Breakfast benefit to support animal shelter

By TOM LA VENTURE

news@yourdailyglobe.com

Ironwood — Organizers of a Sunday breakfast benefit said it will help with caring for more than 500 dogs and cats that end up under the care of the HOPE Animal Shelter each year.

“This is the second time we have run the event,” said Kathy Zumbrock, assistant manager of HOPE. “It does pull in a big crowd as a buffet with something for everyone, and there are quite a few items in the raffles.”

The breakfast buffet benefit will be held 8 a.m. to noon on Sunday, at Elk & Hound Restaurant in Ironwood.

“People like eating together as a family and we hope to catch both the before and after church crowd,” Zumbrock said.

The event also features a 50/50 drawing.

For approximately 27 years the HOPE shelter has operated with a portion of county property tax funds from both Iron County, Wisconsin, and Gogebic County, Michigan, Zumbrock said. But that falls short of recovering veterinarian bills and costs for food and six staff members, she said.

The funds from the benefit will help care for the many unaltered and unvaccinated animals that come to the shelter annually, along with many that have medical programs, she said. All the animals are seen by a veterinarian before adopted out to homes.

“It does cost quite a bit of money to get them all spade or neutered and all of their vaccinations before they can even leave us to go into a home,” Zumbrock said. “We take care of all of those stray animals and 80 to 90% of them are not fixed when they come to us.”

Most of the strays are friendly and obviously came from a home because they like to be around people, she said. A large part of the animal shelter’s mission is about educating the public about caring for animals and the importance of spading and neutering for animal control and for the health of the animal.

There is a lot of unheralded giving from areas businesses, nonprofit organizations, the schools and private individuals that goes unheralded. There are volunteers who help with the events and to walk the dogs and watch the cats, along with businesses which support events like these, she said.

Tickets can be purchased at HOPE through Saturday at 590 Easy St., in Ironwood, or at the restaurant the day of the event. Guests who bring a pet-related donation such as food, leashes, collars and toys will receive a free raffle ticket.

For more information, contact HOPE at 906-93-21511 or visit myhopeanimalshelter.org.