Event Center for Social Good Raises Funds for Animal Lifesaving Programs

Facility Completes Phase I Fundraising of Furkids Capital Campaign

Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelters has completed and opened a unique special event facility on the Furkids sanctuary grounds, naming the facility after donors Kay and John Giaquinto. Dedication of the Giaquinto Event Center at Shiloh Gardens took place March 4, 2023, at a special gathering of Furkids staff, volunteers, board members and donors, as Kay Giaquinto snipped a large, white ribbon at the main entry of the facility. Shiloh Gardens is integrated into the Furkids campus at 5235 Union Hill Road in Cumming, Georgia, offering event spaces to the public that raise funds to support Furkids’ mission. Furkids rescues homeless animals and provides them with the best medical care and nurturing environment while working to find each one a forever home.

The 3,400 square-foot Giaquinto Event Facility at Shiloh Gardens is a unique event space for weddings, parties, corporate meetings and community gatherings. Rebuilt from an old barn on the property, its indoor and lush outdoor spaces are designed to accommodate large or small gatherings. All proceeds from the facility directly support Furkids Animal Rescue and Shelters mission to save animal lives.

Two features make the Giaquinto Event Center different from other venues: it is located within the lush, tranquil Furkids sanctuary filled with gardens, ponds, waterfalls and winding paths, and it is adjacent to the headquarters/cat shelter. Guests can enjoy nature at its best during all seasons of the year and can see and experience some of Furkids programs firsthand while contributing to the Furkids lifesaving mission for rescued cats and dogs.

“All of us who support Furkids have heart, empathy and sympathy for homeless animals,” said John Giaquinto, as he talked to the participants at the dedication event. “What attracted Kay and me to attach our names to the Event Center is that the operation is like an endowment. We are really excited and motivated about the potential for it to generate ongoing income for the organization to fund lifesaving programs into the future. And we encourage people to support Furkids in their own ways, whether it’s fostering or adopting Furkids animals, volunteering time or donating money, materials or talent.”

Preparing for the ribbon cutting for the Giaquinto Event Center at Shiloh Gardens March 4, 2023

L-R: Jeanine Huebner, Furkids board member; Samantha Shelton, Furkids Founder and CEO; John Giaquinto, Furkids donor; Kay Giaquinto, Furkids donor; Kelly Mayhall, Furkids board member; Jeannine Addams, Furkids board member.

Dedication of the Giaquinto Event Center completes Phase I of the Furkids Capital Campaign, which enabled the organization to purchase the property, renovate the administrative building, add two outbuildings for intake of cats, and an isolation building for sick cats, build the Event Center, repair water features, restore the gardens and install water and sewer lines for future buildings. Today, the sanctuary includes a headquarters/cat shelter/veterinary clinic building, the Giaquinto Event Center, and an assortment of small buildings for animal intake and care. Sadie’s Place, the Furkids dog shelter is located at a different property on Union Hill Road. The long-range plan is to consolidate major operations at the Furkids sanctuary.

With Phase II of its Capital Campaign, Furkids is raising money to fund the new, free-standing cat shelter now under construction, and a new, free-standing shelter to care for rescued dogs. Upcoming plans include raising funds for several new buildings at the Furkids sanctuary, including a state-of-the-art medical facility and other facilities to serve people and animals in the community. Furkids plans to repurpose Sadie’s Place, its existing dog shelter, as a location for animal intake and quarantine for dogs and cats being transported in the Furkids TransFur program that sends Georgia animals to no-kill shelters in northern states where there is high demand for adoptable animals.

“Our goal is to make Shiloh Gardens at Furkids unique among animal rescue and shelter organizations. The Giaquinto Event Center is a powerful fundraising source that helps us fulfill our mission of helping animals. Equally important, it adds a new dimension to our services, giving us connections with people for some of the most significant moments of their lives, whether they are celebrating, planning, learning or even mourning,” said Samantha Shelton, Founder and CEO of Furkids. “We are so grateful to John and Kay Giaquinto for helping us bring this opportunity to Furkids.

In 2018, Furkids bought its 9.11-acre parcel, originally developed and operated as Wakoola Water Gardens. The property was dilapidated and overgrown after having been abandoned for some years before Furkids bought it. With the help of hundreds of donors and volunteers, Furkids repaired and renovated existing structures and restored the gardens and waters to craft a functional, attractive combination of natural and structural beauty that helps homeless animals, supports Furkids programs and, with the new Giaquinto Event Center, provides an in-house source of fundraising.

More information about the Giaquinto Event Center: shilohgardens.org

More information about the Furkids Capital Campaign is available from sam@furkids.org.