The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank Opens in Portland, Oregon
CANIDAE Gives Needy Pets and Their Owners a Leg Up
The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank is a shining example of how great things can happen if we only dare to dream, and never lose hope. What began as one man's modest desire to feed the hungry pets of the homeless, has become what could be the largest pet food bank in the country. Indeed - with a warehouse full of premium pet food donated by CANIDAE and two other companies, The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank is prepared to hand out around eight tons of dog and cat food every month, says its founder Larry Chusid.
Two years ago around Thanksgiving time, Portland resident Larry Chusid saw some homeless men with their dogs, and stopped to ask them if they needed anything. The men said they'd be fine, but could really use some dog food since none of the food pantries had any. Because Larry loved dogs and had recently lost his faithful companion Pongo, their plea touched his heart.
Little did these homeless men know, their request would be the spark that created the Pongo Fund, a charity Larry founded to help Portland's homeless and low-income population feed their hungry animal companions. No matter the weather, Larry delivered bags of food to needy pets all over Portland. And though he felt good knowing he eased their hunger for a little while, Larry always dreamed of doing more.
Fate stepped in and gave Larry a helping paw last April, when he talked with some CANIDAE company reps at a pet-product trade show. In keeping with their commitment to aid animals in need, CANIDAE generously supports a wide variety of pet-related charities. They had been supporting The Pongo Fund with food donations from the start, but when they heard about Larry's vision for a pet food bank in Portland, CANIDAEoffered him $125,000 worth of their premium-quality food to make it happen.
Larry was astounded at such a generous offer, and although he wasn't prepared to receive the pet food right then, he went to work immediately. First, he secured a large, clean facility for The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank to operate out of, and then lined up volunteers, grants, and fundraisers. The result is one both Larry and CANIDAE should be very proud of. Portland's companion dogs and cats will have full bellies now - and not just one or two days a week but every day - because one man put out a call for help, and a compassionate pet food company answered.
By providing quality dog and cat food to anyone in need, The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank will help ease the plight of Portland residents who've fallen on hard times. Sadly, many impoverished communities in our great nation have no such pet food bank to help them weather this tough economic storm. Although most large U.S. cities and even some small towns are fortunate to have food banks that provide groceries to the needy, most have little (if any) pet food to give out.
Food stamps cannot be used either, further adding to the plight of families who love their pets dearly, but have no money to feed them. More and more people are being faced with the heartbreaking choice of surrendering their pets to shelters. And it's not just the homeless and low-income people either. Middle-class and white-collar workers are losing their jobs in droves, and senior citizens and college students are having trouble making ends meet too.
CANIDAE and The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank have done a great thing for the residents of Portland, Oregon and their pets. Thanks to this wonderful new food bank, every pet can have enough to eat, which greatly increases their chance of being able to stay with the family they love. Perhaps one day in the not too distant future, every city in America will have a pet food bank. Until then, we can all do what we can to help.
If you'd like to help The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank, you can make a Paypal cash donation on their website. If you live in or near Portland, you can buy a few cans of CANIDAE dog food or FELIDAE cat food and drop it off during their business hours. If money is tight, you can give the gift of your time by volunteering to help distribute the food.
The Pongo Fund Pet Food Bank is located at 910 N.E. Martin Luther King Blvd. It will be open every second and fourth Sunday of the month, from noon to 3 p.m. For more information, visit The Pongo Fund website, or call 503-939-7555.
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Thepongofund.org
Canidae.com
Published by Julia Williams
Writing was my "first crush," and over the years it's blossomed into a great love affair. I received my Bachelor's Degree in Journalism & Marketing and worked as an ad copywriter for 8 years before decid... View profile
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4 Comments
Post a CommentToo bad people take advantage of this - I went in there the other day, and there were at least 8 people in line talking about how they breed dogs (most of them said pitbulls) and then sell them to people and tell them to go to The Pongo Fund to get "free food for life" for their new puppies. It's sad to see people using this, when others really need it. Programs like this will always be taken advantage of. It needs some serious structure to survive. I believe it might be doing more harm than good to the city of Portland.
We couldn't be more excited about this project which is why we donated $125,000 worth of CANIDAE dog food and FELIDAE cat food to The Pongo Fund. This is now the largest pet food bank in the country. The Pongo Fund is not just helping pets. It's helping people. This is going to be REALLY BIG!
This is such good news!
This is cool. Our dog just had puppies - hopefully we can find homes where each of them has plenty to eat!