Animal’s Best Friend

Supporting the Animal Rescue League of Iowa benefits the giver and the receiver.

As the final quarter of the year gets underway, many business owners are looking for ways to support nonprofit organizations in their communities. There are a variety of reasons to do this: to encourage community involvement, to benefit from potential tax deductions, to develop employee relations, and more.

With pets in more than half of homes, the Animal Rescue League of Iowa (ARL-Iowa) is a great choice for a charitable partnership. Not only will your corporate efforts have positive effects on the local community, but you’ll get enthusiastic participation from employees at the same time.

“We have a variety of options for companies to get involved at the ARL, whether it’s raising critical funds, sponsoring an event, or donating time or supplies.” says KC Routos, Director of Development and Communication at ARL-Iowa.

Brett Johnson, Floor Coverings International owner and a longtime ARL supporter, says his personal history with ARL-Iowa led to a corporate relationship, too. “Our family has been lifelong supporters of the ARL-Iowa through various financial, volunteer, and adoption activities,” Johnson says. “So it was natural to support them as a business, too. We’ve been Changing Lives sponsors since we opened Floor Coverings International before we even made our first dollar.”

When Johnson started his business, he reached out to Routos directly. “One of our core values as a company is to give back to the community every step of the way,” he says. “Based on our experiences adopting our own dogs, and because of our love for what the ARL stands for, I reached out to KC to find out how we could best support them.”

“Floor Coverings International partners with us, providing financial support for our largest event of the year, the Raise Your Paw auction, which helps raise vital funds for the thousands of animals that will enter our doors throughout the year,” Routos says. “And they’re always willing to get involved.”

In addition to their financial support, Floor Coverings International employees volunteer at events such as the annual Raise Your Paw Auction, and the company has provided flooring for events as well.

Johnson says, “We take every opportunity to create awareness with our clients by letting them know about the ARL. It’s a great organization with great people.”

Since the ARL was founded nearly 100 years ago, it has stayed true to its original goals while adapting to meet the needs of animals and their owners across the state.

“When the ARL-Iowa was founded in 1926, it started with a group of six women who simply wanted to rescue homeless animals,” Routos says. “While that’s still a primary goal, we also provide a variety of outreach services and facilitate more than 8,000 adoptions each year, including adoptions for anything from hamsters to horses.”

Johnson says, “My family has adopted four dogs from the ARL over the last several years—Jasper, Wilson, Leo, and Koda. That has shown us how important the ARL is in changing lives not only for the pets but for the families who adopt them, as well.”

Established for the purpose of serving pets and their people, the ARL has always sought to create opportunities for others to join in that effort. Individuals can donate, volunteer, serve as foster families, and more.

To make it convenient for businesses to get involved, the ARL has developed a number of events and programs that run throughout the year. “Our largest fundraiser of the year is our Raise Your Paw auction in April,” Routos says. “Companies can purchase tickets individually or by the table. They can donate auction items or funds to purchase gift basket items. And they can bid for those items on the night of the auction.”

Another popular fundraiser each year is the Tree of Life, which runs throughout the month of December. “This is an easy way for employees to help meet our most basic needs. We provide signage and a ‘fetch list’ of our most-needed items. Business owners can decorate their holiday tree with identification tags for each item to be purchased,” says Routos.

The ARL has a host of other options for business involvement (check them out here), but that list continues to grow.

“We’re always open to new ideas,” Routos says. “We’ll gladly come to a lunch-and-learn for your employees to discuss options. Or you can reach out to me directly to explore new ways to partner.”

That willingness to adapt and respond to the community has been a hallmark of the ARL since it began. Over the next year, ARL will be expanding its facility yet again to meet the growing needs of animals in central Iowa.

“We’ve been able to obtain more than 20 acres not far from our main location in northeast Des Moines, so we’ll be able to move our barn program there,” Routos says. “We’ll have three pastures and more barn space to serve large animals. That will open up capacity at our main location to serve smaller animals.”

As Johnson says, “The ARL continues to grow to help support expanding pet populations. Support from the community in terms of time and money is critical to their ability to keep pace with that need while keeping administrative costs low.”

Mahatma Ghandi said, “A nation’s greatness is measured by how it treats its weakest members.” None are weaker than animals who cannot help themselves.

So whether you’re looking for a way to contribute financially, to raise awareness, or to encourage community involvement with your employees, getting involved with the ARL could be just the answer.