Britt Waite, a Saranac Lake resident who spends her days working in the Building and Planning Department at the North Elba Town Hall, was inspired to raise money to support Ukrainian animal rescue efforts after seeing images of the Russian invasion on social media.

Waite said the conflict between Russia and Ukraine is really hitting home for her because in a time when photos and information from war zones are so readily accessible on social media, the war is “just really in your face.”

“I’ve kind of taken a break from Facebook, a little bit, just because I see it and I cry, it breaks my heart,” she said.

Seeing the images and news out of Ukraine reminded her of stories she heard about people like Charlotte Maxwell-Jones, an American woman who founded Kabul Small Animal Rescue in Afghanistan, and Paul Farthing, who pushed to have hundreds of animals evacuated from Afghanistan ahead of the Taliban takeover of the country in August 2021.

Britt Waite holds a peace sign keychain — colored blue and yellow, a nod to the Ukrainian flag — at the North Elba Town Hall in Lake Placid Wednesday. (Enterprise photo — Elizabeth Izzo)

As millions of people flee Ukraine or get displaced from their homes by the conflict, countless pets are being left behind at bus stations, train stations and in residential areas.

Waite decided to put her skills to use and make resin keychains to sell, with all of the proceeds to benefit three animal rescue organizations that are currently working on the ground overseas — War Paws, Network for Animals and International Fund for Animal Welfare. The keychains come in a variety of shapes, most are colored blue and yellow to resemble the Ukrainian flag.

She’s fairly new to making resin keychains, but she hopes that her fundraiser will help some animals in Ukraine. Some Polish animal rescue volunteers are risking their lives to save the pets, Polish newspaper Gazeta Wyborcza reported last week.

“I just try to help when I can, $5 here, $10 there,” she said. “I don’t know, it breaks my heart. I know they’re going through a lot over there.”

This isn’t the first time Waite has fundraised to help animal rescue organizations. Waite has worked as a volunteer for the Tri-Lakes Humane Society in Saranac Lake since adopting her dog there.

Britt Waite is selling keychains like this one, which is shaped like an Australian Shepherd and colored blue and yellow like the Ukrainian flag, to benefit animal rescue efforts in Ukraine. (Enterprise photo — Elizabeth Izzo)

“If anyone knows me, they know I love animals,” she said. “I always have a rescue.”

She’s currently participating in the humane society’s Pet Portrait Fundraiser. Residents can donate $20 to the humane society through April 1 in exchange for a portrait of their pet by an artist. Waite is one of those artists.

It was because of her work with the humane society that Waite was already familiar with the three organizations she’s raising money for through the sale of her keychains.

Anyone interested in supporting War Paws, Network for Animals and the International Fund for Animal Welfare through Waite can visit her Etsy shop at www.tinyurl.com/BearsBestWishesUkraine, and select items under the “To Benefit Ukraine” tab.