Dear Friends,

Last month Mercy For Animals celebrated its 6th anniversary. Since our humble beginnings in the small town of Urbana, Ohio, MFA has experienced major growth and made great progress in opening the hearts and minds of people to the plight of animals abused in the meat, dairy, and egg industries. Our groundbreaking undercover investigations, powerful television commercials, comprehensive publications, and diligent outreach efforts have gained national recognition and inspired countless people to adopt animal-friendly lifestyles.

I write you today with exciting news regarding the future of MFA. I am proud to announce that Mercy For Animals is expanding outside Ohio by opening an office in America's third most populous city - Chicago, Illinois. This move is a result of a merger with the Chicago-based non-profit organization Protecting Animals, USA (PA-USA). MFA's new Chicago office will be run by Danielle Marino, the founder and former director of PA-USA. Danielle has over six years of leadership experience in the animal protection movement.

For years, PA-USA has worked closely with MFA on projects such as airing MFA's powerful "Behind Closed Doors" pro-vegetarian commercial on MTV stations and distributing MFA's highly acclaimed Vegetarian Starter Kit.

Over time, it became clear that PA-USA and MFA were working towards the same worthy goal of reducing animal suffering, with a primary focus on promoting a vegetarian diet as a powerful way of ending the abuse suffered by over 9 billion animals annually in US factory farms and slaughterhouses.

This merger will prevent duplicate efforts in creating materials and other tasks, allowing more time to be dedicated to the important work of outreach and program development. By joining forces we can now combine our diverse talents and resources, becoming a stronger, more unified, and more effective voice for the animals.

As a result of the merger, Mercy For Animals now has a membership base 6,000 strong and offices in both Columbus, OH and Chicago, IL. The merger also creates many new opportunities for MFA to reach a larger audience with our thought-provoking campaigns. This month, MFA will begin holding regular events in the Chicago area, including public outreach, lectures, exhibits, and demonstrations modeled after those conducted by MFA in Ohio for the past six years. In addition to the work underway in Chicago, MFA will also continue to expand its efforts to be a voice for the rights of animals across the state of Ohio.

All of us at MFA look forward to bringing you updates on our crucial grassroots work in both Chicago and Ohio. Supporters like you are our greatest asset, and with you standing by our side MFA will continue to break new ground, becoming a stronger, more unified, and more effective voice for the animals.

For the animals,

Nathan Runkle
Executive Director