Local Hounds Town USA business owner Leslie Bottesch’s interactive doggy daycare and boarding franchise was the primary sponsor for the first annual Queens for Canines fundraising event. In an amazing show of support, the event raised over $10,000 for local dog rescues and took place at the Space Coast Convention Center in Cocoa, Florida.
“My business partner and I have always been very pro human rights,” said Leslie Bottesch, owner of Hounds Town USA Space Coast. “We have every walk of life come through our doors and every person has the one thing in common: the love for their dog and the love for having a place that is filled with compassion and care. There’s no politics when it comes to doing what’s right for the animals.”
With more than 300 people in attendance helping to raise over $10,000, the successful event brought the community together and will make a big impact locally. A dozen local businesses also donated major prizes which were raffled, everything from hotel stays to dining, showing further community support.
“In this tough climate of hate, we wanted to do something that preached love and laughter,” Bottesch added. “We thought what better way than to integrate a bunch of different people coming together for the cause, by having a drag show to show that it is a wonderful, uplifting, entertaining art form, along with raising money for a good cause. It was an act of love and laughter and hopefully promoted more understanding of different communities coming together.”
Queens for Canines hit the stage with a common goal of giving back to the local community in a vibrant, entertaining way at the inclusive night of drag performances, food and drink. 100% of the ticket sales will go towards local dog rescues including:
- Furever Home Animal Rescue, Inc.
- Riley’s Rescue of Brevard
- SPCA of Brevard
- Touch of Grey Rescue
“The money will go to four local rescues, which will use it for necessary surgeries and medical care, life saving surgeries, as well as food, adoption, fostering,” Bottesch said. “Really everything is pretty much all gonna go directly to the animals.”
Prior to this fundraising event, Hounds Town USA Space Coast had already done over $9,000 in community help. That means this event brings their total closer to $20,000 for charity, with plans to do a Christmas tree auction for the local Humane Society that the city of Rockledge is putting on next.
But the challenging times and climate are not lost on the organizers either. This was a positive event that brought the community together, showing you can have fun and make a difference locally; a stark contrast to some places.
“It really impacted us and with it being such a challenging time for the LGBTQ+ community, with a terrible mass shooting that happened that same night somewhere else in the country,” Bottesch said. “It was a wonderful night and even the performers would announce in front of the audience how incredible it was- to see a room full of love. Because that’s clearly needed at this time. So, when we all woke up to that terrible news, even the performers were saying, it’s moments like Queen’s for Canines where charity and happy faces and everyone from all walks of life being together and smiling is what gets us through the moments like this. The impact was showing there still is hope for kindness, love and unity.”
Even more special, the November 19th Queens for Canines fundraiser fell within the 2-year anniversary mark of the Space Coast Hounds Town USA location Grand Opening, making this event one to remember. Bottesch and her business partner were named the 2022 Franchise Business Review’s “Franchise RockStar” out of over 300,000 franchisees, representing more than 300 brands. Dedicated to the business, Bottesch has gone above and beyond for the local community.
