A look back at hope. There was something about that call. Something that said we needed to find a way to get there.

Our Emergency Kibble Response Team was loaded and on the way within the hour. And for a call like that we were prepared with everything we might need for both person and pet.

She said her dogs were named Harry and Sally because that movie always made her laugh and she said her dogs did too. She laughed when she said it. And that was good enough. Because any laughter was a good thing considering the situation. Because things were not so good.

Her temporary home was inside her car at a freeway rest stop. The rest stop was like so many others. While thousands came and went, she stayed. How long she was there was not important.

What was important was that she was there due to problems that exceeded her ability to fix. Problems she had not caused. And now she was trapped. Luckily she did have somewhere else to go. She just needed help getting on the road again.

The Pongo Fund is a Pet Food Bank. We’re here to help keep pets fed when their own families are temporarily unable to keep them fed. To keep those animals safe and out of the shelters during the toughest of times. But this one needed more than just pet food. This one needed hope.

Luckily we had hope to give. For two and four-legged alike.

Despite a situation that cried out for help, we were instead greeted by a delightful, optimistic yet cautious woman who believed that greetings of joy were the most important.

As she described them, rather than talk about them as her problems, she described them as simply life. Like the ebb and flow of the tide, some moments better than others.

And what was bad now would be washed away and replaced with good. At least that was the positive nature she shared.

But the look in her eyes also told us she knew the tide was not in her favor right then. And that some help, any help, would be welcomed.

We could see that she was hurting.

But her dogs? Her dogs looked great!

Her car was tidy and provided a compact home for the two wiggly, waggly mixed breeds that doted on their Mom. Just as she doted on them. And not a single one of them voiced or barked a complaint.

She said she was on her way from north to south and passing through Oregon was part of her route. She had a plan and a purpose and both revolved around her dogs. They were her family and the number of times she looked them in the eyes and gave each a kiss made it clear that they were the best family anyone could ever hope for.

We know we can’t fix everything. Sometimes things are simply what they are. Maybe just as they’re meant to be. But we can still help. We can ask. We can offer. We can do more. We can leave the situation better than it was. Or at least we can try.

And that’s what The Pongo Fund has become.

What began as a Pet Food Bank has blossomed into a volunteer-driven and bootstrapped organization that has found a way to be more and to do more than we ever expected.

And it’s all because of you and the support you provide to us. Your kind words, your hopeful words, your contributions of love and blessings and money.

On that day for that woman and for her beloved Harry and Sally we got it done. After confirming where she was headed and that she had a place to stay, we helped them get back on the road.

All thanks to a few kind people that pulled together on the spur-of-the-moment to help in anyway they could.

What we did for them involved more than just a bowl of kibble. But there was that too. Many of them, actually.

Because sometimes a bowl of kibble is the force that both keeps a family together and saves the lives of the animals they love.

Being there for a woman that despite it all retained her optimism. And being there for the dogs that she loved. The dogs that made her laugh through the toughest of times.

We do this work with you. We do it because of you. But most of all, we do it together.

And this is why we Pongo.

Sit. Stay. Eat. Live. thepongofund.org