Nonprofit Programs-Because Community Matters
From my very first job as a 15 year old stable-hand, my life and career have always orbited around animals. Both of my wild boys, Floki & Freki came to me via the shelter/rescue system. And I believe deep in my soul that animals make us better humans. So giving back to the animal community has always been an intrinsic part of my business model. What started as a willingness to donate gift certificates to just about any animal related silent auction that asked has evolved into a variety of programs and fund-raising opportunities.
So if your pet-focused nonprofit is searching for a fun and creative way to fund-raise, please reach out. Now that North Idaho is my home, I'm excited to get involved and help where I can. While some of my programs involve expenses which are outside my control, my time is always donated to keep as much of the funds raised going to the pets who need them.
Donate-to-vote Calendar Contest
Colorado Pet Pantry Annual Calendar Contest: Over $100,000 raised since inception in 2020, with over $25,000 raised in 2024 alone.
This creative contest started as the pandemic shutdown quashed every major fundraising gala of the year, while exponentially expanding the public need for Colorado Pet Pantry services. As a long-time volunteer, I had an insider perspective and with my own business shut down, a lot of extra time on my hands to research and rack my brain on how to help. How could we raise much needed monies without gathering more than a couple people at a time. When I stumbled on the calendar contest model on a photography forum, I knew it might be just the thing but I had no idea if we'd even have enough interest to pay for the printing costs of the calendars.
So to make our donate-to-vote contest extra enticing we incorporated weekly prizes, with the top 13 pets scoring a goody bag and better yet a professional photo session so that their calendar feature would be spectacular! As we neared the $10,000 mark in the 11th hour we sweetened the pot with a 16x20 wall print for each of our winners. What started slow, quickly snowballed into a $17,000 victory for 3400 Colorado pets who got to check "need food" off their worry list that month.
Because CPP will always hold a very special place in my heart, I continue to return to Colorado annually for this wonderful event. Though there is a strong possibility I'll be adding another exciting calendar contest in the near future to support pet rescue in my new home of North Idaho.
Help Every Little Paw- Coeur d'Alene
And I'm so excited to bring this pawesome contest to the pet parents of North Idaho. Partnering for the very first time with Help Every Little Paw, a 501c3 non-profit who believes every pet deserves a loving family. They're committed to the pets of North Idaho and provide foster & re-homing help, along with funding for emergency veterinary care, spay & neuter and food assistance.
Brew Pup Pop Up
Brew Pup Pop-Up: $635 raised for The Good Dog Rescue
The Brew Pup pop-up was a really fun & exclusive event where we partnered with a local dog-friendly brewery, Barquentine Brewing Company, to create craft-brew inspired artwork.
The Barquentine founders were generous enough to let us in before regular hours so that we could enjoy a quiet set and also wouldn't interfere with regular patrons. One by one, our fantastic brew pups enjoyed the ambiance of the beautiful Barquentine brewery and even posed with a carefully poured beverage, though none of them were old enough to partake.
Our ten short sessions sold out quickly for this unique event, with the session fees donated in full to The Good Dog Rescue, along with a percentage of artwork sales.
If you've got an in with a really unique location, an exclusive photography pop-up could be a unique and easy fundraiser.
Event Photo Booth
Event Photo Booth: $750 raised at the 2022 Furry Scurry & $420 raised at the 2022 Canine Classic.
An event photobooth is one of the easiest fundraising options I offer. This program capitalizes on the passive traffic of any dog-friendly festival making it a perfect option for smaller organizations without a large support base to draw from.
Turning a patch of grass at a street-fair or festival into a mobile portrait studio takes a little creativity but the end results are absolutely endearing.
The key to success is choosing an event where pet parents will be bringing their pets with them. They take home a lovely printed portrait to commemorate the day for a donation to your charity.
Come see us in action at the Icebreaker Run at Hauser Lake!
If you're a North Idaho based nonprofit serving the pet & animal community I'd love to chat about the possibility of hosting a photography fundraiser for you.
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