Fund a Vegan Midwest
Most major metro areas in the Midwest have no local animal rights organization at all. We build them.
Project Animal Freedom starts and supports local groups across the region, builds vegan community in the cities we work in, backs the organizers doing that work, and hands the whole model to anyone who wants it. We've been at this since 2018, and in 2025 the whole organization operated on $112,597 in total expenses.
Your gift funds the patient part of this movement: city by city, organizer by organizer, built to last.
Project Animal Freedom is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit, EIN 83-3007847. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.
- 56events in St. Louis in 2025
- 860,000estimated local reach in St. Louis in 2025
- 8,500people on our mailing list, September 2026
- 2,000+donors since 2018
What your money is actually buying
Your gift builds local animal advocacy infrastructure in places that have almost none, and turns what we learn there into tools the rest of the movement can use.
- Organizations that don't exist yet. By our own count, roughly two-thirds of the major metro areas across the Midwest have no local animal rights organization. We start them, mentor them, fund them, and stay with them.
- People who need support to stay in it. Vegan retention and advocate turnover are real problems, and the research points to connection, belonging, and leadership as factors worth taking seriously. We invest in community and in organizer support because a movement needs more than recruitment. It needs people who can stay.
- A model other groups can take for free. Event playbooks, websites, fundraising systems, organizer training: everything we build in St. Louis goes to our chapters and to the wider movement at no charge. We'd rather other groups succeed with our tools than fail without them.
Give what you can. All of it works.
We're funded by more than 2,000 donors and by a smaller number of people and foundations making major gifts. We need both, and both build the same movement: the money gets to work quickly, and we report clearly on what your support made possible.
- $10 a monthJoins our monthly donors, the most useful money we get. Predictable, unrestricted, and the reason we can commit to a year of programming instead of one event at a time.
- $20.56 a monthA recurring gift named for the year we are building toward: a fully vegan Midwest by 2056.
- $50Can help put vegan food in the hands of people who have never tried it, at a market, a potluck, or a campus table.
- $250Can help cater a community night, bought from a small local vegan business. In 2025 we spent over $10,000 on vegan catering, and we spend it small and local on purpose.
- About $1,000Can cover a public event end to end: venue, food, materials, and outreach.
- $5,000Can provide a substantial share of the early funding a chapter needs in a city that currently lacks a local animal rights organization.
- $25,000 and upBuild a major funding partnership around a chapter, an organizer, a campaign, or a shared movement asset, with direct access to our executive director and reporting tailored to the work you support.
Where the money goes
In 2025, Project Animal Freedom reported $112,597 in total expenses for the entire organization. That year our St. Louis chapter alone hosted 56 events and generated approximately 860,000 in estimated local reach. If you want to know what a dollar does in this movement, this is a good place to find out.
- Local first. Chapter revenue primarily supports the work in that chapter. When local needs are met, unrestricted surplus can also support shared infrastructure and work elsewhere in the network. Gifts restricted to a chapter or program stay restricted.
- Bought local. Catering, venues, and services come from small vegan businesses whenever we can manage it.
- Open books. Our federal filings and financial information are public, and we'll walk any donor through the budget line by line.
Ways to give
- Online, once. The fastest option, by card or bank transfer.
- Monthly. The most valuable thing a smaller donor can do. Recurring gifts let us plan, hire, and make promises we can keep.
- By check. Payable to Project Animal Freedom, 772 Top Notch Lane, Eureka, MO 63025.
- Donor-advised fund. Recommend a grant through your DAF sponsor using our EIN, 83-3007847.
- Stock and appreciated securities. Donating appreciated assets may offer tax advantages for some donors. Contact us for transfer instructions, and check with your own tax or financial adviser about your situation.
- IRA qualified charitable distribution. If you're age 70½ or older, you may be eligible to give directly from your IRA.
- Employer matching. Many employers will match your gift. Ask your HR team and send us the paperwork.
- In honor or in memory. Tell us who, and we'll acknowledge them properly.
- Legacy giving. Name Project Animal Freedom in your will or as a beneficiary and fund a movement meant to outlive all of us.
- In-kind and business sponsorship. Food, venues, printing, professional services, and event sponsorships all count, and all get used.
Considering a major gift?
You should be able to get a straight answer from a real person before you give real money. Kyle Luzynski, our executive director, will take that meeting, and he'll tell you what isn't working as readily as what is.
What we'll put in front of you:
- Our written theory of change, and the reasoning behind every stage of it
- Our most recent Form 990, current budget, and governance documents
- Program results with the methodology attached, including how we calculate reach
- A specific list of what your gift could start, not a general fund appeal
- An open invitation to come see the work in person at any of our events
What a major gift can fund:
- Launch a chapter in a Midwestern city with no animal rights presence
- Fund an organizer so a volunteer leader can keep doing this work
- Fund a campaign such as STL Veg Month, our citywide November campaign
- Fund a movement-wide asset, like the citywide vegan hub website template we give to other cities
- Fund organizer mentorship, individualized coaching for every chapter organizer, generally every week or every other week
- Help develop the Animal Freedom Center, our long-term vision for a permanent physical home for vegan life in the Midwest
Email Kyle directly Book a call
Or write to kyle.luzynski@projectanimalfreedom.org.
Not ready to give? Do one of these.
- Get on the list. One email, and you'll know what we're building before anyone else does.
- Show up. We host something almost every week. Come to one and decide for yourself.
- Start a chapter. If your city doesn't have this yet, you could be the reason it does.
Donation questions
Is my gift tax-deductible?
Project Animal Freedom is an IRS-recognized 501(c)(3) nonprofit, EIN 83-3007847. Contributions are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law, and you'll receive a receipt by email.
What does your budget look like?
In 2025, Project Animal Freedom reported $113,875 in revenue and $112,597 in total expenses. Our federal filings and financial information are public, and we're happy to walk a donor through the budget line by line.
Can I give to a specific chapter or program?
Yes. Email us before you give and we'll set up the designation. Once we accept a restricted gift, we use it only for that stated purpose.
One-time or monthly, which helps more?
Monthly, almost always. A recurring gift is what lets us sign a venue contract in March for an event in October.
Why the Midwest?
Because so much of the local infrastructure is still missing. By our own count, roughly two-thirds of major Midwestern metros have no local animal rights organization, leaving an enormous amount of local infrastructure still to build.
Can I give in honor or in memory of someone?
Yes. Choose Honor or Memorial in the donation form, tell us who, and we'll acknowledge them. We can send a note to the family too.
I want to help but I can't give money.
Then come to an event, join the mailing list, or tell one person about us. St. Louis' vegan community was built by people who did exactly that.