Three years ago when KS95 morning show host, Crisco, lost his beloved rescue dog, Babe, to cancer, KS95 hosted the 1st annual Bucks for Babe to honor Babe and raise money for The Bond Between, an animal rescue organization in Minnesota that builds, supports and reinforces the bond between people and pets.
With the help of Blaze Credit Union, The Bond Between, and of course KS95’s wonderful listeners, the annual fundraiser was able to turn this terrible loss into a tremendous positive that helps save thousands of pets. The first three years of the fundraiser raised over $250,000 for The Bond Between.
This year KS95 added another partner to the fundraiser. This past weekend we watched as unspeakable tragedy unfolded in Minnesota. A gunman invaded the homes of two Minnesota public servants, assassinating Minnesota Representative Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, and attempting to assassinate Minnesota Senator John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette.
As news of the shooting continued to develop, we learned that Melissa and Mark Hortman’s beloved dog, Gilbert, was also killed in the assassination. We further learned that Representative Hortman was active with a charity called Helping Paws. After a number of late-night discussions with Crisco, Dan Stoltz from Blaze and Rachel Mairose from The Bond Between, KS95 made the decision to include Helping Paws in this year’s Bucks For Babe. Crisco, Dez and Wes did an incredible job telling the story of Representative Hortman, Gilbert and the mission of Helping Paws, which trains service dogs for veterans.
Friday morning at 7:30, Crisco, Dez and Wes announced that the 4th annual Bucks for Babe fundraiser raised $131,000! That means in four years KS95’s Bucks for Babe has raised $381,000!
This year’s event included an extraordinary match of $35,000 from Dan Stoltz and Blaze Credit Union, and a new match sponsor of $10,000 from Morrie’s Auto Group.
Crisco commented, “It started as a way to help me grieve with such an enormous loss and a way to help animals. What has actually happened over the past three years is nothing short of astonishing. KS95 listeners are the very best in the world. I cannot believe their love for Babe and their continued support for organizations like The Bond Between and Helping Paws.”
“When we read the stories about Representative Hortman’s commitment to training service dogs to help veterans we knew we needed to tell her story and raise money for Helping Paws,” commented Hubbard Radio Market Manager, Dan Seeman. “Minnesota is grieving right now. We are hopeful this fundraiser helped the healing process begin.”