Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mandy LaVelle. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Hi Mandy, thanks for joining us today. Let’s kick things off with talking about how you serve the underserved, because in our view this is one of the most important things the small business community does for society – by serving those who the giant corporations ignore, small business helps create a more inclusive and just world for all of us.

Lucky 13 Rescue is a federal 501(c)3 foster home based organization dedicated to the rescue and aid of homeless and neglected dogs in the Kansas City metro and surrounding rural areas. We do not limit our efforts to a specific breed, but rather strive to assist any dog that is facing neglect, homelessness, abuse or death. Our ultimate goal is to rehabilitate each canine in our care through placement in loving foster homes until they can be carefully matched with adoptive families.

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?

I was an outdoorsy tomboy growing up, who always tried to talk my parents into letting a random injured bird, salamander, or baby bunny into our home every other week. I was almost always turned away (which I sort of understand now having two children of my own), but nonetheless, my love for animals continued to grow.

After I graduated from college, I moved to the Kansas City area and I began fostering for several local organizations. It was through these organizations that I was able to help amputated, ill, and homeless dogs find their forever homes and discover my passion to help dogs. I then married my husband, Charles, in 2015, and we moved to the city to Drexel, Missouri. Once we settled into the country, I began to see a need for rural animal assistance. Together, Charles and I founded Lucky 13 Rescue in August 2016.

Since then, the organization has relocated to the Kansas City area and has grown from just the two of us into 100+ volunteers! My dream of helping the homeless and neglected dogs would not have become a reality without their dedication and help. Lucky 13 Rescue has adopted out 1,750+ dogs since 2016!

I think people are most surprised when I tell them that outside of Lucky 13 Rescue, I work a full-time job as a graphic designer, help my husband manage his car dealership Lucky 13 Auto in Drexel, Missouri, share responsibilities for our four dogs (3 personal, 1 foster), and have two children who are under the age of 5.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

Oh, man, haha! Managing Lucky 13 Rescue has NEVER technically been a smooth road, but here we are together kicking it and taking names. Starting a 501(c)(3) from scratch with zero knowledge took a lot of research and question asking. You then have insurance, inspections, licenses and the longest paper trail ever to keep up with. You add in daily calls, emails, and then actual dogs, and you have a functioning dog rescue!

The biggest struggle (outside of me making jokes about the administration portion) is finding dedicated individuals to volunteer, foster, adopt and donate. Our organization is different from the shelters in our area, as we are fully run by volunteers and a foster-home based rescue. What this means is we solely rely on people in our community to open their homes to dogs in need and allow them a safe place to live until we can match them with a perfect family. We rely on them to volunteer. We rely on them to donate. This is what keeps Lucky 13 Rescue going full speed. We are always looking for new individuals to join our family. They can visit lucky13rescue.org to see what opportunities we have that might fit their lifestyle. Many tasks can be done within 10-20 minutes a day, and from your couch!

You can donate towards the medical care for Lucky 13 foster dogs in many ways!
• Venmo (@lucky13rescue)
• Paypal.me/lucky13rescue
• CashApp ($lucky13rescue)
• www.lucky13rescue.org via donate button

Let’s talk about resilience next – do you have a story you can share with us?

Lucky 13 Rescue is a federal 501(c)3 foster home based organization dedicated to the rescue and aid of homeless and neglected dogs in the Kansas City metro and surrounding rural areas. We do not limit our efforts to a specific breed, but rather strive to assist any dog that is facing neglect, homelessness, abuse or death. Our ultimate goal is to rehabilitate each canine in our care through placement in loving foster homes until they can be carefully matched with adoptive families.

We strive to place dogs into the best homes possible. We require a vet check, reference checks, and currently a virtual home check prior to meeting a dog in our program. To Lucky 13, dogs are family and we want to adopt to others who feel the same. What is cool about adopting from a foster-home based rescue is that you get a dog that has been living in a home, learning how to act in a home, and understands what a home life feels like. This allows a smoother transition for dogs and humans.

Adoption Fees:

• Puppies (under age of 1) $350-250 adoption fee. This includes age-appropriate vaccinations, heartworm testing (over 6 months of age), dewormer, microchip and spay/neuter surgery.
• Adult Dogs (1-5 years of age) $200 adoption fee. This includes vaccinations, heartworm testing, dewormer, microchip and spay/neuter surgery.
• Seniors (6+ years of age) $100 adoption fee. This includes vaccinations, heartworm testing, dewormer, microchip, CBC blood panel and spay/neuter surgery (if vet approves).

Contact Info:

• Website: www.lucky13rescue.org
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/lucky13rescue
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/lucky13rescue
• Twitter: www.twitter.com/lucky13rescue
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUF7nRA9aoievOKXh-VoiYg
• Other: Email: info@lucky13rescue.org