Our Vegan Story | Jeanne and Larry Kaiser

My husband and I have been vegan for the animals since Memorial Day weekend of 1990, almost 28 years. John Robbins was speaking at the local Unitarian Church in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He gave an inspiring talk about all aspects of veganism and asked everyone to just reduce their meat consumption by 10%. I remember feeling electrified by all this brand new information and seized by a desire to be vegan for the rest of my life! We discussed it seriously after the talk and immediately read Diet for a New America as we had bought a copy at the talk. We just didn’t feel there was any alternative to living vegan from that time on. I sent away for lots of information from the American Vegan Society and checked out books and magazines from the library. By Sunday we had eliminated every animal product from the house including clothing and personal items and our lives changed forever more! At the time we knew no one else who was even vegetarian. About a month later, we connected with the group that brought John Robbins to Ann Arbor and were very involved with that group, attending protests against fur, meat, animal research, hunting, zoos, rodeos, and circuses. We have attended and participated in many national conferences for animal rights activists/vegans and visited farm sanctuaries. Our only regret was not becoming vegan earlier, but we just didn’t know. It’s gratifying to see that even the word “vegan” which few could even pronounce in 1990 is all over the media and commonly known and accepted. Vegan food choices are so widespread now in “regular” grocery stores and most restaurants can provide a vegan meal. Being vegan is just so much easier now. Our health was not a concern back then. The last ten years, we have been eating more whole food, low fat vegan and it is benefiting our health greatly! Of course a clear conscience is also wonderful for your health. We are very careful to read labels on personal products, food, and clothing and have never wavered from living as vegan as is possible, and still a part of this world. We got involved in dog rescue soon after (1991) becoming vegan and all our rescued dogs have eaten vegan food; we couldn’t stand the thought of feeding them dead animals. They are currently eating V-Dog and love it! We started a vegan group in Boone, North Carolina after we retired, to provide resources and support for vegans and those moving that way. We don’t understand how people can turn away after discovering the truth about animal use, and do our best to provide whatever people need to stay or become vegan. If you truly embrace the idea that animals are not here for our use in any way, it’s very easy to become and remain a staunch vegan.