Walk for Animals raises $24K
Published 10:52 am Monday, September 12, 2011
Tiffany Emery with Shiloh accepts her prize Sunday at the Walk for Animals after it was announced she raised $10,523 with help from a large donation from author Amanda Hocking.
It was anything but a ruff weekend for the Mower County Humane Society.
MCHS volunteers raised $24,150 for operating expenses and pet care at the animal shelter, the highest amount in at least five years if not ever.
“I was happy with that,” said MCHS volunteer Kelly Rush, who helps organize the annual Walk For Animals, the humane society’s largest fundraiser.
Cassandra Nack and her English pointer Lady Pebbles, a former shelter dog, take part in a tail-wagging contest during the annual Walk for Animals at Mill Pond Sunday.
That’s in part to volunteers like Jo Verzani, who raised almost $2,000 on her own this year. Donations are down for Verzani, who raised a little more than $2,000 last year.
“I have very good followers,” Verzani said.
Verzani said it’s pretty easy to raise donations when people know it goes to a good, local cause.
“It’s such a good strong cause that people will find a few bucks for it,” she said.
Yet MCHS volunteers can be especially grateful to local author Amanda Hocking, who organizers announced Sunday donated $10,000 to one of the pledge collectors.
The money goes towards shelter costs, as there are no paid staff at MCHS. Each animal that comes into the shelter usually gets at least $100 worth of vet treatment before MCHS volunteers will house them. Each animal must also be spayed or neutered, which can bring expenses higher than $150.
“We literally drop over $100 — it doesn’t matter, dog or cat, we spend $100 on them,” Rush said. “We definitely treat everything that’s treatable.”
