Veganism isn’t just a lifestyle; it’s an ever-growing movement thanks to concerned citizens who lend their time, care and energy to the greater good.

Gene Baur at Farm Sanctuary, which rescues farm animals from slaughter.

(Courtesy of Gene Baur/Farm Sanctuary)

No one could have predicted that Gene Baur, who started out as an occasional actor, would become a pioneer of the vegan movement. “Like everyone around me, I grew up eating meat, dairy and eggs,” Baur tells Los Angeles magazine. “I was also in the background of commercials for McDonald’s.”

In 1985, Baur went vegan, and in 1986 he began rescuing farm animals from slaughter, co-founding Farm Sanctuary. Today, the organization has inspired the likes of Jon Stewart and his wife, Tracey, who created a sanctuary based on Baur’s model; and Joaquin Phoenix, who, the morning after his Oscar win in 2020, helped Baur rescue a cow and calf from slaughter.

“Hardly anyone around me understood vegan living in the 1980s,” says Baur. “Restaurants and food retailers serving vegan consumers were rare [outside of] food co-ops and restaurants that were established in L.A. during the hippie era.”

During the 2000s, veganism became mainstream, thanks in part to celebrities and the introduction of “upscale eateries,” Baur offers.

For the holidays, Farm Sanctuary is inviting all to symbolically adopt a rescued farm animal and receive a certificate for gifting. Says Baur, “We can do this in a conscientious way that also shows love and respect for other animals, people and the planet.”