I remember that day in 2015. I was standing amongst a crowd of people in an inconspicuous warehouse that sits in an office/industrial area of Blue Ash.
It was a proud day for veterinarian Dr. Zeke Zekoff and his small army of volunteers. They saw a need. They set out to find a way to fulfill it. They made it happen.
On that day, United Pet Fund – our region’s nonprofit resource bank for animal rescues – opened its 8,500 sq ft storage and distribution site, that, today houses a couple hundred thousand pounds of food plus puppy pads, paper towels, cleaning supplies, crates, toys, gates, and more. Since its inception, UPF has distributed over $10 million of product to its more than 110 members organizations.
It began ten years ago.
In his work, Dr. Zekoff saw time and again the incredible gift of life and love that passionate volunteers were giving to homeless animals. Those people, those advocates, those determined saviors would not be able to pursue their mission on heart and need alone. It takes so much energy to nourish, rehabilitate and find new forever homes for animals in their care. Having to use precious manpower for securing resources was a burden Dr. Zekoff wanted to take off their shoulders.
United Pet Fund began as a small effort. Dr. Zekoff and some volunteers asked people and businesses for donations that they could give to those local rescues. The support grew quickly. Soon they needed to rent storage space. And before long, they needed something a lot more. An entire warehouse building.
I think of United Pet Fund as the Freestore Foodbank or Matthew 25: Ministries of the pet rescue and advocacy world. Member organizations pay a nominal annual fee (there is currently a wait list to join), and for that they can attend month Distribution Days to pick up whatever food and supplies they need. A typically Distribution Day will see UPF volunteers handing out between 500 and 200 pounds of resources. Donations come primarily from a variety of corporate impact partners such as Chewy.com, Procter & Gamble, Church and Dwight, Blue Mountain, and Central Pet Distribution.
Adoptive parents can now also visit to purchase low cost supplies at UPF’s Martha’s Corner.
Also, UPF’s annual health fair is held in an economically under-served area of Cincinnati where in a single afternoon over 200 dogs and cats receive much-needed free health care from volunteer veterinary professionals and UPF volunteers.
Ashley Zekoff is UPF’s only paid employee. As Director of Events, she plans the Distribution Days, fundraising events (like the Muttstache Dash), and handles the promotion. When it comes to passion, you could very much say, like father like daughter. As a child she remembers asking if she could go with her dad to work every Saturday. She told me he would pay her $5 for the day and always threw in lunch.
“I love doing this work and being a part of something so important,” she said.
To learn more about UPF and how you can help, please visit their website, www.unitedpetfund.org.
