'Really inspiring': Vegan sisters plan to open Cape Cod animal sanctuary.

EASTHAM — Twelve-year-old Dani Chianciola and her 7-year-old sister, Lana, have a dream of owning an animal sanctuary together when they grow up.

“The name would be Vegan Sisters’ Sanctuary, VSS,” said a smiling Lana.

During their playtime together, the two sisters already have a pretend sanctuary in their backyard where they pretend to take care of all the animals in the sanctuary.

Veganism is a major part of both the sister’s lives and they have been fierce animal advocates since early childhood. In recognition of their activism, they’ve earned second place in People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals Kids’ 2023 All-Star for Animals Contest — the first pair of siblings to claim the honor.

“We loved to see their shared love of vegan food and their passion for informing others about the importance of being vegan,” said Faith Rutherford, the PETA manager of the TeachKind program. “One of their goals to co-own a sanctuary together was really inspiring and we're just thankful to have them be a part of the contest.”

PETA announced the award Aug. 1.

Dani was raised vegetarian from birth and went vegan seven years ago while Lana has been vegan since birth. Both of them are students of Nauset Regional School District.

“You can't go vegan overnight; veganism is a process and I love being able to be educated by others and also educate others,” said Kelly Chianciola, their mother. “Both Dani and Lana pass that on through PETA Kids and also to their friends and family.”

“We use two factors to consider the winner and runner up for PETA Kids, first is the number of votes they get and second is their enthusiasm for animal rights,” said Rutherford. The winners this year is another sibling pair from New Jersey.

Both the kids share their passion about veganism and animal welfare

“We like to tell our friends about veganism, they're always interested in what we eat and is it hard or not,” said Dani. “We always tell them the truth about which food is vegan and they're always positive about accepting what it's about and that's always a good thing.”

“They always ask us questions about food, like which salad dressing we can eat, which food do we like and stuff,” added Lana.

“And which salad dressing can we not have as vegans?” Chianciola asked the girls during an interview at their Eastham house backyard. Both the girls answered together: “The one that has honey in it.”

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The kids had spent their morning working on a chalk-art project on the road, in front of their garage. Along with drawings of multiple animals spread across the road, they wrote, “Peace begins on your plate — Go Vegan.”

According to Chianciola, other parents are supportive and inclusive and it plays a big part in promoting healthy vegan practices. “During other birthday parties or gatherings, the majority of the parents ask me what type of food options to bring for my kids. Parents and teachers, everyone at school is very inclusive here,” she said.

Passionate about cooking and veganizing regular recipes

There’s a lot of scrutiny around being a parent that doesn't go with the norm, and there’s pressure of giving your kids regular food, said Chianciola. “I think if you can do it in a healthy way, you're doing something that's better, for the kids, the planet and for animals.”

Experimenting with different recipes, trying out vegan versions of regular food has made all three of them "hands-on cooks."

“Any food you love, we can make it vegan and over the years the girls have become great with cooking and especially baking,” said Chianciola. She is from Yarmouth and was raised as a vegetarian. Fifteen years ago she turned vegan.

Most Fridays are pizza nights for Dani and Lana. Their mom makes the dough by hand, and the sauce, and they use store-bought vegan cheese.

“Sometimes on Saturdays, I make breadsticks and sometimes arancini,” shared Dani. Arancini are Italian rice balls, which are Dani’s favorite.

According to the girls, anything with tofu is their all-time favorites, especially tofu tacos their mom makes. In Lana’s words, they are truly ‘tofu monsters.’

A vegan lifestyle includes awareness and climate-friendly choices

Apart from food, the family is also conscious about vegan clothing. They don’t use any clothing made by animal products and are always in search of climate friendly options.

“We try to upcycle a lot of things and try to minimize our plastic use," Chianciola said.

Dani is constantly vocal about the benefits of going vegan. She wrote an article for PETA Kids’ website about why everyone should believe in animal rights. When she grows up, she wants to be an animal rights lawyer so she can continue her animal advocacy.

The family has two dogs and four cats as pets, all of them are rescued animals.

Dani’s favorite animals are cows and seabirds while Lana is particularly fascinated by orcas. She talks to her friends about avoiding marine parks and watching aquatic animals in their natural habitats instead, and both of them use chalk art to raise awareness.

Along with running a sanctuary with her big sister, Lana wants to be a fashion designer.

The girls never make anybody feel bad about not being vegan and "that’s important,” Chianciola said. “Everyone asks them questions and they respond with the truth.”

Rasheek Tabassum Mujib writes about health care and education. Reach her at rmujib@capecodonline.com.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Eastham sisters to open animal sanctuary, win animal advocacy award