Nonprofits team up to raise awareness and funds

The Sheltering Hands cat mascot, George Fasting, joins Jerry Paradise in showing off his award-winning 1987 Chevrolet Corvette Roadster. Paradise will show a Cadillac in this year’s Sheltering Hands Cat Rescue’s Partners in Animal Welfare Chili Challenge and Hub-Cat Car Show. [Photo by Andy Fillmore]

The Sheltering Hands Cat Rescue’s Partners in Animal Welfare Chili Challenge and Hub-Cat Car Show fundraiser on Jan. 11 at the McPherson Governmental Complex at 601 S.E. 25th Ave., Ocala, promises to be the cat’s meow.

Sheltering Hands members will be joined by local animal welfare organizations including Marion County Animal Services, Quality of Life Rehab & Foster, the Williston Animal Group (WAG) and Melissa Bell’s Rescue in trying to cook up a batch of chili to garner a winning paw of approval and a $500 prize to be donated to the winning nonprofit.

Rachel Perez, a Sheltering Hands board member, and Leeann Frank, a cat care specialist with the outreach, met recently and discussed the upcoming event.

“The Partners in Animal Welfare Chili Challenge and Hub-Cat Car Show is a fun event and family friendly,” Perez said, while Frank added that the event is “fun for kids” and educational.

The event also is an opportunity for area animal outreaches to team build and gather with other organizations, according to Sheltering Hands members.

This is the sixth year for the Chili Challenge competition and marks the second year with a collectible car show featuring Best of Show, People’s Choice and additional trophy categories, according to a Facebook post about the event.

Jerry and Linda Paradise took top honors in last year’s car show, which drew about 100 entries, with their pristine 1987 copper metallic finish Chevrolet Corvette Roadster. The Vette is powered by an L-98 series V-8 engine, which motortrend.com has called the “last of the classic small block Chevys.” The V-8 sounds strong through a Borla exhaust system. The Chevy is a limited edition, with a combination of a convertible top and a special Doug Nash transmission and shifter.

This year, Jerry Paradise plans to enter his 2000 Cadillac El Dorado, which was customized into a unique convertible by a company in High Springs. The car show entry fee is $20.

The Paradises’ Tuxedo Farm in northwest Marion County is home to eight cats that were spayed and neutered at Sheltering Hands.

Sheltering Hands has partnered with Marion County to present the event “to connect and celebrate the individuals who fight every day for the wellness of Marion County’s animal populations,” according to sheltering hands.org. The website indicates that the outreach, which opened in 2007, averages about 4,000 spay/neuter surgeries a year and finds homes for about 300 cats and kittens annually. The nonprofit organization offers low-cost spaying and neutering, vaccine clinics and adoptions, with a typical population of 70 cats in house and caring for about 30 feral cats, according to members.

The chili cookoff will include three participant categories: an open category; a category for animal rescue members; and a category for competitors in the PAW Challenge, which is sanctioned by the Chili Appreciation Society International. CASI sanctions more than 400 chili cookoff events held by nonprofits annually. Last year, the Williston Animal Group (WAG) garnered first place with their White Chicken Chili, according to Sheltering Hands media director, Branson Mosley.

Event attendees can purchase a chili tasting ticket in advance for $7.50. Chili tasting armbands on the day of the show will be $8. There is no fee for spectators. If you go, be sure to look out for the Sheltering Hands mascot, George Fasting, in the cat suit.

Mosley said members of Marion County Fire Rescue will be on hand at the event selling the 2025 Rescues and Rescuers of Marion County calendar, sponsored by PETS of Marion County and featuring members of MCFR with dogs from Marion County Animal Services. The calendars also are available for purchase at animalservices.marionfl.org/animal-center/animal-center-services

For more information about the event, go to shelteringhands.org/pawshow/