Sunday, November 15, 2009

The Heart of an Artist


Charles Pavarini III, whom we are featuring in our window, invited us to join him and his partner Randall to attend a benefit concert last week given by Bernadette Peters to raise money for Broadway Barks. It was a spectacular evening of show tunes and ballads, glamorous Broadway legends and TV personalities. (Here I am at the cast party with Ugly Betty star Michael Urie) The music and performance was superb but what left me with chills was when Ms. Peters paraded dozens of shelter animals on stage, introducing each one and asking that we take them home. Ms. Peters is known to drive around the City picking up dogs from kill shelters and dropping them off to no kill shelters. And our friend, Charles Pavarini, is known to be on hand to enlist anyone who will participate in a good cause.

In that spirit, if our clients choose to forgo using credit cards, Lampworks will donate $25 on every invoice paid to underwrite Pet Rox. Pet Rox is a volunteer musical performance group of animal care professionals who donate their time and talent to raise money on behalf of NYC's animal causes. Projects include raising funds for shelters, adoption initiatives, and a retirement fund for NYC's Ground Zero search and rescue dogs.

So many pets have been abandoned and given away for adoption, now more than ever because of the economy, that our shelters are overburdened. Anything you can do to make the life of a dog or cat feel more at home, more loved or just plain easier is what art is all about. After all "art" is half of the word "heart".