With a two-pronged approach this month, Angel Acres Horse Haven Rescue kicks off a fundraising event for horses in need, through the Ebay online marketplace.
The rescue will auction a glamorous trip for two to Los Angeles to see the American Music Awards and hobnob with stars afterwards, and will also raise funds through a prominent Ebay listing for shoppers at checkout.
Bidding for the American Music Awards package runs from July 8-15. The winner will receive two airline tickets to Los Angeles for the Nov. 24 music awards, as well as tickets to the show and two passes for a celebrity party.
Two high-profile celebrities have even agreed to meet and greet the winners of the Angel Acres package, says Jo Deibel, president and founder of the horse charity.
Equally exciting: Angel Acres Horse Haven Rescue will be prominently featured, from July 15 to 21, among four other charities at “checkout,” offering heightened exposure, Deibel says.
“We’ll be listed on a rotation with four other animal charities to people who, after they shop, as they go to checkout, will be asked if they want to donate a dollar,” she says. “This is very exciting! We’ve done this for the past five years and have received approximately $20,000 in one week.”
Funds from the Ebay “checkout” listing will be pumped into Mattie’s Legacy Fund, which aids horse owners struggling to pay their bills, Deibel says.
Founded in 2009, and named for a horse named Mattie, the fund pays veterinary, feed, board, and other bills for horse owners who find themselves in an unforeseen struggle, Deibel says.
In the past, Mattie’s Legacy Fund has assisted cancer patients and accident victims who had to stop working, but had yet to receive disability funds.
“Mattie’s Fund doesn’t pay the horse owner directly. We pay the farrier, the vet, the hay company directly, and try to negotiate the best deal,” Deibel says.
The fund was named for a horse who was rescued from a kill pen so that he could be humanely euthanized, rather than suffer a torturous death, she says.
Suffering from Laminitis, Mattie came to Angel Acres and surprised the heck out of everyone. Thought to be near death, he survived and lived two-and-a-half pain-free years under the care of the charity and its supporters.
He was the kind of horse who wormed his way into everybody’s heart. He especially loved to put his lips on people, playfully teasing them, but not biting.
After he died, the Mattie Fund was continued to help others fallen on hard times.