In an article published on July 11, 2023, The Zebra reported an alarming statistic: On average, every year in the United States, 1.5 million shelter animals are euthanized, approximately 670,000 dogs and 860,000 cats. The primary reason? The shelters are simply too full.[1]
On March 1, 2023, Veterinarians.org released an article relating statistics from a 2021 report on animal shelters that provided shocking statistics on the nation’s animal shelters and their euthanasian rates. While Mississippi topped the list with the highest percentage of animals being euthanized, it was Texas that had the highest number for animals being euthanized, a whopping 61,245 in 2021.[2]
In 2015, a four-year-old boy in Texas learned that not all dogs leave shelters alive. This broke the heart of the little boy and his mother, who made it their mission to get as many dogs as possible adopted. He and his mom would go into their local shelter and make videos with the little boy describing the dogs and showing their potential to be great pets. Within months of their first video being published online, Roman McConn and his mission to save shelter dogs went viral.
And Project Freedom Ride (PFR) was born.
Photo Courtesy of Project Freedom Ride.
History
Roman’s original goal was to highlight the dogs in his local shelter to connect them with loving families in their local area. But once the videos went viral, Roman and his mom, Jennifer, decided to dream bigger. What if they could connect these dogs not only with adopters in their local area, but also in other areas of the United States? So, on December 16, 2016, 31 dogs and a few cats made their freedom ride out of Texas to the arms of adopters in the Pacific Northwest and British Columbia.
Impact
Since then, Roman and Project Freedom Ride have made headlines for their efforts, including Roman’s two appearances on Ellen and appearances on Little Big Shots on NBC and Dodo Heros on Animal Planet. In addition, in 2018, the ASPCA named Roman their Kid of the Year for his efforts. As of July 2023, more than 4,800 dogs and 130 cats have taken their freedom rides to new homes and rescues in the Pacific Northwest, the Atlantic Northeast and the Midwest.
Photo Courtesy of Project Freedom Ride
Future
Here’s the thing, though. It costs $300,000 a year to vet the animals, maintain the transport vehicles, which includes fuel costs and insurance, and pay the two drivers, who are the only paid staff at Project Freedom Ride. The heartbreaking piece is that, as Roman reported on PFR’s Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/ProjectFreedomRide) on Thursday, August 17, 2023, PFR only has enough funds to operate through September 2023. Without drastic measures, Project Freedom Ride, which has helped so many animals connect with loving families, will cease to exist.
Photo Courtesy of Project Freedom Ride
A Personal Note
This situation hits home for me. You see, Roman, who is now 12, isn’t just some random kid that I came across on the internet. He’s a part of my mom’s extended family, and to see the dream of a family member potentially crashing down around them breaks my heart.
So, I’m putting out a personal plea. Will you help me in keeping Roman’s dream alive and helping many more dogs and cats find their way out of shelters and into loving homes? I’m including a couple ways that you can donate to PFR, one through Venmo and the other through PayPal. There is also a donation button on Roman’s Facebook post on the PFR Facebook page from Thursday, August 17, 2023.
Here’s the Venmo and PayPal donation info:
Venmo: @ProjectFreedomRide: Last 4 of phone # 4416
PayPal: @ProjectFreedomRide
Any little bit helps. I’ve also posted this on my profile on Medium, where it is set up to generate revenue. Any revenue generated from the post on Medium will be donated directly to PFR.
Photo Courtesy of Project Freedom Ride
Roman and Project Freedom Ride aren’t just making a difference in animals’ lives; they’re also making a difference in the lives of the humans who welcome those animals into their homes. Surely, with the power of this platform and the internet, we can help PFR to continue making a difference in both animal and human lives.
For more information on Roman and Project Freedom Ride, please visit their website, https://www.projectfreedomride.org/, their Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/ProjectFreedomRide, their TikTok platform, @projectfreedomride, and their Instagram account, @projectfreedomride.
[1] “Pet Adoption Statistics.” The Zebra, July 11, 2023. https://www.thezebra.com/resources/research/pet-adoption-statistics/, accessed August 18, 2023.
[2] “Animal Shelter Statistics: State Rankings and Nationwide Data.” Veterinarians.org, March 1, 2023. https://www.veterinarians.org/animal-shelter-statistics/, accessed August 18, 2023.