NEW CHARITY STORE OPENS FOR K9

News

Gemma Quinn / 2010-12-06 19:23:09

25 years after it was first established, one of the region’s most loved charities has celebrated the opening of their first charity shop.

The new shop for the K9 animal charity opened in calle Alfredo Kraus, opposite the San Anton veterinary clinic in urbanisation La Marina on Saturday morning to much fanfare from locals and supporters alike. For treasurer Brenda Bentley it was the culmination of years of wishing and months of actual reality and planning to get the store up and running. “I burst into tears,” said the emotional animal lover, “It will make such a difference to us, we really need the extra funds to pay vets bills and cattery and kennel costs as we simply don’t have enough fosterers to care for the cats and dogs. Some months there just isn’t enough money so this will hopefully mean we stay out of debt.”

Previously, the charity raised funds through a weekly market stall which meant early starts for Brenda and her house had been taken over with items to sell. It all became too much so after some discussion with the committee it was decided it was time to move onwards and upwards and find a permanent venue to house all the items which had been donated for sale and it couldn’t come soon enough, “We thought about it a few years ago after we became involved in the La Marina Animal Welfare Charity.” K9 receive a proportion of donations from their shop but it was simply not enough to meet the costs and demands of this busy charity and so in September premises were sought and the dream became a reality. Councillor for animals Mark Lewis said it took some negotiating to secure the location. “The contracts were only signed four weeks ago but already it is making a difference as we need more funds for treatment and kennel costs.” The shop will cover its own costs through donations and the sale of goods and is manned by volunteers. It receives no funding from the Ayuntamiento but continues to work closely with the Town Hall acting on their behalf to collect stray and abandoned animals.

Mark’s passion for animal welfare is on a professional and personal basis and, along with his wife Yvonne, have supported K9 since it was formed 25 years ago by Roger Knott. Mark and Yvonne would feed the stray animals whenever they were here on holiday, taking a more active fundraising and supportive role when they moved to Spain permanently in 1995. Now, seeing the K9 sign above the door it was a proud moment for Mark and everyone who has been and still is, involved in the work that the charity does. As the doors opened for the first time, Alan Swoffer entertained the shoppers and onlookers with his fantastic John Lennon tribute act while Santa welcomed children and handed out gifts.

The shop will be open Monday to Friday 10am-6pm and from 10am-2pm on Saturdays. They currently have 53 cats looking for homes and have around 40 dogs at any one time. Fosterers for both are also always needed. If you can help, or would like to adopt a pet, call 966 796 436 or 676 447 682 and donations of items for sale are always welcomed. You can also support K9 on a fun and festive night out on Saturday 18th December. The ‘Holy and Ivy Party’ takes place at Hillside with tickets costing just 7€ including entertainment and a buffet. Brenda says tickets are available for the shop or from Hillside and welcomes everyone to “dress in red and green and have a fun time!”

As the sangria flowed and the cashiers till rang out as people snapped up bargain buys Brenda wished to thank the whole K9 committee will special thanks to Pauline who is managing the shop and “all the girls,” Steve and Rod for fitting the shelving and to Alan Swoffer for giving his time to entertain on their opening. “Hopefully this will be a turning point and a new chapter for us. I can’t believe we have done it, it’s a dream come true.”

To view some of the animals available for adoption, visit their website: www.petsinspain.info