Impact Update: Q2 2024
During April-June 2024, the Gregory J. Reiter Memorial Fund made fresh grants to People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), and Woodstock Farm Sanctuary in New York.
Here are five Q2 2024 highlights of work the Greg Fund has supported:
1 – Eduxanima Romania received PETA’s 2024 Gregory J. Reiter Animal Rescue Award: The 9th annual award was announced in June for Eduxanima’s work to combat Romania’s homeless animal crisis by sterilizing some 35,000 dogs and cats in 45 villages; delivering vaccines and general veterinary care; bringing humane education to Romanian schools, and working with lawmakers on animal protection policies. Eduxanima has also been instrumental in supporting those fleeing the war in Ukraine with their animal companions.
2 – A breeder of beagles for research agreed to pay a record $35 million in penalties for violating the Animal Welfare Act and Clean Water Act, as announced by the US Department of Justice in June. PETA’s Cruelty Investigations unit, which the Greg Fund supports annually, first revealed abuses of thousands of beagles at Envigo’s Cumberland, Virginia facility in 2021, and then worked with federal and Virginia lawmakers and government officials to close the facility in 2022 and release 4,000 beagles. PETA, the Humane Society of the United States, and many other organizations then successfully placed all the dogs in homes — showing what animal advocates can achieve when working collectively toward a common purpose.
3 – Humans and Other Animals is the latest documentary film from “Speciesism: The Movie” director Mark DeVries, and the Greg Fund made a 2021 grant to support its production. In June 2024, the film’s July 12-August 8 premiere schedule was announced for seven US cities, with a streaming release scheduled to follow. In DeVries’ words, “the film presents the whys and hows of the animal movement in a way that is entertaining, easy to understand, and non-graphic. For the first time, a single film includes the evidence for nonhuman animals’ sentience, investigations into factory farming, the philosophical case for taking other animals seriously, the common objections and responses, and the practical steps that individuals and institutions can take.”
4 – The Exam Room Podcast of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, which the Greg Fund has helped sponsor since 2019, had an exciting lineup of guests and topics in Q2 2024. Sponsored episodes included Rethinking Processed Foods and Bird Flu: Is Your Milk Safe? with Dr. Neal Barnard. Other Q2 episodes included NBA Legend John Salley Goes Vegan; Zero-Waste Recipes with Carleigh Bodrug; and Impactful Vegan Bodybuilder Robert Cheeke.
5 – In June, Woodstock Farm Sanctuary in High Falls, New York celebrated 20 years of rescue, education, and advocacy for farmed animals. The Greg Fund has been a supporter since 2018, with particular recent emphasis on the Woodstock-led Fair Campaign, a coalition of sanctuaries and organizations working to end cruel practices at state and county fairs.
Also this quarter: On June 21, I marked ten years with Caroline, a horse Greg and I adopted from a PETA rescue in 2014. Blog and video at A decade with Caroline!
While the Fund runs primarily on assets Greg left behind, it has also expanded its reach through donations from friends and supporters. Thank you to the following generous individuals who contributed to the Greg Fund in the first half of 2024:
- Anonymous (2)
- Pavel Belau
- Ting Yi Bell
- Jennifer Barbara Congdon
- Jeana Curro
- Keith Kemplin
- Deborah Kula
- Holly Melinda Pepper
- Lawrence and Zoray Spielvogel
- Quincy Tang