*Mark Neighbur, a customer at Route 24 Ale House in Bel Air, won one of the lottery ticket Christmas trees donated by the Maryland Lottery.*

Twenty Local Businesses Together Raise $10,540

For Immediate Release

Contact: Erin Long, Marketing Coordinator
Humane Society of Harford County
410-836-1090, x106
erin@harfordshelter.org

Fallston, MD (February 18, 2020) – December 2019 ‘twas the season to be jolly for 20 local businesses who joined forces for the fourth annual Deck the Paws, a collection of fundraisers to bring awareness of and raise funds for the care and comfort of homeless animals at the Humane Society of Harford County (HSHC). Each participating business hosted an event – from a brewery crawl, to raffling off Maryland Lottery scratch off trees, to donating a portion of daily sales – and today HSHC announced the net proceeds from these events totaled $10,540.

The following businesses supported the 4th annual Deck the Paws:

Deck the Paws is the pet project of Jason and Katie Davis, owners of Route 24 Ale House in Bel Air. The Davis’s are big animal lovers and wanted a way to encourage other business owners to support one of their favorite charities. “Deck the Paws keeps gaining momentum,” said Katie Davis. “Last year 13 businesses participated, and this year, it’s grown to 20. We added a brewery crawl to three of the newest craft breweries and the Maryland Lottery donated eight lighted trees made from scratch-off lottery tickets. We can’t wait to see what this year has in store!”

“We were happy to participate in the Deck the Paws promotion,” said Carole Gentry, managing director of communications for the Maryland Lottery. “We hope that the funds brought in from the scratch-off trees we provided helped make the holidays a little brighter for the animals at the Humane Society of Harford County.”

Donations from Deck the Paws fund not just the direct care of the animals, but also the many programs and services offered to pets and their people. “We are extremely grateful for the support from our friends in the business community,” said Jen Swanson, HSHC’s executive director. “HSHC is not part of any large national animal welfare organization. We are an independent charitable organization, so the backing from the community is vital to our operations.”

About the Humane Society of Harford County
The Humane Society of Harford County, Inc., is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to the welfare and well-being of the approximately 3,000 animals that come in each year. HSHC promotes the kind treatment of homeless, stray and abandoned animals by providing shelter, care, adoptions, and community education. HSHC is not a county agency nor is it affiliated with any national or regional organization. Tax-deductible donations, bequests, and proceeds from events are crucial to HSHC’s life-saving efforts on behalf of the animals in the community.

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