Maricopa County, Arizona (February 27 – March 3, 2019) – RedRover is teaming up with Safe Haven, an initiative of The Jackson Galaxy Project, which is a Signature Program of GreaterGood.org, to help domestic violence shelter Sojourner Center expand and enhance its onsite pet-friendly spaces.
RedRover awarded Sojourner Center its first Safe Housing grant in 2014, enabling the shelter to become pet-friendly for domestic violence survivors. This second Safe Housing grant allows them to make their space even more comfortable and functional for furry family members. Safe Housing grants provide the funding for domestic violence shelters to create pet-friendly, co-sheltering spaces.
RedRover President and CEO Nicole Forsyth said, “Too often domestic violence victims are afraid to leave their abuser for fear of what may happen to their beloved pet. Creating pet-friendly domestic violence shelters breaks down their barriers and saves more lives.”
Safe Haven strives to provide pet-friendly housing options for at-risk people requiring either temporary emergency or long-term transitional housing with their beloved pets.
“Creating safe places for victims and their pets is beyond rewarding,” said Bryna Donnelly, Director of Safe Haven. “We are so happy to have the opportunity to help.”
RedRover also supports domestic violence shelters by sending their volunteers to help drive Safe Haven’s projects, designs and construction expertise. Over six days the combined team will build a cat patio, aka “catio,” renovate a cat room and a dog room, and add misters to outdoor kennel areas to keep the dogs cool in the summer. RedRover Responders volunteers are travelling from California, Utah and Arizona to help with this special shelter build.
“When my boys and I learned that we could bring our dogs to Sojourner Center, I took a huge breath and knew we were all going to be okay,” said a Sojourner Center participant.
About RedRover
Since 1987, RedRover has focused on bringing animals out of crisis and strengthening the human-animal bond through emergency sheltering, disaster relief services, financial assistance and humane education. Through their RedRover Relief program, they have helped thousands of animals and provided thousands of safe nights across the United States. With more than 4,000 trained volunteers in the United States and Canada, RedRover can deploy its volunteers quickly when communities become overburdened by a crisis involving large numbers of animals or to help a domestic violence shelter build pet-friendly spaces onsite. To learn how RedRover is building a more compassionate future, visit https://redrover.org/.
About Safe Haven
Safe Haven, an initiative of The Jackson Galaxy Project, a Signature Program of GreaterGood.org, strives to provide pet-friendly housing options for at-risk people requiring either temporary emergency or long-term transitional housing with their furry family member. The areas of focus include Domestic Violence Shelters, Homeless Shelters, and Veteran Housing options.
About GreaterGood.org
GreaterGood.org is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization that works to improve the health and well-being of people, pets, and the planet. Over the last 10 years, GreaterGood.org has given over $150 million in cash and in-kind grants to over 5,000 charitable partners worldwide and created and operates several Signature Programs to help animals, including Rescue Rebuild and Rescue Bank. To learn more, visit GreaterGood.org or follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
About Sojourner Center
Since 1977, Sojourner Center has been a safe haven from domestic violence for women and their children in Arizona. Since our founding, we have transformed lives by providing shelter and support services to more than 60,000 adults and children affected by domestic violence. Three years ago, Sojourner Center embarked on the journey of healing not just human victims of domestic violence but the pet companions who’ve lived in abusive homes too. Sojourner Center’s mission is to overcome the impact of domestic violence, one life at a time.
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To learn more about RedRover and its partners, email smadsen@redrover.org or call 916.600.8157
Contact for scheduling or more information:
Carla Landwerth
Office: 602.296.3385
Cell: 602.330.4147
clandwerth@sojournercenter.org