Puptown

Great American Mutt Show - May 17

The 2008 Chicagoland Great American Mutt Show will take place May 17 at Morton West High School in Berwyn. Here's the info from MuttShow.com. (Psst ... that's Puptown's own Spencer there on the left, best in show winner from 2007!)

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The Berwyn Development Corporation (BDC) and the City of Berwyn team up with PAWS Chicago, Chicagoland Dock Dogs, VCA Berwyn Animal Hospital, Tails in Need NYC, The Brookfield Zoo and the Animal Care League to host the second annual Great American Mutt Show for the Chicagoland area.

The event will take place in Berwyn, IL on Saturday, May 17th, 2008 (10am-3pm) at Morton West High School, located at 2400 Home Ave, Berwyn, IL 60402. Also included will be a two-day Dock Dogs (www.dockdogs.com) agility competition (May 17th and May 18th). You can also call us at 708-788-8100 if you would like to signup your dog for the Dock Dogs agility tournament. Participants, vendors, sponsors and volunteers who wish to be part of the show and/or the agility event can register through the Berwyn Development Corporation by calling 708-788-8100.

Puptown Receives Non-Profit Status, Membership Now Tax-Deductible

As of April 1, Puptown entered into a relationship with Parkways Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Chicago Park District. As such, Puptown may operate through Parkways' status as a nonprofit organization.

This has several important implications:

1) All annual membership fees paid since Jan. 1, 2008 are now tax-deductible. Upon paying your $30 membership, you will receive documentation for your tax records. Memberships are key -- they provide the support for operating the park.

2) All other direct and in-kind donations will also be tax-deductible, allowing us to leverage more donations from individuals, associations, foundations and area businesses. If you would like to suggest a prospective donor, please email Ellen Szalinski.

3) We will be able to initiate improvements to the park. P-DOG is developing a long-term plan for Puptown that we will share with all park users for comments and suggestions. We welcome all input at info AT puptown.org. Stay tuned!

How can you help? Please pay or renew your annual membership today by credit card, PayPal or check. Please note that our memberships are now aligned with the dog park tag period which runs from Jan. 1-Dec. 31.

As always, we appreciate your support of Puptown!

Dale Lenig
President
Puptown Dog Owners Group

P-DOG Meeting Wednesday, April 9

The Puptown Dog Owners Group will hold its next quarterly meeting on Wednesday, April 9 at the Margate Park field house, just north of Puptown. The meeting starts at 7 p.m. and refreshments will be served. (Sorry, no dogs permitted inside the field house.)

We'll be discussing a number of issues, including long-range planning for the park, fundraising and upcoming events. And there's an open forum, with ample opportunity for all to participate. We need new, fresh ideas!

Please email Ellen if you plan to attend so we can get a head count for refreshments.