Luna Paws, a nonprofit from Luna Pier, hosting craft show fundraiser

Jay Hathaway
·2 min read

A local feline-focused nonprofit will host a craft and vendor show this weekend to raise funds for its operations, including a possible expansion to a new facility.

Luna Paws, based in Luna Pier, will host its Fall Craft and Vendor Fundraiser event on Saturday, Oct. 29 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Monroe County Flea Market, 14750 Laplaisance Rd. in Monroe Township. The show will feature a variety of local vendors and crafters, along with direct-sales favorites such as Tastefully Simple, Colors Street, Pampered Chef, Pure Romance, Mary Kay, and Paparazzi Jewelry.

The Luna Paws coalition consists of Jennifer Drotar, John, Sandra and Michaela Mallinger, and Ash Underwood. The group started Luna Paws when they noticed many stray cats populating their neighborhood. After momentum picked up, they founded an official nonprofit organization that takes on trap-neuter-return missions (TNR) to manage stray populations in the area. Luna Paws also helps connect adoptable strays with families when it can.

The event will also feature raffles with prizes donated by local vendors. There will also be live demonstrations of how TNR traps work to humanely capture stray cats, and all the members of Luna Paws will be available to answer questions during the event.

Part of the funds raised by the event will go toward the group’s TNR costs. Drotar said that the cost to neuter/spay each cat is around $30.

“That doesn’t sound like a lot, but this year alone, we’ve done 50 cats,” Drotar said. “We’re a small group doing this. There are organizations doing hundreds of cats a year. We don’t have the finances to do that many a year, so that’s one of the reasons we wanted to do the fundraiser.”

Drotar said that the group wants to open a cat rescue location, but with a twist: a “cat café.” Another part of the funds will go toward helping Luna Paws find a new home.

“We scouted a few locations in the area, and down payment funds would be nice,” Drotar said.

For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/events/1118985945664969

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Luna Paws, a nonprofit from Luna Pier, hosting craft show fundraiser