What we do
We collect donated pet food and supplies, and we give them to people who need
them. That's the whole of it.
Noah's Ark Pet Bank operates out of Westminster, Colorado, and serves people across the
surrounding Denver metro area. Most of the people we help are unhoused or close to it, and
most of them are feeding their animal before they feed themselves. A bag of kibble is a small
thing to hand someone. It is often the thing that lets them keep a companion they would
otherwise have to surrender.
We are volunteer-run, and the pet bank is run out of Donna’s home in Westminster. There is no warehouse, no office, no paid staff and no overhead worth mentioning. Food comes in each week and goes back out the same way.
Our story
Donna Rangel founded Noah's Ark Pet Bank in June 2023, and the organization was recognized as
a nonprofit later that year. She started it for a straightforward reason: she kept meeting
people living rough who had a dog or a cat with them, and there was food assistance for the
person and nothing for the animal.
The work took shape quickly. By the end of that first partial year there was a weekly
collection route, a quarterly one, and a steady flow of supplies moving out to people who
needed them.
The numbers
We are small and we would rather be plain about it than impressive about it.
- 2023 · half a year
- $11,525In food, supplies and cash received between June and
December. Twenty-six weekly pickups in six months.
- 2024 · first full year
- $27,525Received across the year, of which $27,080 went back out to
people and their animals.
- Cash, in 2023
- $125The entire cash total for the year. Everything else arrived as
food and supplies, and left the same way.
Nearly everything that comes in goes out again within the week. What little we hold at any
moment is the stock on the shelf.
Giving is paused right now
We are renewing our charitable registration with the Colorado Secretary of
State. Until that is current, we are not asking for or accepting donations — of money,
food or supplies.
We would rather say that plainly than quietly keep collecting. Colorado requires a charity to
hold a current registration before it solicits anything, and ours lapsed while we were sorting
out some paperwork we had let slide. We are fixing it.
Nothing else stops. If you need pet food, we can still help you — that part has not
changed and is not affected by any of this.
This page will say so when we can accept help again.
