Local nonprofit group dedicates efforts to escaped and lost pets

Earlier this spring, the Mat-Su branch of 100+ Women Who Care gathered at their quarterly meeting to decide which local nonprofit organization they would donate to.

After drawing from the represented organizations and then hearing three different pitches, the women designated funding to the local nonprofit, “Helping Escaped & Lost Pets-HELP.”

Founder of the HELP nonprofit organization, Tonya Bruechet, expressed her gratitude to have received the funding from the organization.

“It's something where a person can give just a small amount of either their time or monetary donation, and it supports these programs that otherwise might wither away,” said Bruechet.

With support from the organization, Bruechet and her team have purchased a thermal drone, allowing for more in-depth aerial searches of escaped and lost pets in the valley.

Bruechet founded Helping Escaped & Lost Pets-HELP in 2013 when she and her team successfully caught a large English Mastiff.

Since, the nonprofit has worked hard to locate escaped and lost pets all over the Valley by posting signs, hosting searches and keeping social media pages up to date.

Bruechet shared how they do not charge individuals for the organization to help find their pets. For this reason, Bruechet believes external support from others to be key.

“There's expenses that go with the nonprofit,” said Bruechet. “So the funding helps us to continue providing this free service because we don't charge anybody anything and it’s all by donation.”

Bruechet shared her deep appreciation for the kind gift and the mission of the 100+ Women Who Care Organization, as Tonya believes their mission betters the Matanuska Susitna community.

The 100+ Women Who Care Organization has supported organizations including My House, Helmets on Heads, The Palmer Food Bank, Special Santa and more.

Upon attending one of the meeting of the 100+ Women Who Care Organization, all nonprofits and various organizations in the Matsu Valley are encouraged to enter themselves into a drawing at the beginning.

The women then draw three of the entries, and the three organizations are invited to deliver a 5-minute speech outlining the mission of their organization and how funding would support their endeavors.

The women then collectively decide which of the three organizations they would like to each individually write a $100 check for.

“You do the presentation and if you win the vote, great and you win, and if you don't, then you can throw your name in at the next meeting,” said Bruechet.

After receiving the women’s support, an organization is not eligible for one year to receive funding again. Currently, HELP, Kids Kupboard and Beacon Hill compose the organizations that have received women’s support within the past year.

Moving forward, Bruechet and her HELP team look forward to continuing to search for lost pets in the valley with the use of the new thermal drone, thanks to the support from 100+ Women Who Care.

HELP will host more raffles and various events to acquire funding from the community moving forward.

For 100+ Women Who Care Matsu, upcoming meetings and updates can be found on their Facebook page.

The women will meet on Sept. 13 for their third quarterly meeting at 6 p.m. at Everett’s restaurant in Wasilla. The community is welcome to join for the evening.