By Mark Ambrogi
The second Bow Wow Luau is coming to Carmel
The 5K race and 1-mile pet walk will be held on June 20 at Carmel’s Central Park. The race/walk is hosted by Beacon of Hope Center for Women, an Indianapolis nonprofit domestic violence support center located on the west side of Indianapolis. The center serves all of Central Indiana.
“The run is to support domestic violence victims, but more specifically to support the pets that are in that violence situation,” said Andrew Hoffman, a board member of the Beacon of Hope. “We place them with foster pet families. The funds go towards veterinary bills, food and just supporting the resources for the program.”
The first Bow Wow Luau race was run in Indianapolis.
Registration begins at 7 a.m. with the race started at 9 a.m. The race is followed by music, dog contests (owner look alike and pet tricks), hula hoop contests and a swimsuit competition (for dogs only). There will be many pet-related vendors.
The Beacon of Hope’s Foster Pet Program was launched in 2011. According to American Humane Association, statistics show 68 percent of abused women reported violence towards their animals from the abusers, 87 percent of the incidents occurred in the presence of women and 40 percent of abuse women are unable to escape the abusive situation because they worry about what will happen to their pets.
“Because of the Bow Wow Luau & Pet Walk, we will be able to provide awareness for the increasing need to provide more animals with safe foster families and provide for their basic needs,” stated Terry Moore, Beacon of Hope executive director.
There are various levels of sponsorship levels for the run ranging from $100 to $2,000.
For more information, visit beaconofhopeindy.org/2nd-annual-bow-wow-luau-5k-run.html.
