Sometimes a fundraiser starts with a big plan.
And sometimes it starts with a dog you loved so much that you simply can’t imagine allowing his memory to fade.
That’s how Paws4Potter began.
In 2015, Kyle Ann Stevenson lost her beloved dog, Potter, to cancer. As a veterinarian, she understood the devastating reality of pet cancer, but losing Potter made that reality deeply personal.
After Potter’s death, Kyle wanted to do something in his memory. She had already been involved with Relay For Life and knew how powerful it could be when a community came together to fight cancer. But there were very few organizations in her area doing something similar specifically for pet cancer.
So she decided to start small.
In 2016, Kyle organized a dog walk in Watertown, New York, called “Making a Mark on K9 Cancer.” The goal was simple: bring people together, raise awareness about pet cancer, honor dogs who had been affected by cancer, and raise money for the National Canine Cancer Foundation.
She wasn’t trying to build something big.
She was starting a walk.
And she was doing it for Potter.
One Walk Became Something Much Bigger
That first walk became the beginning of Paws4Potter.
Kyle started with one walk, and the community’s response showed her that Paws4Potter was meeting a real need. Returning participants, volunteers, donors, and families who wanted to honor their dogs helped the event grow each year. As interest increased, Paws4Potter became an official 501(c)(3) nonprofit, expanded its pet cancer education efforts, and began holding fundraisers and awareness events throughout the year.
The annual walk remained at the heart of it all.
Even when circumstances made an in-person walk impossible, the mission continued. In 2020, Paws4Potter created a virtual version of the event, #RunCancerRun, which reached participants in 23 states and three countries.
And year after year, that little idea Kyle started in memory of Potter kept growing.
Today, Paws4Potter has raised significant funds for the National Canine Cancer Foundation and continues to host fundraising and pet cancer awareness events throughout the year.
But perhaps the most important part of the story is that none of that was the plan in 2016.
The plan was simply to do something.
Something meaningful.
Something that honored Potter.
Something that might help another dog and another family someday.
You Don’t Have to Start Big
That’s what makes the Paws4Potter story so inspiring.
Kyle didn’t begin with a huge fundraising calendar, a team of dozens, or years of experience running events.
She started with one idea and one walk.
Then she kept going.
Maybe your fundraiser doesn’t need to be a huge event.
Maybe it’s a Facebook fundraiser.
Maybe it’s a neighborhood dog walk.
Maybe it’s a bake sale, a yard sale, a birthday fundraiser, a small online challenge or simply asking a few friends to donate in honor of a dog you’ve loved.
Start with what feels possible.
Do it in honor of the dog who has meant so much in your life.
And then see where the passion takes you.
Because Paws4Potter is proof that sometimes one small fundraiser can become something far bigger than you ever imagined.
And it all started with a walk for Potter.