Kenny Torrella serves as Mercy For Animals' Chicago Campaign Coordinator, organizing events, overseeing campaigns, and coordinating volunteers and interns throughout the Windy City.

It was while viewing the documentary Earthlings in college that Kenny was compelled toward animal activism.

A vegetarian for years, it was seeing undercover footage illustrating the sheer pain, fear, and innocence in the eyes and faces of animals locked in cages on factory farms and standing on the kill floors of slaughterhouses that drew Kenny into full-time animal advocacy work.

A native of Gaithersburg, Maryland, and a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University, Kenny relocated to Chicago in 2010 to spearhead MFA's regional grassroots campaigns.

Kenny has volunteered with various national farmed animal and vegan advocacy organizations. In college, he formed a student animal rights organization, where he led other students in various proactive outreach events, including leafleting, feed-ins, educational exhibits, documentary screenings, restaurant outreach, local media campaigns, and more. In 2010, Kenny moved to Ohio and worked on a historic campaign to help prevent cruelty to over 27 million farmed animals in the state – including egg-laying hens, breeding pigs, and calves raised for veal.

Kenny's advocacy work is driven by a recognition of the striking similarities in the needs and desires shared by all creatures. "Non-human animals try to avoid suffering as much as possible, just like humans do, but unfortunately these animals are born into lives in which suffering is all they know," he says.

Inspired by the life motto, "seize the day," Kenny sees each moment and action as an opportunity to promote compassion, stating: "Every day we're given a chance to speak up and help the defenseless. As abstract as this work may seem sometimes, we are directly affecting real lives – animals that can feel pain and suffer just like us."

With a realization that children are also often born into tragic situations and are defenseless to their aggressors, Kenny has volunteered at orphanages in Cambodia and tutored middle school children in Thailand. His dedication to helping less privileged youth began in high school, when Kenny first worked as a counselor at a low-cost summer camp and after school program.

As a well-traveled vegan, his work abroad has opened Kenny's eyes, and palate, to the world of international vegan cuisine, with favorites including classic Indian, Thai and Ethiopian dishes. At-home favorite vegan delights include pizza piled high with Daiya cheese, vegenaise-slathered tempeh sandwiches, and chunky fruit smoothies.

While not out saving, Kenny keeps his mind and body in top shape through running, listening to music, learning Spanish, reading, cooking, and his favorite sport – ultimate frisbee.