My Animal Charity History

The Recipients

So far, recipients of my animal charity ventures have been:

1998-2005: Dancing For Charity

Between 1998 and 2005, when I had all my classes under one roof, all the proceeds from our school performances would go to animal charities. I would pay all the expenses out of my own pocket and give away every cent made. To see the article that appeared in the Southern Courier in 2004 about one of the performances click on: Good Vibrations.

2006: The Bandana Phase

In 2006 I no longer had a school as such. My business was scattered all over Sydney, and therefore raising money through performances was no longer an option.

I had made bandana collars for my own dogs in the past (see picture of Jake to the right) and from that I came up with the idea of making bandana collars to give to shelters. I figured they could be given away with each adopted animal as a house-warming gift or sold to make some extra (and much-needed) money - whichever the shelter thought would serve their work better.

Because I was 'sewingly' challenged, I enlisted the help of someone who was sewingly gifted, and my partner in crime for the Bandana Phase was Anneliese. I cut out the bandana shapes and she sewed them onto the collars.

To see the article that appeared in the Southern Courier in 2006 about the bandana collars, click on: Dandy Diamond Dogs.

2007: Bandanas, Balls, Bones And Bedding

Mid-2007 I lost the help of Anneliese, so I had to get my non-sewing self to Spotlight to buy my first sewing machine. I taught myself to sew in a straight line and continued making bandana collars.

I also thought that the doggies in shelters could do with some hobbies, so I bought 400 tennis balls and made weekly deliveries of bones for them to chew on.

Then a very special family offered to whip out their sewing machines and help me in my charity ventures. Using pillow cases stuffed with wadding, Kiem and Regent and their extended family made bedding for the shelters to use or sell.

2008: The Diamante Phase

At this stage I decided to go bling and started decorating collars with diamantes for the shelters to sell.

2007 & 2008: Going Vegetarian, Then Vegan

Late 2007 I made the decision to stop eating animals and worked my way to not consuming any animals products (ie. dairy, eggs, honey) by the end of 2008. It's been the BEST thing I've ever done in my life. Check out the full scoop here on Robert Cheeke's site: www.veganbodybuilding.com/?page=bio_despina.

2009 And Beyond: My Current Focus

I'm now concentrating on using my writing skills to inform people about what goes on in the world with animals and how they can help. Check out these articles: Animal Thoughts, and join me on Facebook by becoming a fan of 'Animals And Us': www.facebook.com/pages/Animals-and-Us-Teaching-Positive-Values/211150070776?v=info&ref=ts