Animal shelter "friends' hit 2010 goal of $200K

It might not be their ultimate goal, but that doesn't mean the Friends of the Shelter can't still celebrate reaching this smaller milestone.

With the year drawing to a close, Jackie Fischer, president of the Jefferson City organization, said she and her colleagues have accomplished a major part of their ultimate goal of raising $300,000 for the new animal shelter, scheduled to break ground in February.

"We have been working, right now, for about three years," Fischer said. "Our original goal was for $300,000 and this little goal we had set for the end of this year was $200,000 and we are going to do it."

She said her organization made the decision to aim for the benchmark goal after it hosted its "Whiskers to Wags" event in October, sitting at approximately $170,000. She said that event, along with other fundraisers, have helped them hit their goal. But one of the biggest money-makers in the push was the one that took the least amount of effort.

"We've had canisters out all over town at local businesses and that has done wonderful," Fischer said. "We've just been doing that for this past year and that, alone, has brought in $24,000.

"That's a lot of pennies."

The News Tribune also donated $500 in the effort through a telephone subscription drive.

Despite hitting this particular goal, Fischer said there will still be plenty of opportunities for people to help the Friends of the Shelter reach its ultimate goal of $300,000. Those will include a trivia night, a 5k walk/run and allowing people to purchase memorial trees, bricks and individual kennels for the animals with their names one them.

"We have a great group of friends that put on all of this fundraising, but I think Jefferson City has been wonderfully supportive of us and, if it wasn't for the citizens of Jefferson City, we wouldn't be where we are," Fischer said.