GoodDogz.org helped host the annual Reston Pet Fiesta last Saturday, May 2, at the Reston Town Center in Reston, VA. Despite the threat of rain and overcast skies, the event was a huge success. We are still compiling the numbers, but we know that one dog rescue organization alone, K9 Lifesavers, found forever homes for 26 dogs of the 40 dogs that they brought to the event. That’s 26 homeless dogs that slept in a warm bed with a new family on Saturday night.
We also made some interesting observations about giving. We made more money in “impulse” donations than ever before – almost $700 cash from folks throwing their bills in the bucket. We had leftover t-shirts so we gave them away with a donation and folks were scampering to get a shirt. We also made more money on our dog walk than in previous years with over 100 folks pre-registered and about 25-30 more signing up the day of (in the rain).
We had an overall steady flow of traffic all day; there was never a lull in the action. And I would approximate that we saw about 8K- 9K folks stroll through our thoroughfare.
Our vendors also seemed to be doing well with a steady stream of sales throughout the six hour event.
What does this tell us?
- People are looking for inexpensive, fun ways to spend the day with their family.
- It is easier to throw a $20 bill in the bucket than to stick a check in the mail.
- People like to get something for their donation – even something as simple as a leftover dog walk t-shirt.
- Overcast days work in your favor if you are hosting an outdoor event.
- Qgiv (our registration service) makes it incredibly easy to manage a dog walk.
- People are spending more time at home and adding a pet to the household keeps the family on their toes.
- Our volunteers were much more engaged and we know of several folks who want to volunteer with us on a regular basis.
The money that we made at the Pet Fiesta will go enable us to host our Home 4 the Holidays super pet adoption event on November 7. More to come on that! Many thanks to our volunteers, rescues, vendors and organizers. The event was a huge success and we look forward to next year!
