Meet Chantelle Wallace

We recently connected with Chantelle Wallace and have shared our conversation below.

Chantelle, we’re thrilled to have you on our platform and we think there is so much folks can learn from you and your story. Something that matters deeply to us is living a life and leading a career filled with purpose and so let’s start by chatting about how you found your purpose.

I found my purpose through significant trial and error. I always knew I wanted to help other lives, and spent much of my teens and 20’s volunteering at food pantries, orphanages in Africa and China, tutoring under-resourced kids, and many other aid-oriented activities. They were all wonderful, but didn’t hit the overlap of my passions matching my skills.

I started volunteering as a large dog walker at Austin Animal Center in 2007 and became instantly addicted. My passion for animals, exercise and the outdoors also overlapped with my skills. I looked forward to each of the more than 20 weekly hours I would spend giving bored, lonely, energetic pups a break from their concrete kennel. It’s kept me coming back for 17 years.

Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?

My brand is @atxadoptables (on instagram and YouTube) where I showcase Austin’s myriad adorable adoptables, hoping to convince people to find their next pet through a shelter or rescue.

If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?

Tenacity – so many new shelter volunteers stop coming because it can be physically and emotionally difficult. I’m thankful to have pressed through the discomfort.

Passion – if you care intensely about the cause, you can forget your discomfort and focus on helping others and making the world a better place.

The power of one – focus on what you *are* able to get done – the individual you helped or dog whose day you dramatically improved – rather than all that remains to be done.

Is there a particular challenge you are currently facing?

Finding new fosters and adopters is the number one challenge among all pet rescues in Texas. Life rarely gives you the ability to be a hero, but saving last-change animals from euthanasia is a taste of that. All it takes to foster is a willingness to tolerate inconvenience.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://Chantellewallace.com
• Instagram: Atxadoptables
• Twitter: Atxadoptables
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@atxadoptables