At the Josefinas flagship, we celebrated International Pet Day with our monthly #ProudToBeAWoman talk. On April 11, we invited Athina Glindmeyer, co-founder of Paw It Forward and owner of the famous @rukasthecat Instagram account.

Athina always felt empathy for uncared for cats she found on the streets. She wanted to change their lives, as she saw them as small creatures in suffering that somehow needed to gain a voice. That’s when she decided to adopt Rukas, a noble act that was, in fact, the first step for the birth of a community of kindness and sharing with followers all over the world.

As founder and manager of this community, Athina keeps a network of institutions, corporations and individuals active who, through donations, help the treatment of cats with special needs. Furthermore, Athina encourages people to adopt and share the stories of their kitties’ evolution.

Athina also revealed that it’s mostly women who tend to these cats – a fact that, besides curious, we find powerful and adorable ❤️.

This community hasn’t stopped growing and people keep sharing, donating and saving.

Get (re)inspired with this #ProudToBeAWoman talk here.