Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. (July 30, 2024) – In just over two months, animal-lovers worldwide will unite for the 12th Annual Remember Me Thursday® (RMT). Observed, each year, on the fourth Thursday in September, the campaign has garnered an esteemed group of celebrities who join with animal welfare organizations and other animal-proponents to become an unstoppable, integrated on-line voice advocating for orphan pets. This year, celebrated actor and animal welfare advocate Kaley Cuoco is lending her voice as the campaign’s newest luminary. Remember Me Thursday® is honored to welcome Cuoco to this year’s campaign. Animal-lovers across the world are invited to join Cuoco and other philanthropic celebrities to be a part of this very special day, Thursday, September 26th, 2024.
Kaley Cuoco is a renowned television and movie actor best known for her starring role as Penny on the CBS sitcom The Big Bang Theory between 2007 and 2019 and, most recently, as the title character in the HBOMax comedic thriller The Flight Attendant which earned her nominations for Primetime Emmy Awards and Golden Globe Awards. Other well-known roles include Billie Jenkins in the fantasy series Charmed (2005–2006), voicing the title role in the animated series Harley Quinn since 2019, and playing the lead role in the comedy thriller series Based on a True Story (2023), among many others. The beloved actor received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014.
Off-screen, the Emmy-nominated actress has developed a well-known reputation for being an animal advocate who often adopts rescue animals. This includes owning a ranch and rescue farm that has welcomed horses, donkeys, chickens, goats, cows and pigs, all of whom she considers family.
Regarding her passion for animals, Cuoco stated, “Animals have taught me how to forgive and how to truly live in the moment. They don’t hold grudges, and they love you no matter what. We should be surrounding our children with animals from a very young age, showing them responsibility and how animals deserve to be loved and treated.”
Cuoco joins the Remember Me Thursday® campaign during an incredibly crucial year. Perhaps due to rising inflation or an unstable political climate, adoption rates have plummeted across the country and euthanasia rates are on the rise.
“Remember Me Thursday focuses attention on the plight of shelter animals across the country during a critical time of increasing euthanasia rates and overcrowded shelters,” said Cuoco. “It has never been more important that we encourage the public to save a life by adopting a rescue pet from their local shelter.”
RMT was established in 2013 by Helen Woodward Animal Center President and CEO Mike Arms. Moved by the staggering statistic of over one million homeless pets who lose their lives each year in the U.S., Arms put out a call to rescue organizations in an attempt to create a global awareness campaign. As creator of the International Pet Adoptathon and the International Home 4 the Holidays® program (placing over 20 million pets in homes since 1999), he was able to send out an expansive request and the response was significant.
Now in its twelfth year, RMT has been supported by 190 countries with hundreds of thousands of individuals and more than 1,000 separate animal welfare organizations around the globe holding candle-lighting ceremonies of their own, spreading the message on social media, or lighting a virtual candle. The enormous swell of celebrity support has resulted in the topic trending each year on both Facebook and Twitter, garnering more than 2 billion social media impressions since its start.
For more information on Remember Me Thursday® and a full list of participating celebrities and animal welfare organizations, go to https://remembermethursday.org. For more information on the US west coast candle-lighting events contact PR Director Jessica Gercke at (858) 756-4117 x 335 or [email protected].
About Remember Me Thursday®
Animal lovers and organizations across the globe unite on the fourth Thursday in September to light a candle in remembrance of the millions of orphan pets who lost their lives without the benefit of a loving home and to shine a light via social media on the millions of orphan pets still waiting for their forever homes. The Remember Me Thursday® global awareness campaign is championed by Mike Arms, President of Helen Woodward Animal Center, and creator of both the International Pet Adoptathon and successful Home 4 The Holidays program which, in partnership with national animal organizations, has placed over 20 million pets in homes since 1999. For more information, please visit https://remembermethursday.org or via hashtags #RememberMeThursday and #ShineALight on social media.
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About Helen Woodward Animal Center
Helen Woodward Animal Center is a private, non-profit organization where “people help animals and animals help people.” Founded in 1972 in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., the Center provides services for more than 90,000 people and more than 10,000 animals annually through adoptions, educational and therapeutic programs both onsite and throughout the community. Helen Woodward Animal Center is also the creator of the International Home 4 the Holidays pet adoption drive, the International Remember Me Thursday® campaign and The Business of Saving Lives Workshops, teaching the business of saving lives to animal welfare leaders from around the world. For more information, go to: https://animalcenter.org.
