Canine valentines came to the Washington Humane Society's "Sugar & Champagne" fundraiser Jan. 31, honoring Washington Nationals pitcher Stephen Strasburg and other "Humane Heroes".
Desserts, champagne, other bubbly and non-bubbly drinks were provided by dozens of Washington-area restaurants and bars, hosted by chef Todd Gray and Ellen Kassoff Gray of Equinox Restaurant, Muse at the Corcoran Gallery of Art, and Salamander Resort opening in August in Middleburg, Vir.
Special pooch-appropriate delicacies were yummed up by dogs. Formal dress for them was optional, but leashes are required.
Tickets were $90 for "Sugar &Champagne" at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, Pennsylvania Avenue at 13th Street, N.W.
Strasburg and the Nationals support the Washington Humane Society (WHS) through initiatives including Pups in the Park, which raised more than $16,000 for the charity last year. The four annual Pups in the Park events offer discounted tickets for humans -- and the entire cost of each dog ticket goes to the WHS.
Strasburg also recorded a public service announcement (PSA) promoting WHS animal adoptions.
The Nats' All Star and Silver Slugger Pitcher could not attend the Jan. 31 event, but will receive his award at a future Pups in the Park event.
Other "Humane Heroes" include double Emmy-winning WUSA9 reporter Matt Jablow. His story about a raccoon caught in an illegal steel jaw leg-hold trap generated significant public interest last year, WHS said.
As Charles Baxter wrote in his novel "The Feast of Love", "It's no disgrace to kiss a dog in the evening. Dogs don't mind. I'm not saying you can't manage one way or another, I'm just saying you have to cope, such as the dog solution."
For more info and tickets: Sugar & Champagne, www.sugarandchampagne.org, tickets are $90. Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. Washington Humane Society, www.washhumane.org.
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