By Jevranne Martel, Canada Outreach Coordinator

Vegan Outreach made history last spring semester—completing our first East Coast tour of Canada. I was honored to be the one making this trip, and I’d like to share my experience.

From the beginning, I knew it was going to be a big journey. I traveled from British Columbia all the way to the east side of Canada. There was a lot of driving, winter storms, and all other types of weather conditions, but I continued on because I knew it was going to be worth every minute.

I traveled through Edmundston, Fredericton, Saint John, Moncton in New Brunswick, Charlottetown in Prince Edward Island, and Halifax in Nova Scotia. The population density isn’t large in these areas, but that didn’t take away the importance of spreading the message about veganism. It was also my intention to help expand animal activism in these cities.

On numerous occasions, groups of students and people told me they were glad I was handing out information. The leaflets sparked many detailed conversations, like the one I had with the group of students—pictured below—at St. Thomas University.

There was a great dynamic among this particular group of students. We discussed the dairy and egg industries and how animals share our desire to live. The students left with a lot more information about veganism, and I felt confident that many would make dietary changes.

I also had many conversations with people who’d tried veganism in the past, but found the lifestyle hard to maintain. I asked them questions, offered advice, provided quick recipes, and suggested adjustments they could make to menu items when eating out.

I was interviewed by the CBC twice while on Prince Edward Island—I was asked what Vegan Outreach’s goals were while touring the East Coast. I said that, ultimately, we wanted to raise awareness about the unnecessary suffering of animals, as well as provide resources about vegan living. I wrapped up the interview by saying, “If we can live happy and healthy lives without harming others, why wouldn’t we?”

I took part in a very successful dual interview hosted by Cheryl Sobie on Vegan Activist Radio where I was joined by Ananda Pratt with The Save Movement. It was a wonderful interview—we discussed Vegan Outreach’s mission, my leafleting tour, the growth of animal activism in Canada, tips for effective activism, and the importance of self-care.

One of the coolest parts of this tour was noticing that no matter where I was, or what kind of day I was having, I always had a smile on my face. There are many positive things being done for animals in Canada, and there is a growing trend of animal activism regardless of which coast you’re on. It’s beautiful to see people wanting to learn more about veganism and how they can get involved in helping animals.

Now that I’m back in Ottawa, I’m knee deep in organizing and participating in various outreach events. I’ll hit the road again during the fall semester to keep the momentum going!

I’d like to send out a huge “thank you” to all of our donors. My ability to do this work and travel to the schools on the Canadian East Coast tour wouldn’t have been possible without you!

By Roxanne Hill, Community Engagement and Events Manager

I met Susan Estrella at VegFest LA when she approached the Vegan Outreach table to tell me that it was because of our Why Vegan booklet that she went vegan 13 years ago. Even prior to meeting Susan, I’d heard about her when a mutual acquaintance told me about the wonderful activist work she does.

I caught up with Susan and had the opportunity to ask her about her vegan journey and activism. I know you’re all going to love getting to know Susan as much as I did, so let’s listen to what this Uber-driving, animal activist, and great-grandmother has to say!

Roxanne Hill: How long have you been an animal rights activist? What inspired you to do this work?

Susan Estrella: I’ve been a vegan since October 25, 2003. I didn’t know any other vegans at the time. Vegan Outreach’s booklet Why Vegan was the catalyst. As a vegetarian, I thought I wasn’t hurting animals. But after reading the booklet, I realized I was paying people to torture animals for me.

Roxanne: How do you go about spreading the vegan message and advocating for animals?

Susan: I started working for Uber a little over a year ago, and I spread the vegan message by telling my passengers all about it. I carry a lot of literature, so I’ve been planting a lot of seeds.

Roxanne: Susan has definitely planted some seeds! Here are a few feedback comments she’s received from her Uber passengers—

“Made me go vegan.”

“You were so sweet. I think you’ve convinced me to be a vegan.”

“Thank you! Ban cruelty.”

“Thank you, Susan, keep fighting the good fight.”

“Learned so much. Thank you.”

“Thank you for the great pamphlets and I will definitely check out the World Peace Diet.”

“Thanks for directing us further down the path! Love your energy.”

Roxanne: How is your life different now than prior to becoming vegan?

Susan: Oh wow! Beyond the fact that, as a great-grandmother, I live with less stress and more joy.

I’m on a mission for a kinder, healthier, more loving world for absolutely everyone. Like Dr. Will Tuttle states in his book, The World Peace Diet, “If you want to live a peaceful life, you have to allow that for all beings.”

Roxanne: What advice do you have for young activists?

Susan: I tell people it’s nobody’s fault. Virtually all cultures on the planet are based on violence and people are conditioned that this is the way to live. I would tell young activists to try to be sensitive to the fact that people have been hypnotized since birth.

Dr. Tuttle reminds us, from the time we’re babies we see meat up to three times a day. The message that we receive is to not be compassionate, but to just eat the food.

And the truth is, animals aren’t different from us in their ability to feel pain and suffering.

Roxanne: What else would you like to share about yourself?

Susan: I color my hair with crazy colors because it’s an all vegan product and it gets people’s attention. It provides a way to open the conversation.

Roxanne: When I asked Susan if it would be okay for me to mention that she’s a great-grandmother, her response was, “Of course! How many people can claim to be a great-grandmother and a teenager?”

After meeting Susan, I couldn’t help but feel grateful. I am grateful for the love and compassion she has for animals and humans alike, her energy and passion that drives her to do this work and inspire anyone fortunate enough to meet her, and for the opportunity to be reminded of our common responsibility to care for all creatures.

By Alex Bury, Organizational Development Consultant

Rachel Donovan is a longtime Vegan Outreach donor, activist, Team Vegan fundraiser, and organizer.

The first time Rachel and I met was romantically confusing. We both attended an event hosted by a fabulous local donor. Rachel was hoping to meet a vegan guy named Alex who posted to the San Francisco Bay Area Vegetarian list. I, on the other hand, was not there to meet anyone, especially Jack Norris, who I considered much too serious for my tastes. I planned to spend most of the event ignoring him and hanging out with my friends.

By the end of the event, Rachel had made her first donation to VO, had forgiven me for leading her to believe there was a new vegan guy in town, and I had told my friends, “I’m going to marry Jack.”

Rachel is involved in veg advocacy in many ways and succeeded at getting everyone in her office to celebrate Oakland Veg Week.

Rachel recently started the busy Facebook group Let’s Go Vegan-ish. I love what she’s doing with it! It’s a warm and welcoming way to introduce people to plant-based eating. She posts restaurant tips, travel food, new products, and more. She gives people permission to do the best they can and not give up if they fall off the wagon for a while.

If you’re vegan, please join Rachel’s group and post in it to inspire people who are thinking about going veg!

While VO is expanding our Vegan Mentor Program, Rachel’s Facebook group is another important tool to fight the veg recidivism problem. Here is my interview with Rachel—

Alex Bury: Tell us a little about yourself. I hope you’ll include something about your amazing job.

Rachel Donovan: I’m a civil engineer who really wanted to be an artist and illustrator of children’s books. Maybe I’ll still get to do that some day, but for right now I’m a bridge inspector.

If you look up, you might see me climbing or rappelling with my compadres. Besides work, I’m into sleeping, reading books, rock climbing, swing dancing, and going on urban hikes and bike rides. Plus, my sweetheart plays bass in a David Bowie cover band, and I’m his biggest groupie!

Alex: Tell us about Let’s Go Vegan-ish!

Rachel: Prior to July 2005, I had enjoyed the food at vegan events, but I had been turned off from going vegan because it seemed too rigid. When I read Erik Marcus’ book Meat Market: Animals, Ethics, and Money, I felt compelled to go vegan. I tried being a strict vegan for a few years. There were occasions when it seemed silly to insist on being vegan, but I insisted anyway…and I felt bad about hurt feelings, misunderstandings, and other problems that sometimes arose.

Being super strict became more challenging when I moved in with my partner in 2008. He is not vegan, and he does most of the grocery shopping and cooking. Although he’s very careful to make everything vegan, sometimes a non-vegan ingredient gets overlooked and he takes it really hard. I never wanted to have to tell him that we needed to throw out the entire dish.

Over the years, I had seen many instances when it would be useful and practical to be more flexible and in fact knowingly consume non-vegan things once in awhile. However, I struggled with this because based on books I’ve read and interactions I’ve had with other vegans, the logic runs like this: if you care about animals, you’ll be vegan, and if you knowingly consume non-vegan products (no matter how infrequently), then you’re not vegan. I felt stuck.

In 2009, I read The Animal Activist’s Handbook: Maximizing Our Positive Impact in Today’s World, by Matt Ball and Bruce Friedrich. I read it twice and highlighted and starred several passages. If you have access to the book, check out pages 55 to 60, the section entitled, “Personal Purity vs. Effectiveness for the Animals.” You would not believe the excitement I felt as I read these paragraphs, which explain why, for helpful animal advocacy, we need not be “all or nothing” vegans. My heart was jumping up and down…”Yes! This is it!”

Since that time, I’ve been looking for a community that promotes vegan ideals while embracing and welcoming those who have not and perhaps will not (for whatever reason) make a pledge to go 100% vegan all the time. This is what I call going vegan-ish, or “as vegan as you wanna be.” I felt there should be a place where people could ask honest questions about the how’s and why’s of making vegan choices, without being judged for being too vegan or not vegan enough. As a result, I started Let’s Go Vegan-ish—first as a blog, then as a Facebook community page, and now as a Facebook public group! Right now we have 200+ members. I hope that more people will join the group and feel comfortable asking questions and sharing great vegan finds. I would like the information we share to be welcoming, thought provoking, and inspirational for people no matter where they may live.

Alex: How did you get involved in the world of animal protection? How about with Vegan Outreach?

Rachel: This article in the January 2002 edition of E Magazine, “The Case Against Meat” was what got me started. I had been a long-time environmentalist, but I never thought about the connection to animal agriculture before reading that article. Upon reading the article, I became vegetarian-ish. Most people thought I was vegetarian because they never saw me eating meat, but in fact I wasn’t. I had not made any vow to stop eating meat. I had simply read the article and thought, “OK! Just as I avoid car and air travel, I should also not eat meat unless there’s no other option!” As it turns out, there was nearly always a vegetarian option wherever I went, so indeed I appeared to be vegetarian.

To learn more about vegetarian foods, I joined Bay Area Vegetarians. It was through Bay Area Vegetarians that I received an advance reading copy (in brown paper cover) of Meat Market by Eric Marcus in 2005. And that’s when I went vegan for the animals—or, more precisely, vegan-ish!

I first learned about Vegan Outreach at a Bay Area Vegetarians event in February 2007. Upon seeing Jack Norris’ presentation on vegan diets and the work Vegan Outreach is doing, I knew right away that this was an organization I wanted to support.

Alex: You’ve been donating to VO since 2007! That’s amazing. Thank you! What first inspired you to give, and what has kept you doing so?

Rachel: I support Vegan Outreach because they have a pragmatic approach to opening hearts and minds about how we can make a difference in this world. I truly believe that the shift we are seeing toward vegan products being more available in the U.S. is connected to Vegan Outreach’s work. Flyers such as VO’s Even If You Like Meat encourage people to make vegan choices when possible, even if they do still eat meat sometimes.

I feel these kind of incremental changes are what will make the difference. If we can decrease the demand for meat, eggs, and dairy, to only 10% of what it is today, or 5% or 1%—imagine the billions of animals who will be spared a lifetime of suffering. Imagine how much lighter the world will feel when it no longer bears the burden of so much pain and suffering.

When it comes to activism for the animals, I believe strongly in philanthropy. I do like to participate in activism when I can, but generally it’s more effective for me to spend my time working to earn money. This allows me to donate more to charitable organizations, including Vegan Outreach.

I would like to be like Cesar Chavez and pass away having very little money to my name because I gave it all away in my lifetime. If I do pass away unexpectedly, don’t worry I do have Vegan Outreach listed as one of the benefactors for whatever is left in my bank account!

Alex: Thank you so much, Rachel, that’s really awesome about your will!

Rachel, you have stepped up many times over the years to help us meet a challenge match or pull off an event. You’re a huge part of Vegan Outreach and I hope you know how much we all appreciate you. Thank you.

One last question: What is your favorite vegan meal?

Rachel: Vegan buffalo wings, vegan Reuben sandwich, and vegan chocolate peanut butter milkshakes from The Chicago Diner!

Alex: Rachel, I’m grateful we met, to know you still, and to work with you to help animals. Thanks for a wonderful interview and stay safe when you’re up on the bridges!

Readers—please contact Vegan Outreach if you’d like to make VO a beneficiary in your will.

By Taylor Radig, Campaigns Manager

Vegan Outreach is proud to announce our work with 1702—a popular craft beer and pizza restaurant in Tucson, AZ—which is now offering Daiya vegan cheese for their pizzas and calzones!

The restaurant is one of many in Tucson that has decided it was time to expand their vegan menu offerings—and boy was the vegan cheese a success! 1702 held a launch event and invited their customers to try their new vegan pizza. Bar manager Ty Young was blown away with the turnout. He said, “We went through 25 pounds of Daiya cheese and were sold out in just a few hours.”

Our team will continue to partner with 1702—we’d like these two new vegan options to be the first of many to show up on their menu in the coming year.

By Roxanne Hill, Community Engagement and Events Manager

Vegan Outreach recently hosted its first ever Vegan Meat and Cheese Tasting at Holy Nativity Episcopal Church in Los Angeles.

The mostly non-veg crowd came to the event with curious minds—many wondering what vegan meats and cheeses could possibly be made of. As the guests lined up to savor the delicious feast, they became even more curious as they surveyed the platters of bagels with vegan cream cheese and the array of vegan meats. The meat trays were a delicious display of cold cuts, mini hot dogs and hamburgers, chicken salad, meat and bean casserole, and kebabs.

The attendees also took in the platters of vegan cheeses, which were overflowing with brie, cheddar, goat cheese, pepper jack, ricotta, and veganzola. To the omnivore’s eye, all of the food looked very similar to non-vegan meats and cheeses. During the event, the guests learned that vegan meats can be made from a range of plant-based ingredients, such as soy, peas, and wheat gluten. And they also learned that vegan cheeses can be made from nuts, seeds, chickpeas, potatoes, and tapioca starch.

Judging from their enthusiastic comments about the event, I think it’s safe to say people left feeling satisfied and amazed at what their taste buds had just experienced. Comments ranged from, “This chicken salad is delicious—it tastes just like chicken!” to, “This tastes and smells like meat!” Some of our guests even expressed a desire to start incorporating more plant-based foods into their meals.

Many thanks to the companies who supported us and contributed to the success of this event—Tofurky, Beyond Meat, Daiya, Field Roast, Follow Your Heart, Miyoko’s Kitchen, Treeline, and Vromage—L.A.’s Non-Dairy Cheese Shop.

Team Vegan has ended, and thanks to hundreds of generous donors, we raised $225,000 for Vegan Outreach—and it will be matched!

We also teamed up with the Factory Farming Awareness Coalition (FFAC), who raised almost $3,500—and that will be matched too!

Because of your donations, we’ll be able to reach thousands of people this year with persuasive information about the importance of choosing a vegan lifestyle.

A special thanks to Vegan Outreach’s top fundraisers: Steve Ann Chambers, Nzinga Young, Eric Day, Roxanne Hill, Alex Bury, Mohan Gurunathan, Lisa Rimmert, Yuri Mitzkewich, Vic Sjodin, Lauren Sprang, Emmanuel Márquez, Gwenna Hunter, Jevranne Martel, Jennifer Mennuti, Sean Hennessy, Pooja Rathor, Katia Rodríguez, and Katie Cantrell for FFAC.

And of course, a huge thank you goes to the wonderful group of match donors!

Together, we’re building a better world for animals. Thank you all for making this possible!

By Jack Norris, Registered Dietitian, Executive Director

Longtime vegan activists, Carol J. Adams, Patti Breitman, and Ginny Messina, MPH, RD, have written a fascinating book, Even Vegans Die.

The title and cover are meant to parody the New York Times bestseller How Not to Die, by Michael Greger, MD—Dr. Greger even writes the foreword to Even Vegans Die!

The chapters When You Have a Terminal Illness and Protecting Your Legacy of Kindness are filled with invaluable tips that many of us haven’t considered and which will make our deaths much easier for our loved ones.

For example, have you taken the time to set up plans for the care of your companion animals once you’re gone? If not, you should read this book! Even if you’re not sick, you never know what might happen and you want to make sure your animal friends will be well cared for. Even Vegans Die will get you started.

Important topics that Even Vegans Die addresses are fat-shaming and health-shaming in the vegan movement. In the chapter, How Shame and Blame Affect Our Health and Our Advocacy, the authors describe how people often don’t feel welcome in our movement because they don’t fit the stereotype many of us are trying to present of a vegan diet leading to weight loss.

And if someone’s unlucky enough to get an illness like cancer, heart disease, or type 2 diabetes—they’ll have an extra burden of feeling like they’ve let the animals down. An excerpt:

A constricted and restrictive view of who is allowed to speak for animals reduces the impact of our vegan community. The shame and blame that often accompany obesity or chronic disease has the unfortunate result of turning animal activists into non-activists.

Even Vegans Die has inspired me—and others at Vegan Outreach—to portray veganism as welcoming to people of all shapes and sizes and we’re in the process of doing more of that in our materials.

When the beloved activist, Lisa Shapiro, passed away from cancer two years ago, I made a Facebook post in memoriam. A fellow vegan asked how Lisa could have gotten cancer if she was vegan. This person wasn’t being purposefully insensitive—she was serious.

I explained that evidence shows vegans have about a 15-20% lower risk of cancer than meat-eaters due to our diet, but, as Even Vegans Die points out, a vegan diet cannot guarantee that you won’t get a chronic disease. No one should feel shame when they get sick.

Even Vegans Die recommends that people follow mainstream medical advice on getting health screenings—advice I also heed as I recently had my first colonoscopy and am glad I did.

Even Vegans Die is a quick, captivating read and I highly encourage all animal advocates to read it—both young or old, vegan or non-vegan!

More than 500 people have donated to our Team Vegan matching challenge since May 1—and their donations will all be doubled!

With just a few days left, we have $83,000 more to raise to match all $235,000. Will you help us get there so we can do as much outreach as possible for animals?

Giving today is:

• Easy—Even $10 helps! That’s just a couple of soy lattes!
• Safe—Our online form is secure, and we never share donor info with other groups.
• Fun—Look through a few profiles to see what I mean!
• Important—Here are just a few examples of what you make happen by donating.

We need your help now to spread compassion and work toward a vegan world as quickly as we can!

Donate today to your favorite Team Vegan member and have your donation doubled!

Thank you!

Vegan Outreach is thrilled to be working with the family-oriented East Coast pizza chain Coal Fire. After meeting with them to discuss the growing demand for vegan options in their region, they decided to roll out Daiya cheese to all eight of their locations!

“Coal Fire makes it a priority to have different options for all types of food lovers. We pride ourselves on now offering Daiya cheese and hope that our vegan clients are pleased with the new option on our menu,” said Coal’s Fire Marketing Director, Lindsay King.

Customers can enjoy a delicious vegan cheese pizza on their gluten-free crust—their regular crust is not vegan—with the classic sauce and endless combinations of veggies. If you’d like to start your meal with an appetizer, try their Greek salad or field greens salad without cheese, and even the roasted veggie coalby sandwich without goat cheese!