Belinda Roals
Hunter Animal Rescue
BEAUMONT Street’s Kavon Theme Restaurant regularly hosts fundraisers for worthy causes.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
But one charity in particular has a special place in the heart of co-owner Belinda Roals.
Having been a foster carer for Hunter Animal Rescue for about eight years, Ms Roals was inspired to host a “Furlesque” event at Kavon on June 3 to raise money for the not-for-profit organisation.
The staff volunteered their time and talents to raise money for Hunter Animal Rescue, which is run by volunteers who dedicate their time to finding new homes for abandoned pets facing euthanasia.
All of the animals are kept in foster carer homes where they experience a good quality of life while waiting to find their forever families.
“At the Kavon we like to do a charity fundraising event every couple of months,” she said.
“We did the Blues Brothers for Beyond Blue, we’ve done one for Lymes disease and we’ve got one coming up for Relay For Life as well.
“But Hunter Animal Rescue just happened to be a charity that I’m very passionate about.
“We did one about two years ago as well and raised about $3000.”
Ms Roals cares for orphaned puppies, which often need to be bottle-fed every two hours. Because of this, the cast had gotten to know the puppies, and wanted to do something to help.
“Furlesque” was a preview of Kavon’s production of Big Screen Burlesque.
The evening included a main meal, cupcakes and the show - which was more of a traditional, comedy-style burlesque performance. Throughout the night there was a slideshow of dogs and cats currently available for adoption, as well as some images of some of Hunter Animal Rescue’s more challenging cases.
“With Hunter Animal Rescue, their adoption fee covers the basic vet work, but anything above and beyond that - like surgeries - we do need to fundraise for,” Ms Roals said.
“Often animals require additional vet treatment or training prior to finding the perfect family and that is where fundraising counts.”
Pet lovers could also take home a doggy bag of gourmet dog treats from the event’s “Hounds High Tea” for their furry friends.
The proceeds from raffles and competitions on the night, as well as a portion of the ticket sales, would go to the cause.
Ms Roals said Hunter Animal Rescue was always looking for more foster carers.
“It’s rewarding, it’s challenging, it’s heartbreaking, it’s heart warming,” she said.
