Monday, July 14, 2008

Memphis, Here We Come

As Luke and The Boys make their way through Arkansas towards the Tennessee border, many exciting events are being planned for 2Dogs’ arrival in Memphis during the first weekend in August.

On Saturday morning, August 2, 2Dogs has been invited to be guests at the Dog Days of Summer 5k event and 1-mile fun run at Shelby Farms Park Conservancy (North Pine Lake Drive, Memphis, TN phone 901-767-PARK) to benefit the Fayette County Animal Rescue . The race starts at 8:00 AM and registration will be from 7 to 8 AM. There will be an awards ceremony that should start around 9:30. One of the local radio stations, Q107.5, is hosting their event and PetCo is one of their Top Dog sponsors. Aside from the awards ceremony there will also be music, a raffle, and prizes, as well as food and refreshments for volunteers and participants. The Fayette County Animal Rescue Center is the only no-kill shelter in Fayette County and, like many no-kill shelters, cares for some animals that simply can't be adopted. Please come out and help support the Fayette County Animal Rescue!

Later that day, 2Dogs will be in downtown Memphis. “Downtown Memphis” has granted us permission to have a ceremonial walk with Luke, Hudson, and Murphy down a section of Main Street that is reserved for pedestrians only. We invite everyone to walk with them. The time of the walk will be at 4:45PM and the starting place will be Main Street and Court Square. Bring your dogs (leashed, of course) and your cameras and enjoy a walk with The Boys.

The culmination of the walk will end at The Majestic Grille, at 145 S. Main Street (901-522-8555), which will be hosting Hudson’s birthday party that evening. Hudson’s party is tentatively scheduled to begin around 5 PM. They have outdoor seating and welcome dogs as long as they are leashed, have had their shots and their parents bring “doggie” bags (you know the kind I mean). In order to get a good idea of how many people plan to attend, please RSVP to Lori at lori@2dogs2000miles.org so she can contact the restaurant. Dining will be outside on the patio, dress is casual, all checks will be separate (they accept AMEX, MasterCard, Visa, and presumably still take cash) and there will be no cover charge.

And on Sunday, August 3rd, thanks to the generosity of the Humane Society of Memphis & Shelby Country (935 Farm Road, Memphis, TN 38134), we will be hosting several events on their 8 acre grounds, starting around 11:00 AM. We’ll be holding an auction (entry fee of $5.00,) which will include a gift bag of goodies for each entry AND a raffle ticket to be entered into a prize drawing for a terrific gift basket. There will also be vendors — both food and other goodies — so come hungry and be ready to spend some money to help two very worthy causes — 2Dogs2000Miles and the Humane Society of Memphis & Shelby Country. There will also be games and demos including the Big Dog Back Pack Agility Race! Rescues and shelters, start selecting the contestants you think can beat the Big Dog in a race on all fours, wearing a small backpack, maneuvering around a short course of cones! The entry fee per participant is a mere $10.00. OK — people, on all fours, with back packs, scrambling around orange cones — that alone is worth $10.00! And remember, the money does go to two great organizations. Bring your video cameras for this one!

Oh, and if you have some goodies you’d like to donate for the auction, or if you’re a vendor, please contact kathy@2dogs2000miles.org .

Two days of happenings with 2Dogs, Hudson, Murphy, and Luke! We invite you to join in the fun!

Even as all the preparations are going on for Memphis, we're already looking ahead to Nashville, since it's only a little over 200 miles from Memphis. Naturally, we will be holding events there as well. If you’re in the Nashville area and have ideas for venues, possible participants (shelters, other organizations, etc.), please contact Kathy at kathy@2dogs2000miles.org, 2Dogs’ Volunteer Chairperson. She already has a number of events in the works, but if you need further information or would like to volunteer to help with events, please contact her.

By the way, if you’d like more frequent news, why not sign up for the 2dogs2day daily email? We include not only the big events that are scheduled, but also -- when we know -- we give the latest information on where Luke and the Boys are, what adventures they’re having, etc. Just visit our home page and sign up for the nightly daily. It goes out almost every night, so you’ll be current on 2dogs happenings. Please remember, when you sign up for the Daily, you will get a confirmation email. You MUST "confirm" the subscription, or you will not get it … check your ‘spam’ folder – the confirmation email can sometimes end up there if your server thinks it’s junk mail – which it most certainly is not!

We hope to see you in Memphis for the next border crossing – from Arkansas to Tennessee. As more details become available, I will let you know.

puppy up!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

My sister Monica and I ran into The boys just south of Palestine, Tx. They certainly left an impression on us! My neice will be joining in on the activities in Nasville, TN. Go Luke! We admire you and the boys so much!

Vicki said...

How on earth are they going to get to Memphis by tomorrow (Aug 2nd) if they are now in Brinkley, Arkansas (on July 31st)? I looked that up on the map and they still have quite a distance to go. I sure as heck hope they get a ride... enough of this walking (for the moment). Luke is an admirable & honorable man, but in the weather back there in Arkansas & Tennessee at this time of year, it's hard to breathe, let alone walk. And Erich was talking about the horse flies & the mosquitos the size of sparrows. How harrowing a story is that. I pray for them every day. If I lived closer (I escaped the south to live in Portland, OR where the weather is milder), I swear I'd swing by and throw them in my truck and drive them to Memphis!