Uploaded June 2025 | Updated September 2026, 10 hours ago
Co-hosts: José Ocaño and Dr. Rae Taylor
This special session celebrates the people, relationships, and insights that have made this past year of conversations so meaningful. Since the beginning, these weekly gatherings have created space for reflection, connection, and growth—and none of it would be possible without the community that shows up week after week.
Whether you’ve watched once or many times, we invite you to share, celebrate, and close out the season in community.
To access the full agenda and resources from this call or to ask questions of our speakers, visit https://maddies.fund/communityconversations62325
About Community Conversations, hosted by Maddie’s Fund: When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, animal sheltering transformed overnight. Foster-based sheltering, home-based employees and volunteers, along with collaboration galvanized our communities. The pandemic, along with social injustice, has motivated our industry to look at how we partner with our communities and confront our own biases. Shelter and rescue staff across the country began talking on a weekly basis, offering support and innovative ideas to do things differently. To learn more about these calls, visit forum.maddiesfund.org/communityconversations
Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
04:30 National updates
10:59 Presentation
Co-hosts: José Ocaño and Dr. Rae Taylor
This special session celebrates the people, relationships, and insights that have made this past year of conversations so meaningful. Since the beginning, these weekly gatherings have created space for reflection, connection, and growth—and none of it would be possible without the community that shows up week after week.
Whether you’ve watched once or many times, we invite you to share, celebrate, and close out the season in community.
To access the full agenda and resources from this call or to ask questions of our speakers, visit https://maddies.fund/communityconversations62325
About Community Conversations, hosted by Maddie’s Fund: When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in early 2020, animal sheltering transformed overnight. Foster-based sheltering, home-based employees and volunteers, along with collaboration galvanized our communities. The pandemic, along with social injustice, has motivated our industry to look at how we partner with our communities and confront our own biases. Shelter and rescue staff across the country began talking on a weekly basis, offering support and innovative ideas to do things differently. To learn more about these calls, visit forum.maddiesfund.org/communityconversations
Chapters:
00:00 Welcome
04:30 National updates
10:59 Presentation
