back to visit.”