Meet Sawyer Tinsley, 16, who used flamingos to raise $25,000 for rescue pets

Sawyer Tinsley, a 16-year-old student, used a creative fundraising method involving flamingos to raise over $25,000 for rescue animals. Born in Jupiter, Florida, Sawyer struggled to make friends during her first year of middle school due to COVID-19 restrictions and her family already having three dogs. To ease her loneliness, her parents encouraged her to foster kittens, which she did with great enthusiasm.

As her foster kittens grew, she realized many of her old friends also felt isolated and decided to create a club called PAUSE, where they would spend time with foster kittens to help each other cope with loneliness. After restrictions lifted, Sawyer invited her friends over for kitten playdates, which led to more and more people joining.

This experience inspired Sawyer to launch Flamingo Flocking, an annual fundraiser where she and her friends place pink flamingos in neighbors' yards, with a sign encouraging donations to rescue animals. By doing so, they have raised more than $25,000 for local no-kill shelters. Sawyer hopes to study sports psychology in the future, promising to keep her love for animals alive.