National Breathe Free Sinus and Allergy, headquartered in Phoenix, raised $110,000 for Cody’s Friends Rescue at its annual Breathe Free Conference in April.
Cody’s Friends Rescue is a nonprofit organization that finds homes for homeless and abandoned dogs. Based in Dallas, Texas, the group was named after founder Tina Austin’s first pet, Cody, a Shih Tzu. Austin had unknowingly purchased Cody from a puppy mill and founded Cody's Friends to help provide homes to dogs like Cody.
The organization was awarded a "Pawsitively Good Award" by NBC 5 Dallas-Ft. Worth in January for "going above and beyond to help animals in need."
"We have about 250 dogs and over 150 fosters and then we have volunteers, as well, so we are pretty large," Austin told NBC 5. "We have a rescue facility in Addison called Poochville, and we have about 35 dogs there that are up for adoption and fostering, as well."
Funds for the organization were raised during a live auction, hosted by National Breathe Free Sinus and Allergy’s co-founder Matt Ghanem, at the company’s annual Breathe Free Conference, held April 24 to 28 in Dallas.
Contributions were made from National Breathe Free, as well as eleven different local clinics from around the country.
Ghanem and Dr. Manish Khanna co-founded National Breathe Free Sinus and Allergy in 2018. The organization currently includes 20 clinics nationwide.
Before founding National Breathe Free, Ghanem held multiple leadership roles in the medical device industry, specifically in the Ear, Nose and Throat space. Ghanem has a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and Political Science from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Business Administration from George Washington University.
