We’ve been talking a lot about Meow MeetUp Chicago lately (because it’s going to be ameowzing), but one of the really cool and unique things that we’re doing is supporting local shelters everywhere! The event is going to host an adoption lounge where adoptable cats and kittens from Almost Home Foundation will be on hand to handle adoptions at the event. But while we could only partner with one organization to offer adoptions, we wanted to do more for the larger rescue community.
The Catnip Times and Meow MeetUp Founder, Lauren Mieli, states “As a long-time volunteer, I know how hard shelters work to raise funds to care for the never-ending flow of homeless animals. At the same time, I hear that while people donate to animal causes, donations are usually made to the very large national organizations and that the money rarely flows down to the local level where the hard work is being done.”
According to Charity Navigator, charities that focus on the Environment / Animals saw an increase of 7.2% to $11.05 billion in 2016 (3% of all donations).
Meow MeetUp set out to change the giving dynamic by allowing all local shelters to participate in ticket sales to the event. Any animal-focused 501(c)3 can register for the program and receive a special code for their organization. Every time a ticket is purchased with their shelter’s code, the animal rescue will receive funds from Meow MeetUp Chicago!
“By involving the local rescue organizations, we can offer the opportunity to earn extra money to help these organizations with very little effort or resources required on their part,” says Mieli.
Involve Your Local Shelter
If you know of an animal rescue or shelter that would like to participate, please share this post so that they can get involved! Some of the shelters that are currently involved include:
- Almost Home Foundation, Elk Grove Village, IL
- Save A Pet, Grayslake, IL
- Azrael’s Place, Lyon’s, IL
- Kitties For Keeps Rescue, Lansing, IL
- Lovin’ Life Rescue, Chicago, IL
- St. Sophia’s Forgotten Felines, Westmont, IL
- Chicagoland Animal Rescue, Northlake, IL
- Treasured Animal Rescue, Bolingbrook, IL
- Fortunate Pooches & Lab Rescue, Palatine, IL
- Animal Protection Association, Jefferson, IN
For an update-to-date list, visit the “Giving Back” section of the Meow MeetUp website.
