From Foster Care To Dog Rescue: How Jersey City’s Rescue Treats Is Changing the Game

In his time in the Ohio foster-care system, Arron Jones-Williams had moments where he felt like a commodity to some foster parents. He once remembered being dropped off with a family and left in the garage while the family went out to dinner with their son who had just returned from military duty the same day. 

“It’s tough when everything to a foster care kid is not sunshine and rainbows,” he says. “You understand the world a little faster than other kids. It taught me to have a glass half full, but I’m always optimistic. And if I wasn’t, I’d be so depressed.” 

When he first arrived from Ohio to New York City, where he currently resides, Jones-Williams sat down in Central Park when a bulldog came up to him, scoffed at him, and walked away. The owner quickly ran up to him to apologize. 

“I said no need to apologize because I love that kind of stubborness,” he laughs. “After that, I looked up local bulldog rescue groups to volunteer for and began working with Long Island Bulldog Rescue.” 

With an understanding of what it’s like to move from one home to another where nothing is certain, Jones-Williams was inspired to create Rescue Treats to help dogs rescued from shelters who are in need of homes. 

With a home base in Jersey City, Rescue Treats bakes all-natural dog treats and donates the profits to dog rescues. Jones-Williams bakes them personally with a Hobart mixer, dough press, and dough sheeter at their commercial bakery on Baldwin Avenue. They have two flavors: pumpkin and peanut butter, and banana and sweet potato.

It’s estimated that around 200 stores in the New York-New Jersey area also carry Rescue Treats products, with the profits donated. Every purchase of Rescue Treats helps support local dog rescues that customers can select at checkout. 

The efforts of Jones-Williams haven’t gone unnoticed. The entrepreneur was honored this past February with the Citation Award by the City of Jersey City, recognizing his contributions to animal welfare and community service. 

A ceremony was held at City Hall, where the city presents citations to individuals that commit their time to the community. During the ceremony, where the City Council voted unanimously to support the resolution, Solomon commended Jones-Williams for “combining entrepreneurship with social vision to a broader community.” 

“When we were just getting started, Mayor Solomon was a city councilman who really pushed for us and let others know that we were here for the community,” Jones-Williams told New Jersey Urban News. “He was one of the few people to actually stop and recognize what we were doing. I think that shows character.” 

At the ceremony, Councilman Frank E. Gilmore, also a former foster youth, praised Jones-Williams for his resilience and success in overcoming the challenges of the foster care system.

Jones-Williams wasn’t adopted until he was a pre-teen and remembers moving from home to home each grade in school as a child.

“Foster youth have to hopefully get adopted but assimilating into another family is a whole different struggle with your identity,” he said. “And it was more difficult for me being biracial. When you’re in foster care and you’re half Black, half white, sometimes a white family just wants a white kid. But I was to be adopted by the family that I have.” 

When he’s not working on Rescue Treats, Jones-Williams works as an analyst for the consulting firm NextGen Strategic Advisors, where he focuses on regulatory implementations. He is also the co-founder of Sellthium, a tech company that does B2B sales. 

“As an analyst, people ask me why I’m even wasting my time with this when I already have a good job,” he says. “It’s about making this vehicle where even decades from now we’re still funding rescues and this was built from sweat.” 

Animal shelters have their own challenges to face including staff shortages, slow-downs in adoptions, and overcrowding which is increasing by the amount of surrenders from pet owners due to the rising cost of living. 

“We are in back-to-back bad economic times,” says Jones-Williams. “Throw a pandemic into the mix and people aren’t buying houses or having children. But mostly younger people will get a dog only to then learn that they’re not financially capable of taking care of it. And then it comes back to the rescues and the rescues will not say no.” 

Rescue Treats has also begun a school fundraising initiative with New Jersey schools. The program works as a double fundraiser, simultaneously supporting animal rescues and educational programs. 

“We have a bag of medium-sized treats that’s used for fundraisers,” says Jones-Williams. “The schools carry our flyers and they get 40 percent of the profits for their own programs, whether it’s a sports team or group. And then our side goes to a rescue.” 

More info on the Rescue Treats fundraising programs can be found online at www.rescuetreats.dog or by emailing fundraise@rescuetreats.dog. Their Instagram is @dogrescuetreats.