Ronnie Stanley of the Baltimore Ravens is a guy who likes to help out where he can.

When he’s on the football field, the offensive tackle does everything he can to help his quarterback.

When he’s off the field, he does everything he can to help dogs in need.

A few years ago, Stanley, his girlfriend, and teammate Alexander Lewis walked into BARCS Animal Shelter with a request.

Ronnie wanted to rescue a dog who was “Not-so-adoptable”

“When they checked into our front desk, they let us know just what they were looking for–and for a superstar like Ronnie…you’ll never guess what requested. “We are looking for dog that’s been here a long time and maybe not-so-adoptable.” Our matchmakers were delighted. “Not-so-adoptable” can mean a lot of things here…senior pets, physically imperfect, on-going medical and more,” the shelter wrote on Facebook.

Someone looking to adopt a pet that others might not be willing to are the best kinds of pet owners.

They aren’t thinking about what is best for themself, they are thinking about what is best for the wonderful animal they are about to adopt.

Ronnie meets Winter

“Our BARCS staff showed Ronnie and his girlfriend a few pets that fit his (seriously awesome) criteria. Winter was the lucky dog that caught Ronnie’s eye,” the shelter continued to write.

Much like many shelter animals, Winter had been handed a few tough breaks.

She was six years old when she met Stanley and her life up until that moment had been nothing but hardship.

Winter’s long journey

“Beautiful Winter is a dog who has spent most of her six years of life falling into sad, unfortunate situations. She was found on a vacant property, on a hot day with no electricity, or open windows. She was dehydrated and extremely frightened.”

But that’s not all.

“Winter has a long, hanging belly, mostly likely a result of over breeding–something we see far too often at our shelter. Due to her age, her belly is not something that will ever tighten up. Female dogs with such characteristics are often passed by in our shelter–but not by Ronnie!”

Whenever you adopt an animal as a pet, you save two lives.

You save the life of the animal you are adopting, and you are also saving the life of another animal that the shelter will now have room to care for thanks to your adoption.

Sadly, there are animals less likely to be adopted than others.

Sometimes these animals remain in the shelters their whole lives.

It takes someone truly special to rescue an animal in that situation, and Ronnie Stanley is just that special a guy.

Ronnie loves Winter for who she is

“Ronnie’s thought on Winter’s belly, as recalled by our volunteers: “Well, that’s just what happens when you’ve had babies.” He was much more interested in getting lots of face kisses from Winter and falling in love, rather than being worried about the appearance of her tummy. What a great guy!”

Winter was renamed Lola and now enjoys a wonderful life with her human.

She has a big backyard to run around in and loves to take naps on her parents’ bed.

Ronnie opens the Ronnie Stanley Foundation

In 2022, Ronnie opened the Ronnie Stanley Foundation.

The foundation’s mission statement reads:

“The Ronnie Stanley Foundation’s mission is to improve the quality of life for rescue dogs and individuals in need. The foundation trains and cultivates the therapeutic properties of rescue dogs to be matched with individuals who have faced various life challenges such as illness, emotional trauma, and/or other hardships. These matches are even more meaningful because rescue dogs are placed in their forever homes.”

Isn’t this an incredible story? Watch the video below to see an interview with the kindhearted football player who’s making a big difference!

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Source: BARCS Animal Shelter, PETA, YouTube – PETA, Ronnie Stanley Foundation