one by one®: Ottawa Paw Pantry
Ottawa Paw Pantry knows that giving up a family pet due to financial hardship is a difficult experience for owners and their pets. Its goal is to prevent that from happening by providing pet food to
owners in times of need through community donations and volunteers who buy, store and deliver the pet food. Founder and managing partner Laura Spragge understands the importance of fostering relationships with volunteers for the long-term health of the organization. She was excited to use a one by one grant to purchase promotional materials for nonprofits, including roll-up blankets, to give volunteers as a thank-you.
“Some of our volunteers have literally given their blood, sweat and tears to the organization,” said Spagge. “If we can reward them, they’re more likely to stay on board and help us recruit new volunteers.”
Spragge started Ottawa Paw Pantry in 2016. At that time, it only needed a 5′ x 5′ storage unit to store pet food. Now, it consistently fills a 20′ x 20′ unit. While the organization has regular clients who have pet food delivered monthly, it also provides temporary support by delivering two months of pet food up to three times per year. Ottawa Paw Pantry recently launched a partnership with community food pantries to deliver pet food monthly to existing locations where pet owners can take the food with no questions asked.
Balloons prove to be useful promotional materials for nonprofits
After purchasing the blankets, Spragge had enough grant money left to also purchase latex balloons. She uses the balloons to build awareness and raise funds for Ottawa Paw Pantry.
“When we’re at well-attended events, we inflate the balloons with helium, and people can make a donation to get one,” Spragge said. “When they walk around with the balloon, it attracts a lot of attention, and we have more people stop by and donate because they also want a balloon.”
Helping pets like Olivia
Annually, Ottawa Paw Pantry helps about 700 families keep their pets at home, like Olivia the beagle, who thanked the organization with her mom’s help.
“A few months ago, Mommy came home with a cart full of food and treats!” Olivia said. “She told me some nice people are going to make sure we have food. Now Mommy doesn’t need to give us her dinner, so we sit and eat dinner together. Thank you for filling our bellies, Ottawa Paw Pantry.”
A note from Cheryl
It’s nice to know that because of Ottawa Paw Pantry, pet owners don’t have to choose between feeding themselves or their pets. We love the creative use of promotional materials for nonprofits, like using balloons to spread awareness and get financial donations. To learn more about a one by one grant, visit onebyone.4imprint.ca.