Pgh Lesbian Correspondents

PET FOOD PANTRY temporarily closed due to lack of donations.

We are sorry to inform our neighbors that the Dr. John P. Ruffing VMD Pet Food Pantry will not be distributing in September due to lack of pet food. The pantry has over 70 registered households and caretakers. Based on Pittsburgh’s Northside, they serve families in McKees Rocks, Carrick, Millvale, Ross, West Mifflin, and beyond.

In the past three weeks, six new caretakers and household have registered.

We need about 1,100 pounds of dry food and 1400 can of wet food every month. Our project is all volunteer. One neighbor stores the food in her actual pantry; another distributes the food from her parking pad. 15 neighbors volunteer to deliver food. We are part of a 501c3 organization.

We have done everything we can think of to secure donations – we are already part of the Animal Friends Chow Wagon network, we’ve contacted previous donors, veterinarians who knew Dr. Ruffing, community organizations, and posted extensively on social media. We’ve reached out to pet food retailers and feed stores.

Times are very tight for everyone. There poor businesses are besieged by requests, all more desperate than the next.

We do have a Pistons in the Park Pet Food Pantry Drive on Pittsburgh’s Northside in late September which we hope will help us in October’s distribution. This event features our official cat food vehicle, St. Gertrude aka Gertie, a 1991 Land Rover Defender lent to us by a board member. She would make a great addition to any fall festival – she’s about as pumpkin as a vehicle can get.

I tried to inject some whimsy into this post, but I feel heartbroken. Many of our caretakers rely on this distribution to stretch their own budgets.

The genuine solution is to spay/neuter your pets, keep them inside or secured, and to adopt not shop for a pet.

Sue and Marie

Here is how you can help:

1. If you know someone who works for a pet food retailer, ask them to make sure we are on their distribution schedule – we’ve signed up with all of the stores, but haven’t heard anything since October.
2. If your organization, troop, book club can organize a pet food drive of any size, please do. We can provide more information. If we could get 24 groups to commit to a pet food drive once a year, we’d be in good shape.
3. Stop by Pistons in the Park Pet Food Pantry Drive on Pittsburgh’s Northside with a donation and to check out the lovely cars. There’s a category for ‘biggest misfit’ that is a good way to describe Gertie.
4. Like, comment, and share this post. The more eyes that see this post, the more likely we can find some helpful neighbors. Please share in community groups, on NextDoor, Reddit, and beyond. It means a lot more coming from someone in the community than from us.
5. Are you or do you know a classic car lover? Perhaps ask them to donate in Gertie’s name. Or to organize a pet food drive at their next event. Or even to like, comment, and share this post.
6. If you have the smarts to put up a donated shed, we have a donated shed and a place to put it. We even have volunteers. We just lack a leader with a power drill.

GoFundMe bit.ly/GivePghCatFolx
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Set up your own FB Fundraiser https://www.facebook.com/PittsburghLGBTQ/fundraisers

Here are our links

Amazon Wishlist bit.ly/TheRuffList
Chewy Wishlist bit.ly/TheChewyList

Checks payable to Pittsburgh LGBTQ Charities can be mailed to 1439 W. North Avenue Pittsburgh, PA 15233