Humane Society Holds Fur Ball, Mini Rummage Sale By Mike Shands The Watauga Humane Society will hold one of its oldest and one of its newest fund-raisers this month. The humane society’s Bare Bones Boutique thrift store will hold a mini rummage sale Saturday, Aug. 13 from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Two weeks later the society will hold its eighth annual Fur Ball, Saturday, Aug. 27 from 6 p.m. to midnight. Proceeds from both events will benefit the animals at the humane society’s shelter. Mini Rummage Sale Bare Bones Boutique is holding its first mini rummage sale to help clear out a surplus of items in its shop and storage barn. No items sold will be leftovers from the rummage sale that the humane society held in June. “It’s all different stuff,” said Penny Gamblin, Bare Bones Boutique manager. “It’s stuff that I couldn’t get out to the armory when we had that sale.” The sale will feature a wide variety of items such as clothing, furniture, pictures and household items. They will be located on the boutique’s lawn. Clothing will be sold for $3 a bag, and everything inside the boutique will be sold at half-price the day of the sale. “We’re holding this to clean out the barn and to raise money for the animals,” Gamblin said. The boutique also maintains an eBay account for selected higher-priced items. Simply log on to eBay, click on shop and type Bare Bones Specialty. Bare Bones Boutique is located at 153 Don Hayes Road near Old Highway 421 South in Rutherwood, across from the Rutherwood Baptist Church. Additional parking during the sale will be available next door at the church’s small parking lot and in the field behind the boutique. It is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Call the thrift store at (828) 264-7339 for more information about the sale. The sale’s rain date will be Saturday, Aug. 20. Fur Ball The Broyhill Inn and Conference Center will host this year’s Fur Ball, which will feature cocktail hour and cash bar from 6 to 7 p.m., silent auction from 6 to 9 p.m., dinner served from 7 to 8 p.m. and dancing to the live music of Laditude from 8 p.m. to midnight. The silent auction will feature more than 200 items donated by local merchants. Auction items will include gift certificates to restaurants and hotels, a Deer Valley Racquet Club membership, passes to Appalachian Ski Mountain, wine, home and garden accessories, clothing, health and personal care products and many more items. The auction will also feature Art in The Bark, which includes works by local and state artists and craftspeople. Gilda Gordon, a humane society board member, said the Fur Ball is traditionally the society’s largest annual fund-raiser. Proceeds from the event go straight to the operating budget for the society’s shelter. “It pays the bills,” Gordon said. “It pays for things that volunteers can’t do such as medical expenses; staff to feed, bathe and clean up after the animals; and lots of food. Some of the animals even require special diets like the hound we had for so long that was on a fish-based diet. “The shelter just took in 30 small breed, young dogs that needed to find homes. We were able to effectively care for them and find good homes very quickly for most. “Without a healthy operating budget we would never have been able to do all that we did for those little ones, and of course each one was vaccinated and spayed or neutered and microchipped.” Gordon said she and her husband have been going to the Fur Ball for several years. “We have such a great time meeting new friends and seeing all our old friends who so generously continue to support the Humane Society,” she said. “We all get to catch up with all the Humane Society news and of course share personal time as well.” Fur Ball patrons also enjoy bidding during the silent auction. “We fortunately have some very spirited bidding, and it’s all for the animals,” Gordon said. “When it gets close to 9 o’clock as the bidding is about to end you should see the folks standing by their favorite works of art they have been bidding on to be sure they are the highest bidder. “But everyone goes home happy because we are all there for the same reason – to raise money for the animals.” They also go home happy after dancing to the music of Laditude, formerly Cloud Nine. “Amy and Ken and the band are terrific,” Gordon said. “You should see the dancing that goes on. It is a very lively group. “They are so generous with their time and energy, and we are glad to have them with us and look forward to them year after year.” Fur Ball tickets are $75 each ($45 is tax deductible) and are limited. Those who can’t attend the Fur Ball would want to serve as a patron of the event can do so by sending a check payable to the Watauga Humane Society to P.O. Box 1835, Boone, N.C., 28607. For more tickets or more information about the Fur Ball contact Jan Watson at (828) 264-1743 or janwatson@charter.net, Gordon at (828) 264-3170 or gildagordon@bellsouth.net or look online at www.wataugahumanesociety.org.