Submitted by Eaton Community Bank

(Photo Provided: Eaton Community Bank President Timothy Jewell, right, presents a $5,000 donation to Happy Feet Pet Rescue as the winner of the bank’s fourth annual Charitable Giving Campaign on Tuesday, Nov. 28. Receiving the check (from left) are Happy Feet employee Clare Pike, co-founders LuEllen Smith and fellow co-founder Patience Cole, along with a pair of furry friends.)

A good cause paired with cute puppies and kittens are simply tough to beat.

With an impressive 58 percent of the final vote, Happy Feet Pet Rescue won Eaton Community Bank’s fourth annual Charitable Giving Campaign and subsequent $5,000 donation.

“What Eaton Community Bank does with this Charitable Giving Campaign is just amazing,” Happy Feet Pet Rescue co-founder Patience Cole said. “There are so many wonderful organizations in our communities, and each of the five finalists are so deserving. Thank you so much; we’re so honored to receive this donation. We’re just so grateful to have the support of our community.”

Eaton’s annual campaign lives on social media and is 100 percent community driven. Each year the bank announces the campaign’s start in early October across its social media channels with a public call for nominations. Requirements for participation are simple; nominees must be a registered non-profit organization based locally and serving the local communities. In early November the five finalists are announced as voting opens via the bank’s social media channels. Each organization has until the Wednesday before Thanksgiving to generate as many community votes as possible with the winner announced on Giving Tuesday.

While the winner is presented with a $5,000 donation, each of the remaining finalists receive a $1,000 donation.
“This is one of our favorite things we do every year,” Eaton Community Bank President Timothy Jewell said. “There’s so many great organizations with amazing people behind them throughout our communities, we’re just happy we can build awareness for as many like-minded organizations as possible. The vitality of our communities is at the heart of everything we do at Eaton, and our annual Charitable Giving Campaign is a fun way to demonstrate our support.”

Happy Feet Pet Rescue is primarily a foster-based rescue committed to helping dogs and cats in distress. It opened a permanent location affectionally named “Landry’s Landing” located adjacent to the Jolly Road Veterinary Clinic at 3276 E Jolly Road, Suite B, in Lansing with more than 100 foster families. Happy Feet also offers spay/neuter services for pet owners within our communities experiencing financial constraints, as well as access to food and supplies for their pets.
“If you know someone who needs to get their pets spayed or neutered, please encourage them to check out our website at www.happyfeetpetrescue.com,” Cole said. “We have a community support form, and a lot of this money will go directly toward the community that way.”

More –
The remaining finalists for the 2023 Charitable Giving Campaign were CASA for Kids Inc., Focus on Love Foundation, Michigan’s Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Hall and Museum, and Mitten Misfits Farm Sanctuary. To learn more about each of the finalists, visit www.eaton.bank/community-strength.

Happy Feet Pet Rescue joins previous Charitable Giving Campaign winners Ken Clark’s Coat Closet & GECKO (2022), Waterloo Area Historical Society (2021) and Stockbridge Community Outreach (2020).

Eaton Community Bank has served mid-Michigan since it was chartered by two local businessmen in 1937 to help local families buy a home and provide a safe place to invest their savings. Today, Eaton provides expanded services and solutions to meet the financial needs of the diverse communities it calls home.