What Is Whiskeys for Whiskers?

Totally bought this today so I had to update my blog post!

If you’ve been Facebook or IRL friends with me for a few years or more, you’ve likely seen my posts about Whiskeys for Whiskers. I think I’ve mentioned it in several blog posts, actually, and, if you’re fairly new to my life, you probably wondered what the hell I was talking about.

Well, the time has come. You may remember reading that I started volunteering in the world of animal rescue back in 2008 after I adopted both Apollo (in 2007) and Phoebe (in 2008). During my time as a volunteer, I joined the board of directors of a local organization. I started out as a volunteer coordinator but also dipped my toe into some event planning. Most of these were small-time, but while I was in the process of putting together a dog prom (complete with canine king and queen!), I caught the attention of a rescuer who volunteered for another organization, named Melanie Vergas. Melanie, who sadly passed in March of 2020, changed the course of my life. She was dramatic, loud, funny, and an all-around wonderful person. Some of my current closest friends are in my life because of Mel.

Alli, Mel, Me, and Jenn - the original Cosmos crew

Melanie approached me one day about an event she had seen an out-of-state rescue do called “Martinis for Mutts.” She said, “hey, I want to do something like this, but I don’t think we have enough of a following in the Greenville area to pull off such a large-scale event” and then asked if the organization for which I volunteered wanted to join. They did.

I’ll confess. I had no freaking clue what I was doing. It was Melanie who spearheaded the event, asking a couple other organizations to join, finding the venue, and getting the ball rolling. We called the event “Cosmos for Critters”, my idea because I didn’t want to alienate our feline friends. “Cosmos,” as we affectionately called it, was a huge success. I learned so, so much from Mel that year. A few short months later, I held the dog prom (Tuxes, Tiaras & Tails…I have a thing for alliteration!), and it was also a success. I was hooked.

But even as I was hooked, I was killing myself. Event planning was my drug of choice. After our second year of Cosmos, I realized I’d better get myself clean, so to speak, before I literally died from overextending myself. And, as this was before I made so much progress in therapy (not for lack of trying – shoutout to Cheryl!), my mindset was “all or nothing”. If I couldn’t do events, I couldn’t do anything. I left the board and stepped away from volunteering altogether.

That was in 2011, and I didn’t start talking about going back to rescue until late in 2016. During my hiatus, I still attended a bunch of events, most notably a monthly Saturday afternoon event called “Yappy Hour.” Yappy Hour raised funds for and honored a different organization every month. Through those events, meeting other rescuers, and generally learning more about our rescue community, I started to see just how huge the need was, how many people were giving their all to help, and how much help was still needed.

I am not sure why I thought of it or where it came from, but I had an idea for a fundraiser. After spending five years out of the thick of things, I knew I didn’t want to commit myself to just one organization. I like whiskey (although I don’t drink it in mixed company. There really is something to that “whiskey makes me frisky” saying.) I noticed there were distilleries popping up all over. I talked to some of my Cosmos friends, who were all basically taking a hiatus as well, and Whiskeys for Whiskers came alive.The first W4W took place in April of 2018. There were plenty of hiccups, but we managed to clear around $10,000 for the rescues we chose as beneficiaries. We did very little advertising because we couldn’t afford it, so the majority of that revenue came from word of mouth. We learned a lot about what worked and what didn’t work. Several of us had been on a cruise in 2016 and we attended a speakeasy party complete with fringe dresses and fishnet stockings. Since we loved it so much, it became the W4W theme as well. It was Year 1, and we didn’t even know if there would be a Year 2.

But Year 1 was a success. Sheri Taylor and Jamarcus Gaston joined us as our contest judges and, I think it’s fair to say, they had a fabulous time! Everyone had a great time. It was the high that I’d been missing for so long. Sending the money to the beneficiaries was one of the greatest moments ever.

We decided to hold a Year 2, and in May of 2019, we presented Ruffdell High - a Grease-themed Whiskeys for Whiskers. Again, we cleared about $10,000. We, unfortunately, chose a weekend when we ended up competing with Mother’s Day and a HUGE local event called Artisphere, so we were disappointed with the lack of increase in funds but still pretty proud that we matched the prior year while facing those obstacles.

As soon as Ruffdell High was completed, we started planning the next W4W – Austin Puppers: International Meow of Mystery. While we were planning that, we were approached by a local comedy group and turned out a mini event called Doggone Funny featuring Never Decaf Improv.

We started making real plans for our future. Those plans included obtaining our own 501(c)(3) designation under the name “The Whiskers Foundation,” adding additional events throughout the year (there are many options running around this brain of mine!) and making changes to our signature event (W4W) for a kick-ass profit in 2020. Yeah, in 2020. A couple weeks after we released our ticket sales link for Austin Puppers, you know what happened. Covid.

Since then, we’ve been in a holding pattern, moving the event several times. We’ve put off obtaining our own 501(c)(3) and put the brakes on any other events we had put thought into. In February of this year, we started cautiously and quietly planning once again. Now we’re really revving up and Austin Puppers is finally happening on August 20, 2022. Hopefully, we’ll be able to get that charity designation next year, and we can start fulfilling the rest of our dreams! I am incredibly lucky to have the best freaking people putting in their blood, sweat, and tears into this.  

Jenny Waller – Social Media & Website Content Coordinator & Volunteer Coordinator

Jan Todd – Community Outreach Coordinator & Chief Advisor

Debbie Elliott – Silent Auction & Raffle Procurement Coordinator

Shane Elliott – Logistics & Tech Coordinator

Kelly Redding – Décor Coordinator

Heather and Scott Harris – Provide remote support when needed in all areas

And me? I am the Chaos Coordinator. No matter how much planning we do, no matter how many “what if” scenarios we run, no matter how many of us brainstorm and review, there is always chaos to be had. This event is a huge undertaking. It’s a passion project. It takes not only the names I listed above, but dozens of volunteers from the benefiting rescue organizations to pull off. The payoff is so worth all of the craziness. Seeing people smiling and laughing and enjoying each other’s company, while also raising funds for animal rescue? It’s like a dream: a dream I didn’t know I had until it came true. We couldn’t do it without the support of the community, our families, and our friends. Special thanks to CHEF360 Catering and Razz Bartending for being with us from the beginning, keeping the bites and swigs going and to the distilleries who have participated and allowed the foundation of this event thrive.

If you think this sounds like a good cause (and, duh, why wouldn’t you) and you want to learn more about the event, please visit our website at www.whiskeysforwhiskers.com. There you can find information about sponsoring (yes, we ALWAYS need more sponsorship funds) and purchasing tickets. We’d love to see you at the Marketplace at Taylors Mill on August 20, 2022, at Austin Puppers: International Meow of Mystery for some booze tastin’, booty shakin’, yums eatin’, and a big ol’ celebration of the hard-working rescuers in North and South Carolina. Still have questions? Email us at whiskeysforwhiskers@gmail.com.