When commissioners met Jan. 21, they approved privatizing the Nye County Animal Shelter and granted a contract for $225,000 to the sole bidder, Susan Cronin, owner of Tails End.
Cronin isn’t waiting for the funds to be dispersed in May to begin making improvements for animal care and move forward with her plans for more space and a community outreach center. Tails End, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit will host a Valentines Day fashion show to raise money for needed equipment and fund an ASPCA training course for 10 staff members and volunteers.
The event is scheduled from noon to 2 p.m. in the Stagebar Lounge area of the Pahrump Nugget and there is a request for a $5 donation for the show.
Cronin said the clothing isn’t being donated but 20 percent of the proceeds will be given to Tails End.
Cronin is working with Mimosa Designs owner Marissa Reynoso, who opened her shop on Highway 372 in July 2013. The store is located next to Tropical Smoothie.
Reynoso is a clothing designer and fashions items for women, some for men and childrens’ clothing. She has been designing since she was a child. She attended a fashion design school in New York and now uses her talent to make clothing for other people.
Cronin said Reynoso is organizing the fashion show and will have 10 models showing off her clothing and walking the stage to the music of a DJ. Mimosa Designs also has inventory including items Reynoso doesn’t make but complement her clothing such as shoes, scarves, jewelry and other accessories.
She also carries jeans, T-shirts, casual wear and dressy dresses.
Cronin said she hopes to make $2,000 from the event. “Along with the cost of equipment and other items to make the animals more comfortable, I need to enroll 10 people for ASPCA training. The cost is $600. We are taking over the current facility April 2, but the funding won’t come through until May. I need my staff and volunteers already trained.
“We need collars of all sizes and leashes. Every animal should leave the shelter with those two things. We need puppy pens and cat trees … the list seems endless.”
She said she wants to create a “good, blended team so we can move the animals through the shelter faster.
Everything in the fashion show is for sale including the accessories and jewelry.