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Executive produced by Moby, ROWDY GIRL showcases the inspiring work of Renee King-Sonnen, a former Texas cattle rancher who in 2015, after a spiritual awakening, left the cruel cycle of animal agriculture. After going vegan, King-Sonnen and her husband, Tommy Sonnen, transformed her husband's beef operation into Rowdy Girl Sanctuary, a farm animal sanctuary that seeks to rescue farm animals from factory farming. Rowdy Girl Sanctuary, located between San Antonio and Houston, in Waelder, TX, has a mission to educate the public about the cruelties of factory farming, to advocate a vegan lifestyle, and to inspire other ranchers to experience a paradigm shift and help them move from participating in the cruelty of factory farming to living with compassion towards the animals whose lives usually end in brutal death. Renee has lived on both sides of the fence, proving that there is a common ground between farmers and vegans: a shared mission of compassion and sustainability. Filmmaker Jason Goldman's verité style documentary lovingly captures the dynamic connection between Renee, her husband Tommy and the hooved and feathered friends who inhabit Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. Director / Producer Jason Goldman stops by for a conversation on his goal in making Rowdy Girl was to work on a project that reflected his personal values and giving Renee a platform to reach a wider audience, particularly farmers who she believes can change the world by moving to more sustainable and humane care of our furry friends. For more go to: argotpictures.com/rowdy-girl And rowdygirlfilm.com
From Texas cattle ranchers to vegan sanctuary founders, Renee King-Sonnen and Tommy Sonnen have turned around their lives and are helping others, both animal and human, to do the same. Now, the incredible story of how they have rescued and continue to care for 137 animals has caught the attention of filmmaker Jason Goldman, who embarked on capturing their daily lives…
In this episode Yoga is Vegan's Holly Skodis and Rowdy Girl Sanctuary's Renee King-Sonnen discuss the following:Renee's journey from former cattle ranger's wife to a vegan powerhouseRenee's calf and greatest teacher, Rowdy GirlYoga & SpiritualityRichard Hittleman's Yoga: 28 Day Exercise PlanInternational Yoga Studies Sandra Summerfiel KozakSatchidananda Ashram YogavilleRenee, a native Houstonian, is the President and Founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary in Waelder, Texas. She remarried her husband Tommy Sonnen, a multi-generational cattle rancher in 2009 and moved to their former ranch in Angleton, Texas. She fell in love with farm animals, having no idea her life was about to transform. After witnessing time and again the baby calves going to the sale barn, she became extremely depressed. In October 2014, she went vegan as a result and began researching factory farming and the compassionate alternative, farm sanctuaries. She desperately consulted with leaders in the vegan movement, determined to do whatever she could to create sanctuary out of what was once a beef cattle operation in the heart of cattle country. As a result, the Rancher Advocacy Program was developed to give cattle ranchers and other animal farmers a way to transition into other ways of farming without animal cruelty. Transitioning out of animal agriculture requires a lot of skill, effort, and people to help. RAP is dedicated to finding the resources and the way to give farmers a way around farming animals. Renee speaks to farmers all the time and a few have converted to vegan, like 6th generation Texas cattle ranchers Cindy and Richard Traylor. Renee King-Sonnen aka Sangita has studied yoga sciences and Ayurveda for 35 years. She is a teacher of hatha yoga and kundalini yoga. She has a dedicated yoga practice and meditates every day. Her guru is Swami SatchidanandaConnect with Renee:Clubhouse: @rowdygirlWebsite: rowdygirlsanctuary.org & rancheradvocacy.orgInstagram: @rowdygirlsanctuary & @rancheradvocacyprogramFacebook: @rowdygirlsanctuary & rancheradvocacyprogramYouTube: Rowdy Girl Sanctuary
Renee King-Sonnen—the founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary, the former beef cattle ranch that under her direction (insistence, really, after going vegan) became a farm sanctuary—reflects on being an inveterate animal […]
Have you ever wondered what it's like to be a cattle rancher and go vegan? Find out in this episode of 2 Rowdy Vegans, featuring the one and only Tommy Sonnen - the man behind Rowdy Girl Sanctuary.
- Interviews Available Rowdy Girl Sanctuary is the first documented beef cattle ranch to ever convert from selling them for slaughter in the agriculture industry to rescuing them and becoming a vegan farm animal sanctuary. We are an education based sanctuary that teaches folks that if cattle ranchers can go vegan anyone can - we always tell our story and because it is so unique people listen - vegan or not, people are very curious about cattle ranchers that have gone vegan. Website: rowdygirlsanctuary.org Renee King-Sonnen, Executive Director and Founder of Rowdy GirlSanctuary is available for interviews. Renee King-Sonnen, a native Houstonian, is the Executive Director and Founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary in Angleton, Texas. She remarried her husband Tommy Sonnen, a multi-generational cattle rancher in 2009 and moved to the ranch. She fell in love with farm animals, having no idea her life was about to transform. After witnessing time and again the baby calves going to the sale barn she became extremely depressed. In October 2014, she went vegan as a result and began researching factory farming and the compassionate alternative, farm sanctuaries. She desperately consulted with leaders in the vegan movement, determined to do whatever she could to create sanctuary out of what was once a beef cattle operation in the heart of cattle country.
While you're at it, support the show, grab a book with Audible, or start shopping at Thrive Market. Recently we had the opportunity to work with Brother Wolf Animal Rescue at Asheville Veganfest. While there we managed to steal away some speakers for a quick two on one chat. One of the speakers, Renee King-Sonnen, stole the show with her amazing story and amazing energy. After spending sometime talking with her during and after recording we couldn't pass up a chance to have her on the show for a long form interview. Renee's story is not like any other. After marrying her now husband and cattle rancher, Renee settled in to be a typical rancher's wife. Though she always had animal rights and welfare buzzing around in her mind she suppressed the urge to succumb, something many of us have felt and done. In an attempt to follow tradition she purchased a calf with intention to raise to market weight and to be sold for food. While going through the process something began to wake within her and she wasn't able to keep what she knew to be true and decided she'd had enough. Renee was able to recognize what she and the other ranchers were doing wasn't right and decided to make a change. The calf that she raised leant her name to her new home, "Rowdy Girl Sanctuary". We talked with Renee King-Sonnen about her waking up, working with other ranchers and rancher wives to further the cause, and a very moving story about a strong calf that thought her, and I'm sure you, a lot about the future of animal welfare and the future of sanctuaries. If you can, please take some time and support the efforts of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary. You can also become a member or adopt an animal and get some great perks while supporting the sanctuary and help some amazing animals. ABOUT RENEE KING-SONNEN Renee, a native Houstonian, is the Executive Director and Founder of Rowdy Girl Sanctuary in Angleton, Texas. She remarried her husband Tommy Sonnen, a multi-generational cattle rancher in 2009 and moved to the ranch. She fell in love with farm animals, having no idea her life was about to transform. After witnessing time and again the baby calves going to the sale barn she became extremely depressed. In October 2014, she went vegan as a result and began researching factory farming and the compassionate alternative, farm sanctuaries. She desperately consulted with leaders in the vegan movement, determined to do whatever she could to create sanctuary out of what was once a beef cattle operation in the heart of cattle country. VEGAN: EVERYDAY STORIES The documentary Vegan: Everyday Stories features Renee King-Sonnen along with other prominent figures in the plant based movement. The movie focuses on a set of very different vegans, their journey, and their everyday lives. A great movie free of graphic imagery to inspire others that they too can make an amazing life change and be happier and healthier than ever before. EPISODE RESOURCES Rowdy Girl Sanctuary's website Rowdy Girl Sanctuary's Facebook Rowdy Girl Sanctuary's YouTube Vegan: Everyday Stories CHECK OUT OUR STORE Interested in getting some awesome CV swag? Visit CuriouslyVegRadio.com/cvdesigns for awesome CV swag and make sure to stop by MattHughesArt.com for a limited edition, signed print made exclusively for Curiously Veg! Curiously Veg Art Nouveau Curiously Veg Art Nouveau 2 "Find Your Why" - White Text "Find Your Why" - Black Text You can even pick up a t-shirt, hoodie, or a mug with some great artwork printed on it.