A vision to help save 10,000 dogs every year

Goals shape behavior. In business, a clear target forces you to think about systems, resources and what has to be true to reach it. When I set the long-term goal for Passion With a Purpose, I wanted something ambitious enough to demand that kind of thinking: within 10 years, help save 10,000 dogs every year from high-risk shelters.

Where we are today

In 2025, the initiative helped 563 dogs find homes. Our goal for 2026 is 1,000. Those are meaningful numbers and a real start, but they’re a fraction of where we want to go. Reaching 10,000 dogs a year means growing roughly tenfold from this year’s goal. That won’t happen by doing more of the same. It requires building something that scales.

Why digital marketing is the engine

The central idea behind the initiative is that many shelter dogs aren’t adopted because the right families never see them. Digital advertising changes that. With targeted social media campaigns, a shelter can put an adoptable dog in front of thousands of nearby people likely to be interested, at a modest cost per campaign.

Digital marketing is also measurable. We can see which campaigns lead to inquiries and adoptions, which approaches work best for urgent or long-stay dogs and where each dollar does the most good. That feedback loop is what makes scale possible.

Building toward scale

Getting from 1,000 to 10,000 dogs a year depends on a few things: working with more shelters, especially high-risk shelters where added adoption activity makes the biggest difference; developing repeatable campaign approaches that shelters can benefit from without adding to their workload; supporting adoption events that bring more families through the door; and testing new strategies, keeping what works and dropping what doesn’t.

Personal input needed: any specific plans for the next phase you’re ready to share, such as new regions, partner organizations or programs.

Measuring what matters

The metric that counts is simple: dogs leaving shelters for loving homes. Ad impressions and clicks only matter if they lead there. As the initiative grows, we’ll keep reporting results honestly, separating what has been accomplished from what we’re still working toward.

Why set such a big goal

Some people might call 10,000 dogs a year unrealistic. I’d rather set a goal that forces us to build something meaningful than one we’re sure to hit. My career in real estate has taught me that big outcomes come from consistent effort over many years, and that patience and discipline can accomplish things that look impossible at the start.

Every dog counts. The long-term vision is to make sure thousands more get the chance at a home every year.