Earlier this summer we were so focused on the Home Depot contest we did not realize until the dust settled that, in the lovely aftermath, we put two events on our collective calendar on the same day.  Two wonderful organizations stepped up and wanted to make Stiggy’s Dogs a beneficiary of their charity events.  With gratitude and without realizing the date was the same for both, we said yes.

This past Saturday was that day.

We split up the team by geography.  Jennifer, Donna and Lynda covered the The Band of Brothers Quad Tennis Tournament in Frankenmuth and Mat and I (along with his brother and my husband) covered the American Legion Post 396 Golf Outing in Dearborn Heights.  Both events were immensely successful, great for our organization (staff, veterans and dogs included) and, quite frankly, fun!

The Band of Brothers Quad Tennis Tournament in Frankenmuth

(Picture courtesy of Bavarian Inn)

The day was great and we have to hand it to Lynda Gibson for being our point person on this.  She along with John Friend and Chip Sassone helped make this event so amazing for our organization.  Teams from four cities-Frankenmuth, Caro, Clio, and Saginaw Nouvel-(hence, the “quad”) participated.  Matches were played at the high school as well as the Bavarian Inn.  The event committee had special t-shirts made (costs were covered by sponsor Frankenmuth Credit Union) just for this event.  We were able to send staff and veterans and their dogs to the closing and opening ceremonies.

It was a beautiful day and an even better day to sweat it out in the sun for a great cause. We are so thankful to the Frankenmuth Noon Rotary for putting this event together and for all of the sponsors and, of course, the tennis players who worked hard to make this day a success.

American Legion Post 396, Garden City, Golf Tournament

(Picture courtesy of Debbie Fox, American Legion Post 396)

Back in May we were contacted by Brian “Ziggy” Chmielewski from American Legion Post 396 about a golf outing they would be putting on in the late summer. They wanted to have their efforts help raise money for two causes-Mayor’s Committee for Underprivileged Children and Stiggy’s Dogs.  We were honored to be part of such a great day.

Trainer Mat Sica helped kick off the day with Brian and Rusty.  Mat even got a chance to try and train the ball as opposed to training dogs for a nice change of pace!  At the end, my husband Garrett and I joined them as well as veteran Mike and dog Macy in training for the banquet dinner.  These were great people-fun and a great sense of humor that made the event such a success.  And they were serious about supporting Stiggy’s.  We sold many t-shirts to people who had heard of us for the first time that day!

To the entire committee, every golfer, and the women who worked hard selling 50/50 tickets, raffle tickets and everything else…thank you, thank you, thank you!  We can’t wait to see you all again!

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You can give to Stiggy’s Dogs securely online on our Rally page.  Please consider a donation to help us continue in our mission of Rescuing One to Rescue Another.

Fostering….. Is when a human takes in another animal, homes it, loves it, creates a environment that the animal has the potential to be adopted. Many times these animals are injured, need medical care, or with the over crowded Shelters, some euthanized. It’s that part of our society that people do not want to hear about, and yet many open their homes and lives to make this possible. Many times I get asked “How can you do that? How can you give that animal away after all that?”  Well, here is one example why …

Introducing the Story of *Eddie* our next potential Stiggy’s Dog….. We first looked at him back in June. I received a email from a Foster, Stephanie, who we have a mutual friend. Stephanie mentioned a dog she had and thought he might be a good fit for our program. We met him that weekend, a  skinny- furry- floppy eared Shepherd with the eyes of gold and the heart the size of the ocean. *Eddie* was intelligent and passed all our test with flying colors. Unfortunately, until he was up to full weight healthy enough to be nurtured, we were not able to adopt him yet. Another month of nurturing before he was ready. Arrangements were made, the sad goodbyes said …..Then I got the call, the dreaded call no one wants to hear; “Eddie was Heart-worm positive. We hope it is the beginning stages since it was negative in the initial test taken upon intake. However, he needs a place to go where he can be taken care of through this process. It is a long process, could take months, and one that it was imperative to keep the dog not active.”  said Jenny, the Shelters Manager. ….. silence filled the air. My mind swarming, we could not take him here (not the environment/time needed). Would Stephanie take him back through this? I knew she would want to BUT she was getting married in the next 2 months. This was a lot to ask a Bride to Be. However, there was not a hesitation in her decision when I called her.  So back Eddie went, saved again.

After two long sweet months later … *Eddie* is now getting neutered and will officially be part a Stiggy’s Dog this Friday!

I cant wait to meet Jenny personally and everyone at Michigan Humane Society Detroit for all they have done to help save one special dog!

PLUS The lucky Veteran that will be receiving *Eddie*  will be able to come with us and pick him up directly  from the shelter and  help him recover from surgery, starting their new journey together …..

Another wonderful example of the many that come together to be a part of our Motto “Rescuing One to rescue Another”

Happy Wedding Stephanie Olsen and Dino Kakos!