HeidiTown Gives Back: People with Compassion for Pets

This July, the recipient of the HeidiTown Gives Back Campaign (free ad space and blog post) is People with Compassion for Pets, my giving circle.

Giving circles are groups of individuals who pool their funds in order to give a larger amount to a charity. As part of Change Gangs, our group is rather unique. Here’s how it works.

Each month we each donate $25. It’s automatically deducted from my bank account, so I don’t even have to remember to write a check. The money is pooled in an account and then, each quarter we award the money to a particular pet nonprofit, but not just any nonprofit. Each member may, if he or she chooses, nominate a pet charity to be considered for the award.

Not all of our members choose to nominate, but a handful of us do. Those who nominate a charity are responsible for doing a bit of research on the organization before the name is turned over to a member who does even more investigation. She determines how the nonprofit will use our donation and learns all she can about the reputation of the nonprofit.

Once the nonprofits are properly vetted, a description of each nominee is emailed to the members of People with Compassion for Pets. At this point, we each cast a vote for the nonprofit we’d like to receive the funds. The nonprofit with the most votes will receive the donation. Sometimes there’s a tie and the funds are split.

At the moment we are donating around $1000 each quarter (that’s $4000 a year) to a deserving nonprofit that serves the needs of domesticated animals.

We’ve donated to causes such as Longhopes Donkey Rescue (Bennett), National Mill Dog Rescue (Colorado Springs), Every Creature Counts (Fort Lupton) and Denkai Animal Shelter (Greeley).

People with Compassion for Pets was established by me and two other women from Colorado. Today, the majority of our members are located here, but other states are now represented as well.

I like being a member of a giving circle because it allows me to be part of a much bigger donation. By pooling my money with others, I am able to make a bigger dent in problems surrounding domesticated animals. I like being a member of People with Compassion for Pets because I love animals and this allows me to give a lot more than I could do alone. It also give me control over where my donation goes, and that’s empowering.

Here’s the best part! You can join our giving circle today. Just visit PeopleforPetsGivingCircle.com. You can also join us on Facebook. The more caring members our giving circle has, the more money we raise for deserving pet charities in Colorado and beyond.