MUSCATINE, Iowa–When the recent durecho hit the city of Cedar Rapids, it did not just affect the lives of the people living there; it also impacted their pets. Beth Van Zandt, founder of For Pets’ Sake, an organization that fosters animals for people staying at MCSA and that runs the local pet food pantry, wants to help pet owners in Cedar Rapids get back on their feet. To assist them, For Pets’ Sake will hold a pet food drive.

Through Sept. 12, Becky’s Bow Wow Boutique and Happy Tails Pet Resort and Kennel will accept donations of dry cat and dog food as well as cat litter. They will accept donations of any size, though Van Zandt recommends smaller bags of food and litter as recipients can more easily carry them away. For Pets’ Sake also accepts monetary donations via check or their PayPal, paypal.me/forpetsiowa. When donating via PayPal, Van Zandt requests donors earmark the money for the Cedar Rapids pet food drive.

Once the drive finishes, Van Zandt will drive the newly refurbished For Pets’ Sake mini bus up to Cedar Rapids and distribute the food and litter in conjunction with the Wellington Heights Neighborhood Association, a non-profit organization recommended to her by Preston Moore, the Iowa State Director of the Humane Society of the United States.

After Van Zandt saw several people in Cedar Rapids request help getting pet food, she knew she wanted to organize a drive. “They’re hurting, and that is what we do in Iowa–we help out,” she said. “I think someone would help us if we were in the same situation,” she added.

This week, Van Zandt hopes you will consider donating to the drive. “Pets are a big part of peoples’ lives,” she emphasized, stressing that when people recover from a disaster, their immediate worries include making sure their family, friends, and animals came through safely. By donating to the drive, you can help people and their pets find peace of mind as they recover.