Crossfields Tails to Tell cat shelter is hosting a night of classic rock, cocktails, live and silent auctions, and a chance to support a local charity with an Elton John tribute concert on Oct. 21.
Rob Skeet and the Husky Tower Band are taking the spotlight on stage for the second year in a row in support of the animal rescue benefit at the Crossfield and District Community Hall.
“I really do my best to channel [Elton John] the way he certainly was at the height of his career and even an homage to his farewell tour,” said frontman of the show, Skeet.
During the Vegas-style show, Skeet and his band will play through 50 years of Elton John music, including lesser known tracks with six costume changes that get bigger and better throughout the night.
The crowd can expect everything from John’s most flamboyant looks of the 1970s to what he looks like today.
Skeet agreed to play the tribute concert last year when he learned it would benefit a local cat rescue shelter.
“I'm certainly a cat owner,” he said. “We had numerous rescues over the years and all the cats we've owned over our life span have all been rescues.”
Last year’s concert-goers came dressed up with funky sunglasses and feather boas, keeping the place rocking until the very end of the night, according to Colleen Holden, board chair and financial secretary of Tails to Tell. She hoped to see the same this year.
“If you closed your eyes you would think you were at an Elton John concert,” Holden said.
This year’s live auction will include hockey tickets, and a special table filled with funky items will be available for the silent auction, she added.
The event is Tails to Tell’s biggest fundraiser of the year, helping to keep the charity afloat.
The shelter is 100 per cent donation run and has many big costs, including vet bills, rent, and pet supplies such as food and litter for the shelter and its 20 foster homes.
“We have had well over 100 kittens this year that all need to be spayed and neutered,” Holden said.
She noted the charity loses money on female cats, due to the cost of a female spay being close to $300, plus the required vaccinations.
On top of that, most rescues are rural cats that carry diseases, and occasionally cats with health problems are surrendered by families, raising the vet bills for the shelter, Holden said.
Tails to Tell has also recently hired its first staff member who has made a huge difference to the shelter, according to Holden.
With all these costs, the shelter is always hosting small events and working to raise money.
A recent online auction generated around $1,500, but the shelter also hosts adoption events at Pet Value along Coopers Boulevard and Main Street in Airdrie, as well as Global Pet Foods in Kings Heights, and Airdrie’s Peavey Mart.
Tails to Tell has attended Paws in the Park, Airdrie Fest, and the Car Show, as well as other fundraising opportunities in the city like a Kitty or Cat Palooza at the Best Western.
The Elton John tribute concert raised $8,000 last year and around 120 people attended the concert. Holden said 78 tickets have been sold this year as of Oct. 4, adding that every penny counts.
With a goal of raising $15,000, Holden hopes to see more people purchasing tickets.
Tickets can be purchased through Eventbrite by searching Tails to Tell, or a link is also available on the Tails to Tell Facebook page.
