We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Britton Slagle a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Britton, looking forward to hearing all of your stories today. We’d love to have you retell us the story behind how you came up with the idea for your business, I think our audience would really enjoy hearing the backstory.

I adopted Suetra and Karma in September of 2001. Karma picked me out as I walked through the Denver Dumb Friends League – those eyes… My mom made sure I visited with Suetra, too (they were in the same, “cell”). I fell in love instantly. After that, it was just my girls and me. We went for many walks, cuddled a bunch, and learned to overcome some pretty significant things in life. Suetra was quite timid and had physical ailments weighing her down, but she found safety, comfort, and confidence in me. I lost Suetra to Hemangiosarcoma at age 13 in March of 2012. The tumor attached to her spleen had burst. The moment it was confirmed that she had cancer was the moment I had to decide to let her go. The vet that was helping us was off duty hours before we had to say goodbye to SueSue. She waited until I was ready, until Sue’s family could join us to say goodbye and her favorite blanket had covered her. I laid on the floor with my friend. I whispered that I loved her and that it’s okay. It’s okay. My heart still aches writing about it. I see her in my mind; I feel her in my heart. When I lost her, I felt like I lost a best friend. I was lonely. Since then, it has been my mission to help families that are affected by companion animal cancer.

After losing Suetra, Karma and I bonded in a way we hadn’t before. It was just her and me for the first time since I adopted them. We did everything together, including raise money for animal cancer research and other important projects. As she aged, we both learned the pleasure of scent tours – walking a little slower, stopping to smell the grass, the flowers, the air; it was quite nice. I had a friend – always. The love I shared with both of my girls was…indescribable, only felt deep within my heart and soul. I could tell Karma missed her sister almost immediately after Sue passed, so we adopted a sweet little Guinea Pig also from the Denver Dumb Friends League, Oscar (aka Boogie) in July of 2013 and they bonded immediately. In June of 2014 at the age of 14, I lost Karma to kidney disease and other ailments – cancer could have been an underlying culprit. Karma and Boogie were best friends until she passed. Her passing shattered the already broken pieces of my heart. I lay on the hospital floor with her at the end – just as I did with Suetra. I can still feel the cold floor. She rested on her favorite blanket and her family that loved her surrounded her. Karma knew it was okay to go; I needed convincing, but told her it was okay and that I loved her. The girls were such a big part of my life. All of the sudden, the world became silent. Then, it was just Boogie and me.

Boogie quickly became the ambassador to all things related to companion animal cancer. He let me dress him up and post photos of him all in the name of fundraising and kicking cancer’ s butt! He brought a smile to people’s faces that he never even met. Boogie On Day was created in honor of him and continues today. People pledge to do a random act of kindness in his name. After each busy day, I’d sit with Boogie. In September of 2015, I lost Oscar, my buddy with so much personality. The veterinarian thought he might have had lung cancer, but could not be sure without many tests that would have only prolonged the inevitable, so we treated his symptoms. Boogie passed away while sleeping in his castle one night – the night before he was due back to the veterinarian for a check-up; he was going weekly, and I barely told anyone about all the visits and him falling ill. His passing brought me to my knees – literally. I yelled, “No” so loudly and cried instantly. As I calmed myself, I sat with him. I know it was just his shell, but I could still feel him around. I told him I loved him and I was so grateful for the bond we shared – I was, I am. I was left in this world, what I would think of as completely and totally alone even though that was not the case. I have never felt more lost in my entire life as I found myself without a companion animal. Not only was the world silent, it was eerie and filled with despair. I actually left my home for a few days after that – I’ve never done that before, but I had to get some distance, I had to gain some kind of clarity.

Enter Nalani Koa. I adopted Nala in October of 2015. In fact, she is a product of Boogie On Day and is my first brown dog. Our adventures began with puppy play and fun classes. From there, we began taking longer walks and even went hiking a lot throughout the summer months. I am unbelievably grateful for Nalani Koa (her name means heavenly/the heavens and brave/fearless in Hawaiian). She gets me out of my comfort zone on a daily basis, challenges me to think outside of the box, and makes me laugh constantly. I feel love again – it’s like she came with tape to put together all the pieces of my broken heart. She is nothing like Suetra, Karma, or even Boogie. She is simply Nalani Koa, and that is exactly who I need right now. Nalani and I are currently navigating her own health journey; come what may; we will adventure together until the universe informs us of other plans.
For these reasons and so many others, I created KarmaSue, obtaining our 501(c) 3 in 2016. KarmaSue’s mission is to provide education, counseling, and financial support to Coloradan families that have companion animals living with cancer in an effort to honor the human-animal connection. I focused my entire Master of Nonprofit program from 2013 to 2015 on the idea of creating just the right services for people navigating companion animal cancer. My grief turned into motivation. I conducted interviews, surveys, and dove deep into research to truly understand what was needed and what I could do to fill this gap. I was lucky, I had supportive, empathetic family and friends surrounding me each time I fell to the floor as I lost a best friend – I wanted to be that person and provide a safe space for others wanting to honor their human-animal connections throughout their cancer journeys. KarmaSue and the families we support is (change “is” to “are”) my whole life, and I am so grateful for each moment.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

My name is Britton Slagle. I am a Colorado native and the Founder and Executive Director of KarmaSue. KarmaSue’s mission is to provide education, counseling, and financial support to Coloradan families that have companion animals living with cancer in an effort to honor the human-animal connection. Although I still have a “day job”, KarmaSue is and always will be my passion project. I am also in the process of starting a small business, Koa Consulting, that will focus on providing administrative and governance support to small nonprofits.

I earned a BA in English, a BS in Psychology, and a Master of Nonprofit Management all from Regis University. I made this dream a reality through scholarships, grants, and paying my own way through the programs. I have been involved in the nonprofit sector in some capacity for over 20 years – professionally for over 10 years. I volunteer for several nonprofits including The Humane Society of the United States as a Humane Policy Volunteer Leader. I have always enjoyed nonprofit and volunteer work. No one in my family “made” me volunteer when I was younger, I was not really exposed to the sector, my heart simply led the way and I followed.

I had a big idea and made it a reality, it goes by the name of KarmaSue! I had two dogs for a very long time, Karma and Suetra; they were my whole life. Suetra passed away from Hemangiosarcoma in March of 2012 – that event changed my life. As I moved forward, I lost Karma in June of 2014 to kidney failure and other ailments, one of which may have been underlying cancer. Then, in September of 2015, I lost my Guinea Pig buddy, Oscar (aka Boogie); he likely had lung cancer, but we did not go through with diagnostics because it would have been too hard on his already weak body. The saying goes that grief is just extra love with nowhere to go. Well, KarmaSue is where I chose to focus my love; it now has somewhere to go. I am so grateful to be able to support families enduring companion animal cancer; sincerely, it is an honor to do so.

KarmaSue has hosted successful fundraisers, built a highly competent Board of Directors and ambitious team of volunteers, and follows a detailed strategic plan. The organization created three thoughtful programs, which include: education related to cancer and other health topics regarding companion animals, treatment options, plus how to maintain a healthy lifestyle; grief and compassion fatigue counseling and other outlets for grief; and financial support for veterinary costs related to a cancer diagnosis and associated treatment.

KarmaSue’s education and counseling workshops are offered through collaborations with community partners willing to share their expertise to honor the human-animal connection.
Our volunteers act as advocates, not professionals, who simply empathize. Should professional services be needed/requested, KarmaSue works with the family to locate resources very intentionally.

We also offer end-of-life companioning services through our Harley-Grey Project (HGP). HGP is designed to supplement the costs associated with euthanasia, removal of the deceased (change “deceased” to “transitioned”) companion animal, cremation, or a combination of these services. KarmaSue pays some or all of the costs related to the service(s) to minimize trauma experienced by the family enduring companion animal cancer.

We are small, and we are trying to gain traction to become larger and help more families navigate companion animal cancer in ways that may not be seen as “traditional”. It can be challenging to compete with larger, more established organizations, but we are worthy and so motivated to grow and support families in the unique way that we do right now. We need more exposure, donors, support; we need you.

I am proud of so many aspects of KarmaSue. When the families find relief due to a financial application or HGP request being funded, when a person feels heard, seen, and validated as they navigate all types of grief (including anticipatory grief – that is a big one), when the pets are seen enjoying the toys and gifts we send them in care packages made especially for them, when volunteers work public events and I hear them sharing KarmaSue’s impact and mission to those that stop by our table (talk about warm fuzzies!), when donors choose to donate to KarmaSue because they see the need and feel our passion for this work and the families…I could really go on and on.

I’ll end with this – I am so proud of the fact that Karma, Suetra, and Boogie live on through this organization and the families we support. They may not be with me physically anymore, but they are absolutely still here; I could not do this work without them (add, “or Nalani Koa”).

What do you think helped you build your reputation within your market?

Although this is a continual process, what helps us build our reputation within the nonprofit sector and our community is to remain genuine. We are not perfect, nor do we pretend to be. We’re growing and we share that with our audience. We collaborate with professionals, local businesses, and other nonprofits as much as we can. We take the time to connect with the families coming to us for support as well as the donors that choose our programs to share their money with. We are real people working for little to no money – this is not the main job for any of our volunteers. We do this because we love it and believe in our mission; I think that is what helps us build and maintain a good reputation within our community.

Any advice for managing a team?

Do not be afraid to change, pivot, morph, merge, etc. If you are wondering how your team is feeling or what they may want to do, ask them, but do not stop there, wait for the answer and truly listen. The best teams I’ve encountered are collaborative ones. In fact, we took the opportunity to go through an internal reorganization; our programs changed, our roles changed a bit, and our mindsets changed. The world changes constantly; we must be flexible in order to meet our community’s needs – and our own.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://karmasue.org/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/karmasuecancer/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KarmaSueCancer/
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/karmasue
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEIbY2SQl8lTXJptdAZclIg