Five Questions With: Jordan Ross

Jordan Ross is the executive director, founder and president of PetsEmpower.org, a nonprofit based in Providence that helps survivors of domestic violence find temporary foster homes for their pets. Ross spoke with Providence Business News about PetsEmpower.org’s mission and its recent acceptance into the MassChallenge 2017 accelerator program.

PBN: How did your experiences with pet fostering for domestic-abuse survivors evolve into the idea for PetsEmpower.org?

ROSS: I am a survivor of domestic violence myself and ended up homeless on the streets of Boston with my black lab, Jazz, after graduating from Cornell because the shelters prohibited pets. I thankfully found a group home to foster Jazz at Pine Street Inn in Boston. Men transitioning out of homelessness themselves loved Jazz and told me he helped them recover as well!

I always wanted to help others going through this process because I realized short-term pet fostering is hard to access and needs to grow. I initially wanted to create a group home in a three-family I owned in Boston. I soon realized I clearly envisioned creating an organization [with] larger worldwide impact.

- Advertisement -

I had raised funds for the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and asked Peter Pyclik, my SCORE mentor, if I could raise funds for existing programs across the country and world to make more impact since they all needed organizational support and resources. He recommended the United Way model of providing organizational capacity and PetsEmpower.org was born.

PBN: How does PetsEmpower.org work? Who can use your services?

ROSS: Domestic-violence survivors, addicts, veterans and seniors in need of short-term pet fostering or social service agencies and hospitals serving them can contact PetsEmpower.org online and start the process. We then place the pet in a foster program at the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals in Boston or Safe People Safe Pets in Wellesley, Mass. The pets are screened at a veterinarian and placed in a volunteer foster’s home for the duration. We are looking to also connect with pet-foster programs in Rhode Island over time.

PBN: How have your partnerships with community organizations grown since you first started PetsEmpower.org?

ROSS: Community organizations and volunteers continue to reach out and tell us they deeply care about helping those in need keep their pets. Our partnerships and collaborations with community organizations continue to grow. We partner with UpCountry Inc., Alex and Ani Inc., Warwick Ice Cream Co., Save One Soul, R.I. Friends of Animals in Need, PetSmart, Social Enterprise Greenhouse, MassChallenge, EpiCenter Accererate Boston, Emma 25, MIT Sandbox, The Dodo, Pet Valu, Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza, Boys and Girls Club, Vinoanalytics, Tufts at Tech Veterinary Clinic, the Global Center for Social Enterprise, Bow chika Wow Town, Boston University PR Lab, ZenCare, Style Unleashed and Crate Escape.

PBN: What kind of feedback have you received about PetsEmpower.org? How has that feedback helped you as you’ve built this organization?

ROSS: Please see the testimonial from Amber on PetsEmpower.org.

It’s helping us with marketing and product-market fit, collaborating with domestic-violence hotlines and domestic-violence agencies, building our SEO and creating ad campaigns to raise public awareness.

PBN: What are your goals as a MassChallenge startup? Do you have plans to grow beyond Boston and Providence?

ROSS: We will double the capacity in Massachusetts and Rhode Island this year. We are positioned to be the No. 1 short-term pet-fostering organization in the world. We are looking to connect with allies to help on the management side, community awareness and outreach, and over time, as we develop relationships, funding opportunities for individuals, corporations and foundations. We are holding our second pet fashion show this fall in Boston!

Kaylen Auer is a PBN contributing writer.