About It's Raining Cats & Dogs!

It’s Raining Cats & Dogs! Raises $130,000 For Chicago’s 
Oldest and Largest Animal Welfare Organization
The Anti-Cruelty Society’s 12th Annual Gala at The Palmer House Hilton

Feline fans and canine lovers lined up at Chicago’s Palmer House Hilton on October 26 for The Anti-Cruelty Society’s 12th annual It’s Raining Cats & Dogs! chef tasting and gala, sponsored by Chopper Trading, Hill’s Science Diet, Printing Arts, RCN and Dr. Shelly and Paulette Rubin. This was the second time that the Society has hosted the event at The Palmer House Hilton, and has proven itself to be an outstanding event. 

NBC5’s morning anchor, Stefan Holt served as Master of Ceremonies for the evening and Kye Martin, also of NBC5, was our auctioneer for the evening. 300 guests were treated by delightful dishes from our celebrity chefs, including: Amanda Downing, Rockit Bar & Grill; Karyn Calabrese of Karyn’s Cooked & Karyn’s Fresh Corner, John Coletta of Quartino; Troy Graves, Red Door; Ryan Pitts, RL Restaurant; Mark Sparacino, PROSECCO; Eddie Sweeney, Catch 35; and Randy Zweiban, Province Restaurant; and Jimmy Banos, Heaven on Seven.

The live auction, featuring two African Safari trips sold at $4,000 each, helped the Society raise more than $25,000. Our $5,000 cash raffle proved to be a hit after raffle winner and volunteer, Richard Packman, graciously donated the entire $5,000 back to the Society. The wine pull allowed guests to take a chance at winning a $110.00 2009 bottle of Canon-la-Gaffeliere Saint-Emilion Grand Cru. Silent auctions including jewelry from A.M. Feldman, and mingling with our local four-legged residents rounded out the evening.

This year, It’s Raining Cats & Dogs! had a very special purpose. The $130,000 raised through this 12th annual fall gala are helping to fund the stainless steel for the cat and dog rooms that are part of our new veterinary clinic. After close to 80 years of wear and tear, the Society’s current clinic is due for an upgrade. We are breaking ground this fall to begin construction to rebuild our current spay and neuter clinic to help reduce animal overpopulation.

To view photos from this wonderful event, visit www.anticruelty.org.

About Us

The Anti-Cruelty Society is Chicago’s oldest and largest private, open admission, unlimited stay humane society - helping to find forever homes for over 5,000 cats and dogs annually.

One of the largest animal welfare organizations in the nation, our mission is building a community of caring by helping pets and educating people, which is evident in all of the programs and services we provide to over 50,000 animals and humans each year. These include: adoptions, (low or no-cost) spay/neuter clinic, cruelty investigations, humane education, charity veterinary clinic, dog training classes, free behavior hotline, 3 rehabilitation & treatment centers, short-term accommodations for emergencies, pet visitation and more.

The Anti-Cruelty Society is a 501(c)(3), private, Illinois, non-profit organization. No city, state, federal or funding from any other national humane organization supports our work.  Over 75% of our funding comes from caring individuals, foundations and corporations.