The day went to the dogs!!
In case you missed it, BAM's 7th annual Dog Day Spectacular was held just a little over a week ago and it was just what y'all have come to expect, and more!
I want to take a little time to mention the tremendous support the event received from our own network of volunteers, without whom the event could not take place each year. Dog Day was started to show the public the many ways you can interact with your dog, all of which improve the bond of pet and owner. Thanks to the entire BAM network of volunteers, this year's Dog Day offered all that and more. Their dedication to seeing the event and its fundraising efforts succeed ensures that our community programs, including BAM's Homeless Animal Rescue Team (BAM's H.A.R.T.), will continue to make a difference in the lives of pets and people in need each year. THANK YOU!
Event volunteers also came from the Celtic Crusaders. For the second year these guys grilled their way into our hearts, not just donating their time, but also donating much of the food that was sold at BAM's food booth! Beyond the grilled food, this year introduced an absolute hit with a complete vegan meal, thanks to BAM's own Beth Lock. Beth is a founding Director for BAM and after seeing her meals sell out this year I think we are all expecting/hoping for her to start her own vegan restaurant. Beyond the typical food booth we also expanded our offerings this year with a bake sale by BAM's own Beverly Evers! Her talent as a pastry chef extraordinaire was a tremendous treat, pun intended.
Beyond the food I owe a huge shout of thanks the students of Diamond Ranch Academy! For the fourth year in a row, BAM had pre- and post-event set-up help from a handful of young men and their supervisors! They make the heavy lifting look easy and save our network of volunteers from a ton of extra stress!
The weather held many participants in our annual Walk for the Animals at bay this year, but we were happy to see the turnout after a very rainy day before the event, and spotty rain overnight. Thanks to Walk leader Robin Kirker, owner of Tails Off Trails, any number of participants is bound to get some great advice while exercising with their favorite dogs!
Beyond starting the day with the benefit Walk, each year it is our pleasure to feature FUNgility, dog sports demos, and a fantastic UpDog Challenge disc dog competition. This year we were lucky enough to add to the mix a North American Diving Dogs dock diving AKC trial! This year's competitions by pros and trial runs by novices were great fun to watch, with or without a dog in tow!
A big round of thanks goes out to all the volunteers and representatives of Zion Disc Dogs, Atomic Dogs, Zion Dog Sports/Team Zion Flyin Dogs, Red Canyon Kennel Club, NADD, and Doggy Dude Ranch. They made the events within the event possible and so much fun!
And an enormous thank you to this year's vendors, raffle and silent auction donors, and sponsors! The vendors (some of whom also sponsor) are a key component to a successful Dog Day, offering a variety of products and services to the many event attendees. We hear for months after the event about their great products, and get questions about how to get in contact with them. Thanks to BAM's Morgan (and helper and BAM foster mom Michelle and family) the tremendous raffle and silent auction tables took in over $500 this year! But our biggest thank you of all has to go to our event sponsors . . . their financial support allows Dog Day's profits to support BAM's ever-evolving community programs. Their generosity and partnership in our mission truly is making a difference one pet at a time. Please click through the slideshow of sponsors below and thank them for their support of BAM the next time you see them or visit their businesses!
Thanks to our Dog Day Spectacular Sponsors!
