Throughout our entrepreneurial journey we have received many questions on how our family and business began raising awareness for rhino conservation.
We’ve witnessed the scrunched up faces, with the words “Why Rhinos?” jumping almost reflexively out of confused mouths. It’s almost an automatic reaction, and really, I can’t blame anyone for asking!
Funny enough, it’s a simple story. My youngest son, Luke, just LOVES rhinos. He’s always been mesmerized by their strength, and they are definitely his spirit animal. While he can be a bit like a bull in a China shop sometimes, his tenacity and big heart means he can bulldoze just about any challenge.
When Luke learned that his favorite animal, the powerful rhino was on the brink of extinction from poaching and habitat destruction. He was heartbroken to learn that the rhino species was being threaten and began asking for donations instead of birthday presents each year to save his favorite
animal. Just a totally normal, regular red blooded American kid... am I right??
To be honest, with three boys in the house we did not exactly need more toys that would only be played with for a week or two. Helping the rhino species thrive and continue for future generations was the clear winner for Luke! Luke has that sort of unselfish strength which inspires the whole family. Watching him fundraise each year, we had to find a way to help him too!
And so, as any totally normal family would, we began selling our Salsa de Diablo Verde out of our kitchen to help Luke in his quest to save his favorite animal in the world. The rest is history!
You may have noticed rhinos are not the most common critters to see roaming around the Lone Star State. As a Texas family, we know the average person might not make the connection between what is going on in a completely different continent over 8800 miles away. Even though rhinos don’t directly share our Texas habitat, they are still so important to the global community we are all a part of. Thanks to Luke, we began to educate ourselves with the plight of this majestic animal. Rhinos are often hunted solely for their horns, which are then sold to fund illegal activities-- including major crime rings!
Luckily, Luke wasn’t going to let that happen. Once he decided to donate to rhinos, we called the Houston Zoo for help to find the best organization to support. They referred us to the International Rhino Foundation, which was founded in 1990 and supports the survival of all 5 species of Rhinos. We are now in our 9th year of partnership with the International Rhino Foundation, and after meeting Dr. Lynn Mactavish last March, we have also started donating to Endangered Rhino Conservation this past year. 3SonsFoods has raised over $15,000 in the past 9 years to bring awareness to a very urgent need.
Currently, only around 27,000 rhinos remain in the wild. Very few rhinos survive outside national parks and reserves due to persistent poaching and habitat loss over many decades. The IRF and ERC have amazed us with their tireless efforts to keep these amazing majestic beasts alive and thriving!
We are so happy the Houston Zoo referred us to such diligent organizations, and we are looking forward to our continued work with IRF and ERC. One day, we hope to witness a time when rhinos can live in the wild as they were meant to-- free, strong, and able to live their full potential-- just like us!
Throughout this journey with Luke, I have learned the simplest answer to that question “Why Rhinos” is
“Because, we can help Rhinos”
