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About Giving Tuesday
Giving Tuesday is a global initiative that encourages people and organizations to donate their time and money to charitable causes on the Tuesday following Thanksgiving in the United States. This Giving Tuesday (December 1st), ALIVE Rescue is raising funds for ISO House and much needed medical expenses. YOU can help by becoming a Giving Tuesday Ambassador or by making a one time donation.
A LETTER FROM THE FOUNDER
Since founding ALIVE Rescue in 2008, I have always looked for ways to make the lives of the animals we save better. That is why I am excited to share we have finally begun construction on ISO House at Big Barn. This is huge news for dogs waiting to be saved from our local shelters.
If you are unfamiliar with ISO House, it’s an idea and campaign we launched in 2024 after realizing we needed a place outside of Big Barn for dogs arriving sick or injured to have to quarantine, receive care, and recover — while keeping our Big Barn healthy dogs healthy.
If we are able to raise the remaining funds needed this Giving Tuesday, ISO House will be able to be completed by the end of December 2026.
When we first opened Big Barn, I knew it was only the beginning. There would always be room to grow, improve, and make life even better for the animals in our care. Over time, we’ve seen firsthand what they need from us — and we know that simply providing shelter isn’t enough. They deserve more.
That’s why we have BIG plans for Phase II of Big Barn, including an indoor play arena for dogs and expanded space for cats. But before we can begin that exciting next chapter, we must first complete ISO House.
We launched our ISO House campaign two years ago and raised $36,000 of the needed $61,000. This year, we hope to raise the remaining $25,000 so that dogs arriving sick or injured have a safe place to quarantine, receive care, and recover — while keeping our healthy dogs healthy.
Our Giving Tuesday goal is $50,000 — $25,000 to complete ISO House and $25,000 to cover medical and intake expenses for 2027 rescues. We cannot continue increasing our lifesaving intake numbers without this vital funding.
You can make a difference by becoming an ALIVE Rescue Giving Tuesday Ambassador this December. Together, we can give every animal who walks through our doors the chance to heal, thrive, and find their forever home.
With gratitude, Kristen Gerali
REQUIREMENTS
- Help raise donations between November 24th and December 1st, 2026 through Instagram, Facebook, individual fundraising link, email, or any other platform you prefer. We want to make it as easy as possible for you to participate. There is no minimum fundraising requirement.
- Animal lover
HOW IT WORKS
- December 1st is Giving Tuesday, the largest day of giving each year for non-profits. There are several ways you can help raise funds starting as early as November 24th (one week prior to GT).
- ALIVE Rescue has launched a peer-to-peer Giving Tuesday page that you can utilize to create your very own Giving Tuesday fundraising link. This link can be shared on social media and in emails to your friends and family.
- You can create a GT fundraiser on Facebook or Instagram that you share with your followers.
- You can share ALIVE Rescue GT posts to help spread the word.
HELP US FINISH BUILDING OUR NEW ISO HOUSE AT BIG BARN...
Otter was saved from Chicago Animal Care & Control
Since founding ALIVE Rescue in 2008, our hearts have always been drawn to saving dogs locally. We have focused a great deal of our resources on dogs at Chicago Animal Care and Control (CACC) through community outreach programs like CRISP and through our Homeward Bound partnership.
After opening Big Barn we added another local partner, Milwaukee Area Domestic Animal Control Commission (MADACC), so we could begin saving dogs in Wisconsin as well.
We love that we call two cities home.
THE PROBLEM
With the expansion of Big Barn, we hoped to be able to save many more lives. Unfortunately, over the last year, that has proved to be difficult for a couple of reasons.
1) The state of WI requires that all animals entering the state come with a special health certificate called a CVI. A sick dog will not pass this veterinary exam required to enter the state making it impossible for us to save any of the ailing dogs from CACC.
2) A majority of dogs coming out of CACC & MADACC will break with some sort of illness within the first 14 days of entering Big Barn. So even if dogs are presenting healthy when we save them, the likelihood of them remaining healthy is minimal. The risk this presents to our current canine population at Big Barn is too great.
THE SOLUTION
ALIVE Rescue has started construction on a new special isolation center at Big Barn called ISO House (ISOH). ISOH will be steps away from Big Barn and completely separate from our healthy dogs and puppies. This new addition will allow us to quarantine dogs straight out of MADACC & CACC until they are deemed healthy enough to enter Big Barn or move into a loving foster home.
ISO House will be a game changer for ALIVE Rescue and the dogs and puppies waiting to be saved from Chicago and Milwaukee.
By Becoming a Giving Tuesday Ambassador, you can help us make this dream a reality.
How Your Fundraising Makes an Impact
With your help, cats like Captain Magpie receive all the medical care they need and deserve.
Big Barn is a safe haven for forgotten animals including seniors, injured/sick animals, and dogs needing more individualized training. Dogs like Sparky, who call Big Barn home for life, receive special attention from our volunteers and staff.
Big Barn has special nursery suites for pregnant and nursing dogs, special suites for dogs with behavior issues, and medical sleeping rooms where volunteers and staff can care for animals who need us throughout the night.
Big Barn sits on seventy acres of land. Dogs and puppies like Philly are able to enjoy daily trail walks through nature. Canine residents are also able to socialize and play in a peaceful and controlled environment.
GIVING TUESDAY AMBASSADOR INCENTIVES
Top Fundraiser Prizes
1st Place Fundraiser ~ $150 Visa Gift Card
2nd Place ~ $100 Visa Gift Card
3rd Place ~ $50 Visa Gift Card
- Anyone who raises $2,500 or more, will have the opportunity to name an upcoming save.
Note: Top three fundraisers must raise $1,000 or more to be eligible for prizes.
Participant Gift
All participants receive swag bucks to be used in ALIVE Rescue's online store. Swag bucks are based on surpassing fundraising "targets" - $250 ($25 in swag $), $500 ($50 in swag $), $750 ($75 in swag $), $1,000 ($100 in swag $)
Example: Raise $600 and receive $50 in swag bucks because $750 was not surpassed
NEW MERCH ALERT: DOG/CAT HAIR IS MY GLITTER
Ambassadors can cash in their swag bucks earned from their Giving Tuesday fundraising to purchase our newly released Dog/Cat Hair Is My Glitter merch.
Find and Donate to an Ambassador
Or Make a Donation Directly to
Leaderboard
Giving Tuesday 2026