2009 Entrepreneur of the Year Finalist: The Killuminati Foundation

Starting a foundation that benefits dogs seems an unlikely endeavor for someone who was allowed only a goldfish growing up, but when Jeanna Callahan met a feisty 6-week-old puppy that planted himself at her feet, she experienced the people-pet connection.

"It just completely turned my world upside-down - that unconditional love," Callahan says. "That's how I became a dog person."

That puppy was named Payton - after the late NFL running back Walter Payton, because Callahan is from Chicago - and became her constant companion when she was a junior at Missouri State University.

When Payton ruptured a ligament and broke a bone while playing Frisbee, Callahan faced a $4,000 emergency surgery, which she covered with money she had saved to pay for school.

"I was surprised at the number of people that said, 'Just put him down,'" Callahan says.

"They're not disposable."

That experience made her wonder how people without cash reserves pay for critical pet care.

Last year, she launched The Killuminati Foundation to help families pay for life-saving medical procedures for their dogs.

The foundation is named for Callahan's second dog, Killuminati, or "Nati," who was killed by a car. Killuminati is an African term that means, "change for the better."

"The maximum we'll pay is half, based on need and availability. We don't pay all of it," Callahan says of the foundation's assistance.

"It's important for the family to have a vested interest."

Killuminati has been a labor of love and long hours navigating the bureaucracy involved with establishing a 501(c)3 nonprofit while working a full-time job as a sales representative recruiter for Wyndham Vacation Resorts.

Callahan created bylaws, articles of incorporation, a motto, logo and Web site.

"There were times I'd get so frustrated and put it away for a week and clear my head ... and half the time I didn't understand the application," Callahan said.

Some people thought she was crazy to launch a pet-focused foundation during a down economy.

"I love it. It fuels me," she says of naysayers. "That just makes me try 10 times harder. It gives me incentive."

Callahan bankrolled startup costs, and the foundation's first donation of $1,000 funded care for its first dog in need: Tigger 2, a 2-year-old Papillon who needed surgery for a torn ligament.

The dog's owner, Vicki Broshear, who is disabled and didn't have the money to help her dog, was impressed that Callahan met with her in person.

"I explained to her there were times I could be in so much pain I didn't want to get up, but I had to because of him. ... He's my companion," Broshear says. "I dreaded the thought of having to put him down at such a young age." For the rest of this year, Callahan is focusing on fundraising.

Project Puppy - a dinner-and-dance take on TV show "Project Runway" where dogs will model clothes made by local students and attendees will have the opportunity to adopt the canine fashionistas - will take place in November with the goal of raising $15,000.

Two other aspects of Killuminati include BARC!, its Business and Rescue Coalition Program, where businesses can help people who foster animals in need of homes, and a planned effort to educate children on canine care, welfare and the importance of spaying and neutering.[[In-content Ad]]