VOLUME 6
Happy Spring y’all from Waelder, Texas!
Rowdy is the word for 2024 so far! I have exciting highlights from Q1 to share with you. Before I get into it, I want you to know that nothing you are about to read would be possible without your support. Whether you subscribe to our emails, contribute, eat plants, call your legislators or volunteer, you are a partner in our mission. Thank you.
I’m just back from Houston where I attended the Peaceful Planet Foundation’s (PPF) Yearly Retreat. The dynamic duo of Dr. Neal Barnard and Dr. Michael Greger headlined the sold-out event.
The PPF was founded by longtime Rowdy members Dr. Bandana Chawla and Dr. Munish Chawla to educate the public about the power of plant-based eating and mindfulness. They connect nonprofits, churches, individuals and institutions to empower young students and adults to have agency in a food system that benefits a relative few with massive profits and leaves suffering, poor health and a ruined landscape in its path.
Last month I attended the world premiere of Christspiracy at the Skirball Center in Los Angeles. More on that below.
Next up is the AVA Summit in Washington, DC. I hope to see many of you there. Get ready world – the animal justice movement is big and getting bigger. We are a movement whose time has come.
Rowdy Girl Impact Tour
Breaking news! The Rowdy Girl documentary will be screened at the following theaters:
DCTV in New York, NY on May 31st-June 6th 2024
Laemmle’s Monica Film Center in Santa Monica, CA on June 7th-13th, 2024
Rowdy Girl has the power and potential to shift the landscape of food consumption and production away from animals and toward compassion. Our story is disrupting the way people have been programmed by their culture, changing hearts and minds in rural America. Our vision is to bring the family-friendly film across the country, targeting theatergoers, agricultural communities, student bodies and churches.
The film has been selected for distribution by Argot Pictures, who has distributed dozens of independent, documentary and foreign films since 2005.
Christspiracy
If you were blown away by Cowspiracy, Seaspiracy and What The Health, fasten your seatbelts. Filmmaker Kip Andersen has done it again. This time he teamed up with gospel musician Kameron Waters pictured here.
Christspiracy is the culmination of a seven-year global expedition driven by the question, “is there a spiritual way to kill an animal?”
Their journey leads them from the ancient streets of Rome to the sacred sites of Jerusalem, the scholarly halls of Oxford to the spiritual landscapes of India. Throughout this journey, Andersen and Waters engage with a diverse array of voices, including renowned theologians, archaeologists, Christian farmers, and Indigenous shamans, unraveling a narrative that has been obscured for two millennia.
Kameron traveled to Rowdy Girl Sanctuary to interview us and they’ve included the segment in the film.
Be sure to get updates on where Christspiracy will be streamed.
New Animal Residents Update
Since the last issue, we welcomed the following new residents to the sanctuary:
Tito the goat was a product of FFA (Future Farmers of America). After raising him in the program, Tito’s family just could not send him off to auction where he would be sold to the highest bidder and end up slaughtered. Tito was raised by Luke who poured his heart and soul into that being. Our Families Choosing Compassion Program gave Luke’s family a humane and compassionate alternative.
Henry is our first goose! He was surrendered to us after a dog attacked and killed his entire feathered family.
Membership Spotlight
Without our members, Rowdy Girl Sanctuary is just an idea! Fortunately our membership is growing and provides the runway of support we need for daily sanctuary operations. Our membership goal for 2024 is 800 monthly members. We need 112 new members to reach it.
If you are not yet a member of the ROWDY CLUB, there’s no time like the present!
Meet our featured member Kira McCoy of Lincolnshire, Illinois.
Kira has been a monthly, sustaining member for 2-½ years. Regular donations that we can count on give us the support we need to take care of all our beloved farm animal resident rescues. We can’t do it with you! Thank you Kira.
Here’s Kira’s Why:
Animals are special to me, and connecting with them is so important and reminds us of who we are and what we can be as a species. I hope one day humans are known for taking care of animals and treating everyone and every animal kindly.
Sanctuaries don’t profit from animals. Animal agriculture industry does. Sanctuaries thrive solely because of the kindness of human beings who choose to volunteer their time and money to save and care for animals. Not only does donating to sanctuaries like Rowdy Girl help the animals there, it shows each and every person who is influenced by the sanctuary, both from their online presence and for those who are lucky enough to visit, the joy and importance of protecting animals; and it inspires people to make kinder choices in every aspect of their life.
As someone who has been vegan for nearly nine years, I can say for certain that sanctuaries like Rowdy Girl help people to see animals as not separate from us, but as just another form of conscious, sentient beings that have emotions, feelings, friends, and family, just like us. We have so much more to gain from treating animals with the respect they deserve than from exploiting them.
What Is The One Piece of Equipment We Can’t Live Without?
A Kawasaki Mule of course!
Our new Mule made possible by the generous support of two anonymous donors enables us to:
-
haul debris from daily cleaning of animal enclosures (chickens, ducks, goats, pigs, rabbits, turkeys). All their bedding gets cleaned out daily and has to be hauled off site to a designated debris disposal.
-
haul dozens of bags of 50 pound bags of feed when we supplement the large herd.
-
haul and strategically place the 100 pound protein tubs out to the herd.
-
haul fencing supplies for regular fence repairs.
As you can see, there’s much hauling going on here! All in a day’s work at the sanctuary.
Recent Media Attention
Rowdy Girl made the most influential fashion magazine on the planet!
Plan Your Trip to Rowdy Girl Sanctuary Today!
We love to welcome guests so they can experience the beautiful energy created by our animal residents living their lives peacefully.
Private tours are an important part of raising awareness about our food system and creating a ripple of compassion that will keep spreading.
Book your private tour here. We would love y’all to visit!
Thank You Corporate Sponsors!
We are indebted to the mission-aligned sponsors below who contribute a great deal to Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. Look for their delicious products wherever you shop.
Our friends at Treeline have three simple beliefs: food must taste good, food must be good for you and food must do good. Amen! Thank you for your generous contributions.
Our friends at Beyond Meat believe that by shifting from animal to plant-based meat, we can positively affect growing global issues such as constraints on natural resources and animal welfare. After all, the positive choices we make every day – no matter how small – can have a great impact on our world. We believe so too!
All Y’alls Foods Founder and CEO Brett Christoffel! Brett pays it forward for the animals with his time, treasure and talent to support Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. According to PR Newswire, “All Y’alls Foods is a mission-driven and visionary plant-based protein company founded by Brett Christoffel. Inspired by his journey towards compassion and sustainability, the company he built aims to offer more delicious and nutritious plant-based protein alternatives and is committed to fostering a healthier, more sustainable world for all living beings.”
Thank you Darren and Linda Middlesworth for your donations of plant-based dog kibble for all the Rowdy Girl pooches as well as our visitors’ dogs.
Save the Date!
ANNUAL HEARTWORKING VOLUNTEER DAY
Join me at the The Animal & Vegan Advocacy Summit in Washington, DC on May 16-19.
In Memoriam
Our lives were made better by having you in it. We will miss you all.
Gizmo
Penny
Michael Jackson
Pearly
Carly
Raven