Broadway Barks is an annual animal charity event held in New York City to promote the adoption of shelter animals. The event was founded in 1999 by Bernadette Peters and her friend Mary Tyler Moore along with many other people who wanted to do something for animals.
The event has been held every July since 1999 in Shubert Alley, a place that is well known to many Clay fans. The first adopt-a-thon was held on July 24, 1999, and benefited five animal welfare shelters and groups:
This year, Broadway Barks will help many of New York City’s shelter animals find permanent homes. It will also help inform the residents of New York about the plight of the thousands of homeless dogs and cats in the city. The festivities will be held on Saturday, July 9th from 3:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. The event, produced by Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS, will again take place in Shubert Alley. Celebrity presentations of pets from citywide animal shelters will begin at 5:30 pm.
Last year, Broadway Barks attracted an audience of more than 7,500 theater fans, pet owners and animal lovers and Broadway stars from the many shows playing in New York. Twenty-seven animal shelters from the New York City area participated in the program along with many Broadway stars. There were a total of more than 200 adoptions last year.
The event is free. Funds raised from a raffle, silent auction, signed memorabilia sales and donations are distributed to the participating shelters and rescue groups and to the Picasso Veterinary Fund, which is administered by the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals and provides grants to shelters and rescue groups to cover extraordinary veterinary costs.
So…if you are going to be in the New York area on July 9th, why not stop by Shubert Alley and join in the fun. It’s a great chance to support the adoption of pets and meet some of your favorite Broadway Stars.
For more information on Broadway Barks, please visit them at Broadway Barks