Janice Overbeck’s love for animals started at a very young age, and her love for them was apparent to everyone around her. One of her elementary school teachers remarked to Janice’s mother, Gail Seidell, about her endless love for four legged beasts. She doted, “Over all of my years of teaching, Janice is one of my students that has a different kind of love for animals. And, after 30 years in the classroom, I have only seen this type of love for animals in one other student.”

In 2016, Janice molded her love and devotion for animals of the world and founded JO Gives, Inc., a non-profit organization that focuses on animal advocacy and ALS Research funding. From 2016 -2020 Her real estate team office hosted low-cost pet vaccination clinics each month to raise money for homeless pets locally in the state of Georgia. The charity raised just over $100,000 focused directly on this mission. The organization also completed a special project, Project Mexico, which started in April 2019 to spay/neuter 2,000 dogs and cats. By the beginning of May 2021, Project Mexico spayed and neutered 2,130 pets! 

Currently, Janice works in conjunction with the Homeless Pets Foundation nationally to build after-school programs that teach humane education of animals to children. These programs, called the Homeless Pet Clubs of America, teach children empathy and to be kinder to the weak. They also educate students on important issues like the sterilization of dogs and cats due to overpopulation. Through educational initiatives and hands-on experiences, we empower young individuals to make a positive impact in their communities by promoting animal welfare and responsible pet ownership. Together, we strive to create a future where every pet has a loving home and every child understands the importance of kindness and empathy towards all living beings. 

When asked about the importance of the bond between pets and humans, Janice said, “Homo sapiens are the last of the human species, and there is a belief that I buy into that the pairing of dog and man as friends are what helped us survive over all of the other human species. Therefore, we owe it to man’s best friend to help overcome the overpopulation issues that lead to an abundance of suffering for the species. I have made it my mission to solve this crisis at large by working on children’s education, massive spay and neuter events, and relocating the overpopulated to give more dogs a chance at life.”

“If the kindest souls were rewarded with the longest lives, then dogs would outlive us all.” – Unknown

Apart from supporting animals, the JO Gives, Inc., also supports ALS research as its founder, Janice Overbeck, lost her father to the vicious disease in 2015. She works closely with the ALS center at Emory University to raise funds and support research for a cure. To date, her non-profit has raised $320,755.57 for this cause alone.