My name is Walter Guillioli, and I am the founder of People Saving Animals. I started this organization in 2013 to help homeless animals. I am a regular person, a husband, and a father of a six-year-old. I love trail running but most importantly I love animals and I suffer when I see their suffering. On August 26, 2023, I will try to run my first 100-mile race and I am dedicating it to helping 100 homeless dogs and cats from Guatemala via a sterilization clinic. Please read along and join my effort and donate today.
At People Saving Animals, we support rescue, sheltering, and sterilization. I am particularly supportive of sterilizations because they prevent suffering. One surgery today potentially prevents the suffering of hundreds of animals in the future. The sterilization clinic will occur the same day of the race in rural Guatemala and will be done with one of our key partners since 2014 – Castracious Guaus & Miaus. They will handle all the logistical work and we will fund the veterinary costs. An sterilization surgery is just $20, so we need to raise $2,000 for 100 surgeries. We will share a full report of the clinic with pictures afterward with all donors.
Why run 100 miles? I ask myself that question every day and have been dreaming about it for years. Around 25 years ago I heard that people ran at night in the woods for hours and hours. I thought that was amazing but unfortunately, I didn’t have the body for it because I got tired running just 3 miles. It wasn’t until six years ago (the year my son Diego was born) that I decided to try running longer. I wanted to set an example to him that we can do hard things. That we do hard things not because they are easy but because they are hard and it’s worth it – for us. I am not particularly a strong runner, but I am stubborn and passionate and that will take me to the finish line. My legs won’t take me to the finish line – my heart will. During the last six years I have run 10 ultramarathons and the longest ones have been 50 miles (2019) and 100 km (2021). I have cried many times out of pain and desperation and have sworn “never again”. But the mind is powerful. And dedicating my training and race to the animals gives me purpose and strength. My pain will be nothing compared to the suffering these animals endure daily.
Disclaimer: 100 miles is daunting and scary for me. I have a bad knee and a bad foot and running makes them worse. To complicate things, I sprained my ankle in late May so I couldn’t run for four weeks and trained mostly on a bike. Anyhow, there is a good chance I will not make it and I am afraid of failing in front of you, so I procrastinated this fundraising for weeks. But I need to try. We need to try. The important thing is not that I finish the race, or I keep my pride. The important thing is that we help animals. So, let’s do this. Please donate today.
If you are curious, you can see the race details here: https://www.alpinerunning.co/cascades100/
