We recently connected with Jenna Finch and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Jenna , thanks for joining us today. One of the most important things small businesses can do, in our view, is to serve underserved communities that are ignored by giant corporations who often are just creating mass-market, one-size-fits-all solutions. Talk to us about how you serve an underserved community.

Jenna is the Director of Operations and Co-founder for The Cantu Foundation which is a San Diego-based 501-c3 nonprofit organization that rescues and rehabilitates dogs in the poorest areas of Baja California.

At The Cantu Foundation, their primary goal is to offer a second chance at life to dogs from Baja California and Southern California. They believe that every dog deserves a loving home and an opportunity for a brighter future.
Their approach is simple yet impactful. They operate as a fully foster-based rescue organization, sustained by the generosity of donations and the unwavering dedication of their foster families. When a dog enters their care, they receive not only shelter but also the love, attention, and rehabilitation necessary to thrive.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Jenna’s family has been rescuing animals since she was born. She grew up with puppies and kitties her mom used to bring home from horrible situations just crawling all over her. It’s always been part of her life and a passion she has had. Her dream was always to help start and run a rescue organization and that dream came true when her co-founder, Fatima, and her started the Foundation in 2020. Since they started The Cantù Foundation, they have adopted out 800 dogs. It truly is amazing to think what two people’s dream and a wonderful group of volunteers can do to make a change in this world to help save dogs that need them most.

But what Jenna does for the Cantu Foundation is just her passion project that she will always be extremely proud of, but her career is a Dog Behavioral Therapist & Master Trainer. This is where she provides in home training to her clients in San Diego to help solve the most challenging behavioral issues.

So when she say dogs are her life, dogs are truly her LIFE!

This knowledge and expertise she has as a Dog Behavioral Therapist comes in handy for some of the dogs that are rescued from The Cantu Foundation to help with any behavioral issues they may be having.

When Jenna looks back to when she was a little girl feeding street dogs in Mexico to where she is today, she still can’t believe she gets to help and save dogs every day and for that she expresses how very grateful she is.

Can you tell us the story behind how you met your business partner?

In 2020, The Cantu Foundation emerged from the shared passion between co-founders, Jenna & Fatima. Despite residing on opposite coasts, these two kindred spirits connected through social media, driven by their mutual desire to make a positive impact on the lives of dogs in need.

Jenna meet her co-founder, Fatima, through Social Media and both had a passion for rescuing dogs. Fatima is based in Boston and her own personal dog, Cantu, is instagram famous (@cantuonwheels), and Jenna knew Fatima had a audience of people who loved dogs and the ability to help raise money if needed for dogs in need. Well Jenna found a dog in need in Mexico in terrible condition but without funds to get this dog medical attention. Jenna went out on a limb and asked Fatima if she would be willing to use her platform to raise the funds to help save this dogs life. It just spiraled from there and Jenna and Fatima become good friends but Fatima also become aware of the on-going issue of street dogs needing help in Baja. So, they both saw the need and The Cantu Foundation was born 4 years ago together. It started out with just Fatima and Jenna and now they have a team of volunteers of 80 people which they are so proud of and they have all become a family with a shared passion for helping dogs.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

Jenna explains that non-profit world is tricky and hard at times, but so rewarding because everyone is a volunteer and genuinely just wants to help. No one gets paid, everyone who volunteers with them does so because of their extreme passion for dogs and it’s pretty incredible the team they have built all sharing that same passion. As a small non-profit, they don’t get government funding, so they rely solely on donations from their community to help them continue to rescue dogs in need and keep the Foundation going day to day.

If anyone wants to get involved, donate or learn more about what The Cantù Foundation does, please visit their website or Instagram! They also have events every weekend all over San Diego with their adoptable dogs and would love for people to come support their mission!

www.thecantufoundation.org
@thecantufoundation

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.thecantufoundation.org/
• Instagram: @thecantufoundation
• Facebook: The Cantu Foundation
• Other: My in home dog training business:https://dog-training-sandiego.com/