Potted plants, sweet treats and a cause close to home drew crowds to a Niagara-on-the-Lake fundraiser on Saturday, supporting local animal rescues.
Tanya Rice’s Community Initiative For Animal Rescue hosted its fifth annual spring event at 456 Line 2 Rd., featuring 87 handmade planters as well as a selection of baked goods prepared by local volunteers, including Chef Raymond Taylor from Root & Bone.
“The volunteers and our members, within three days, made 87 planters available for sale. The baking has been incredible,” said Rice.
Proceeds from the event will be split evenly between Angel’s Rest Dog Rescue and the Heart and Hope Lost and Found Pets of Niagara.
Angel’s Rest provides care for adult and senior dogs whose owners can no longer support them.
“Christine from Angel’s Rest Dog Rescue accepts surrendered or medically challenged dogs to live a comfortable life in her shelter. She takes care of them medically, physically, emotionally, until they pass away,” said Rice.
The Heart and Hope rescue group, based primarily in Welland, handles lost, found and adoption efforts for cats and kittens, providing medical care and socialization.
“They do everything from rescuing to vetting, so animals like Moo, Tigger and Toby can get socialized and go into adoption programs,” said Rice.
Rice said her experience fostering for more than eight years with a local cat rescue led to the creation of her fundraising group, Community Initiative for Animal Rescue.
“After I finished fostering for NOTL Cats, I still wanted to do something, so we started just so we could raise the money and give it to rescue groups that fall short on their own fundraising efforts.”
A silent auction fundraiser will mark the group’s one-year anniversary, beginning on April 22 and ends May 10 at Husky Travel Centre.
Rice praised local sponsors for their continued support, including Kauzlaric Family Farm, Bellyacres Farm and Coconut Quartz.
Cheryl Chiarelli, the creator and curator of Coconut Quartz, was on-site volunteering and selling her custom “We Love Pets” bracelets, with a portion of sales going to the cause.
