Making Memories Count
Attending one or more of our special events is a great way to support Rescue Village’s mission and vision while having a fun and memorable experience!
“It was extremely hard not being able to connect with our donors and supporters face-to-face in 2020, and being able to do that safely in 2021 was something truly special,” said Jamie Smith, Special Events Manager at Rescue VIllage. “In 2021, we were able to hold four fundraising events that raised over $150,000!”
For our first event of the year, we had people register to spend the night at the shelter for our newest event we had planned to roll out in 2020, the Spring Fling Slumber Party. In May, 12 individuals signed up to spend the night at Rescue Village with one or more of our shelter animals. They bought matching pajamas for the animal they were assigned to and decorated their “dorm” rooms. They brought treats and toys for their Slumber Party partners, read books to the animals, and spent hours with them outside.
Each Slumber Party participant pledged to raise donations for Rescue Village and collectively they raised over $12,000! Participant, Abbie Leska, said “sleeping at Rescue Village with dog-sisters, Juneau and Geneva, was an amazing experience! They were so disconnected at the shelter and when I set up my bed at Rescue Village in a special room just for us, they just jumped right in with me. It was incredible to see these shy, timid dogs let their guard down for the night. It was an experience I will never forget and hope to do again next year.”
Another new Rescue Village event in 2021 was the Putts for Paws golf outing. Over 80 golfers joined us in August at The Tanglewood Club in Bainbridge. Golfers got to meet puppies that were safely introduced to the golf carts and had fun touring the course and visiting the golfers as they played.
Barks and Brews, held at Truman’s 216 in the Cleveland Flats was another new event in 2021. “We loved being able to host an event with one of our amazing community partners and Truman’s 216 was the perfect place!” said Smith. “The evening was filled with great food, great drinks, friendly conversations, and of course adorable, adoptable dogs!
Rescue Village rounded out the year with the annual dog festival, Woofstock. Being Rescue Village’s iconic annual event, Woofstock welcomed over 3,500 people, 2,000 dogs, 70 vendors, 35 sponsors and 10 food trucks for our largest Woofstock to date! The day was filled with dogs running lure courses, dressing up in costumes, participating in dog games, such as musical sit and fastest dog, and testing their skills on the agility course. Participants listened to live music while they enjoyed a bite to eat and a beverage in Wilson’s Beer Garden. Woofstock raised almost $120,000 and we can’t wait to top that number next year!
Over 30 volunteers served on our event planning committees and hundreds of volunteers helped carry out day-of event assignments to make these some of the most successful events we have ever hosted. The response from our community, the way everyone showed up, donated, adopted, and spent time with us at these events was something very special.
Rescue Village is extremely grateful for all the support and look forward to seeing everyone for more fun-raising and meaningful memories in 2022!