As wildfires tore through homes and communities in California, groups in Wisconsin set out to help.
Earlier this month, TMJ4's Mariam Mackar sat down with local animal rescue, Blackberry Point Haven, and shared their call for donations to bring to shelters on the west coast.
READ MORE: Wisconsin animal rescue collecting donations for California wildfires
The rescue’s owner, Jennifer Englund, reached out to Mackar, saying the first trip was so successful that they are making a second trip to the East Coast with more donations.
Englund’s initial hope was to fill two trailers with goods for L.A. nonprofits.
After TMJ4 aired their story, they left with 6,000 pounds of donations to bring to the West Coast.
"We did not expect this kind of result," said Summer Street.
Watch: Local animal organizations prepare to take thousands of donations to east coast
Street is the owner of End of the Leash, a pet supplies store in Mukwonago and Hales Corners that partnered with Englund and Blackberry Point to collect donations for the first trip.
"We're like, we need to do this again and go east," Street recalled.
The two groups are now working with major pet food companies like Pets Global, which donated 22,000 pounds of food, to bring two semi-trucks of donations to North Carolina.
"In total, we’re taking 30,000 pounds of cat food, dog food, and litter. People are still struggling from the results of Hurricane Helene, power issues, and living issues."
Street says it isn't surprising that the Wisconsin community and companies nationwide showed up in such a big way to help both of these causes.
"I think the one thing that brings all people together is animals. They’re just so pure and so innocent. There’s no politics, it's just about helping, and everyone bands together around that," Street said.
End of the Leash and Blackberry Point Haven are still collecting donations to help with the cost of transporting all these goods to the East Coast.
You can learn more about how to help here.
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