Pet owners, along with their scaly and furry friends, are invited to the second annual PAWchella event at the Veterans Memorial Museum in Chehalis Saturday, Sept. 30, for pet-friendly fun, pet supply vendors, possible pet parades and more.
PAWchella begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday and will go until 4 p.m. at the museum, located at 100 SW Veterans Way in Chehalis. The event is free to attend. During the event, the Veterans Memorial Museum will have free entry as well.
According to event co-organizer Dianne Stefanini, more than 50 vendors in total will be in attendance, including local businesses such as Totally Pawsome.
“We also have a variety of arts and crafts vendors, and we’ve asked them all to have at least one or two items that are pet related,” Stefanini said. “One artist will be doing pet portraits and I know we have a gal who makes pet scarves. The main focus is to have things for pets.”
Additionally, the Centralia Police K9 Association will be present along with shelters such as Rochester’s Red Rose Animal Rescue and Ragamuffin Ranch south of Chehalis, which will have animals available for adoption.
“Our main focus is to support those rescue organizations and get the word out for what’s available, especially with Chehalis having a couple big problems with cat populations over the summer,” Stefanini said.
Should the weather and ground conditions permit, attendees will be able to participate in pet parades around the museum grounds.
“The field is soaking wet right now,” Stefanini said.
Stefanini explained the first PAWchella was held last year in the parking lot at her church, Chehalis United Methodist Church.
“We’ve way outgrown that,” she added.
While PAWchella has moved, the church is still sponsoring the event and will have a booth where people can have their pets blessed by pastor Zachary Taylor, free of charge.
According to Stefanini, the event is being held just prior to Saint Francis day, a religious holiday commemorating Saint Francis of Assisi.
“He, of course, is the patron saint of animals,” Stefanini said.
The event also serves as a resource for pet owners to find pet-friendly services and organizations.
While pets are welcomed, Stefanini recommended cat owners bring their cats in pet carriers as she expects a large turnout at PAWchella this year. Unfortunately, those with fish or livestock won’t have vendor options this year.
“We invited pet stores that specialize in horses and also fish, but we don’t always get a response,” Stefanini said. “As this grows, and we plan on making it an annual event, we’ll have more and more vendors from different animal services.”
For more information, visit the event’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/804982594589028.
