We recently had the chance to connect with Ashley Wilson & Debbie Ruttenbur and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Ashley & Debbie , thank you so much for joining us today. We’re thrilled to learn more about your journey, values and what you are currently working on. Let’s start with an ice breaker: Have any recent moments made you laugh or feel proud?
Oh, there are plenty of laughable moments every day with six dogs in the house!
Something that has made me feel proud is harder to come by though. This summer, we (Pennies for P. A. W. S.) held a series of fundraisers with the goal of donating to at least two spay/neuter organizations. Through the generosity of our followers and friends, we were able to donate a total of $1000 across four organizations. We are very proud of that.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
Pennies for P. A. W. S. was an actual dream by co-founder Debbie several years ago. She woke up and thought. “I should do this, and Ashley should help me.” So we did! We are a small-but-mighty team of two who could not make it without the help of our husbands and wonderful friends who continue to support us.
What makes us unique is really not about us at all. Our friends, family, and supporters are beyond generous every time we ask. Because of their generosity, we are able to help animals in need. We are very lucky.
Amazing, so let’s take a moment to go back in time. Who were you before the world told you who you had to be?
Before we were Pennies for P. A. W. S., we were both 8th-grade English teachers. That’s actually how we met in 2011. Fast forward 14 years, and we are best friends, our husbands are best friends, and we are Pennies for P. A. W. S. That was no accident. (In fact, Debbie and her husband introduced Ashley to her now-husband!)
Was there ever a time you almost gave up?
Over the last five years, there have been SO many times that we nearly threw in the towel. It’s not as easy as we thought it would be — asking people for money. Turns out, there’s not just an endless supply of that stuff laying around for us! (Ha!)
When we feel burnt out or when life is just too busy, we take a step a back. The great thing about running a non-profit with your best friend is you don’t have to explain that life is life and you let the ball drop on that thing you were supposed to do last week. She understands because she did the same thing last month. So, we work together. We communicate. We do what we can when we can.
Next, maybe we can discuss some of your foundational philosophies and views? Where are smart people getting it totally wrong today?
I’m going to have climb on my soap box for this one. Smart people, people with extreme intelligence (both IQ and EQ), good people with good hearts and good intentions across the world are getting this so totally wrong — breeding dogs and cats. The overpopulation of domestic dogs and cats is at crisis level. This crisis is deeply rooted in many things from lack of awareness to outright greed. Some people are intentionally cruel (we won’t go there right now), but what we’ve discovered in our few years is that most people mean well or at least don’t intend to harm. They don’t plan to have a litter of kittens who then produces 4 more litters of kittens in a year. It just happens and then they don’t know what to do about it. It snowballs.
The shelters are so incredibly overcrowded. The rescue organizations are beyond capacity, out of money, and losing hope. The only way to climb out of this crisis is to spay and neuter dogs and cats, to stop buying from unethical, hobby breeders, and to adopt animals fe shelters.
Thank you so much for all of your openness so far. Maybe we can close with a future oriented question. What is the story you hope people tell about you when you’re gone?
That she tried her best to help as many as she could every day of her life.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://penniesforpawstn.net
- Instagram: penniesforPAWStn
- Facebook: penniesforPAWStn
