Donations and fundraising create the foundation that supports non-profit organizations like Furry Friends Rescue (FFR). We are proud of our Junior Volunteer, Natalie, who decided to forego birthday presents for herself and raise donations for our rescue instead.
Natalie and her family started volunteering with Furry Friends Rescue in September 2012. In the few months since then, they have fostered two dogs – Heidi a Coon Hound mix, and Nicolas, a Norfolk Terrier mix – and have helped out at our dog showcase on the weekends. When Natalie informed us about turning her own birthday party into a fundraiser we wanted to share her story as a way of celebrating her efforts and inspiring this kind of generosity among other young adults.
“Hi, my name’s Natalie and I am 12 years old. I enjoy volunteering at Furry Friends Rescue. I am a dog lover (I have a chocolate lab, and we have fostered dogs for FFR) and I love helping animals. My birthday was coming up soon, and I was stuck on what to do for my party. Then I decided to have my friends bring donations for the dogs at FFR instead of bringing me presents. I was so excited to help out, I could hardly wait!
“As it turns out, the idea was a big hit with my friends, and everyone loved it! They all brought so many things, like treats, squeaky toys, bones, dog bowls, cash donations, and even dog shampoo. With some of the cash donations I was able to collect, I went out and bought leashes, collars, harnesses, food, treats, a small dog bed, and material so I could make blankets. After everything had been collected and sorted, we packaged up all the donations for delivery. In all, we had five bags filled with supplies and treats and two bags of food. My family and I were so proud of what we had done for this organization.
“When I saw some of my friends the next day, a few of them told me that they want to do what I did for their next birthday. That made me even more excited about having asked people to bring gifts for dogs instead of presents for me.
“I hope other people will read about this and decide to do it themselves. Trust me, it’s a great feeling to know that you’ve helped out to make the world a better place. Thank you to my friends who helped me collect all these donations: Kelsey, Audrey, Chloe, Maddi, Aniek, Katelyn, Floor, Maci, Sydney, and Kaitlyn. Also thanks to Sam’s Downtown Feed and Pet Supply, Unleashed Petco-Almaden, and C&L Blinds for adding their donations towards purchased items.”
Volunteers like Natalie and her family are what make organizations like FFR possible. We are an all-volunteer non-profit companion-animal rescue focused on saving dogs and cats destined for euthanasia in Bay Area shelters. Once rescued, our animals receive vet care and then are placed in foster homes, where each animal is acclimated into its foster family and begins rehabilitation.
Since 1998, we have saved over 12,000 animals and done over 6,000 Guardian, Shelter, and Rescue assists. Want to get involved?
There are lots of things you can do, such as:
- Foster a dog or cat
- Become a Dog & Cat Showcase volunteer (youth and adults)
- Become a dog/cat adoption/rescue counselor
- Transport animals as needed
- Photograph animals for promotional purposes
- Load web photos
If you are interested in volunteering or would like to learn more, visit our website at furryfriendsrescue.org/volunteer.
Caroline Bressler is a volunteer Adoption and Rescue Counselor with Furry Friends Rescue, and Natalie is a Furry Friends Junior Volunteer. For full details about FFR’s work on behalf of local dogs and cats go to furryfriendsrescue.org.
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Main article photo by: Emily Verna
