2022 Rescue Brew Beer Pet Star Search Underway
Palmetto Brewing Company, WCSC Live 5 News, Charleston City Paper, and Cupcake DownSouth Partner to Benefit Charleston Animal Society
Thursday July 14, 2022 | CHARLESTON, SC – The Third Annual Rescue Brew Beer Spokesdog and Spokescat star search gets underway tomorrow, July 15, 2022! Winners will appear on the labels of the “2022 Rescue Brew Beer” from Palmetto Brewing Company. Pet owners are being asked to submit a photo of their favorite dogs and cats at www.CharlestonAnimalSociety.
Anyone can vote for their favorites August 15, 2022 to September 14, 2022. One Grand Prize-Winning Dog and one Grand Prize-Winning Cat will be announced in October, 2022 and the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer will be available at the Palmetto Brewing Company Charleston Taproom and retailers across the Lowcountry this Fall.
Last year a record 674 dogs and cats were entered into the Rescue Brew Beer contest for a chance to become the 2021 Spokesdog and Spokescat. After 149,471 votes were cast by the public to determine six finalists, the celebrity judges met to deliberate and make the final decision: rescued dog Pippin with 29,241 votes and rescued cat Sirri with 6,312 votes were selected as the Grand Prize Winners and appeared on the labels of the Rescue Brew Beer last year.
Lauren Hutson, Manager of the Charleston Tap Room for Palmetto Brewing Company, says, “We could not be more excited to kick off another year of Rescue Brew! While we are thrilled that one of our small batch beers was chosen for the beer recipe, we are more humbled by the opportunity to take part in a large fund-raising project with Charleston Animal Society, helping animals in need find their loving homes. We are looking forward to the beer release this Fall and connecting with all of you who share our passion of saving animals and drinking good beer!”
Ian Berg, VP of Commercial Operations for Palmetto Brewing Company, adds, “We are honored to be a part of this program for the third year in a row—it has been an amazing opportunity to give back to the community and show our passion for a common cause. As a rescue dog owner myself, this is near and dear to my heart as there has never been a brighter time than when I discovered my sweet Lola at six weeks old in a box outside a convenience store in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, 13 years ago.”
“More than half of the funds needed for the lifesaving work at Charleston Animal Society come from donations. The pandemic years prevented most in-person gatherings; we had to create new and unique ways to partner with local businesses and raise funds for our lifesaving mission,” said Charleston Animal Society President and CEO Joe Elmore, CFRE, CAWA. “We are absolutely thrilled to celebrate the unconditional love that pets bring into our lives and partner with Palmetto Brewing Company, WCSC Live 5 News, Charleston City Paper and Cupcake DownSouth to find the third Spokesdog and Spokescat for the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer.”
The public will choose the three finalist dogs and three finalist cats through voting and three local celebrity judges will choose one winning dog and one winning cat to appear on the labels of the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer. The six finalist dogs and cats will each receive a $100 gift certificate for pet supplies at the pet supply store at the Charleston Animal Society and a “Mega Pupcake” from Cupcake DownSouth.
Andy Brack, Editor and Publisher of the Charleston City Paper says, “It’s an honor for the Charleston City Paper to again align and work with Charleston Animal Society to raise money through this innovative campaign to rescue pets across the Lowcountry. Not only is this a fun way to celebrate and enjoy pets in our lives, but it highlights the importance of the organization’s work as the statewide leader in No Kill South Carolina — its effort to save every healthy and treatable animal in the Palmetto State. We’re lucky to have an organization of this caliber in South Carolina and we’re looking forward to toasting it with another round of Rescue Brews.”
“Being involved in the community and supporting local non-profits is important to all of us at Live 5 News,” said WCSC Vice President and General Manager Dan Cates. “Charleston Animal Society is a cherished partner of Live 5 News and we are thrilled to partner with the organization to celebrate people and pets while raising needed funds to help homeless animals.”
Live 5 News is involved with the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer contest by asking the community to go online and to nominate their dogs and cats. The station is the exclusive television partner for this project and will use its social media and digital platforms to promote the fun fundraising effort.
As an added benefit for people who nominate their pets for the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer contest between July 15th and August 14th, the pet lovers at Cupcake DownSouth will give one free “pupcake” to each family.
“As a Charleston Original, we have been providing fresh-baked-daily cupcakes, mega cakes and mini-cakes to the Lowcountry and midlands for 15 years,” says Cupcake DownSouth President Michael Pitstick. “We know people love our cupcakes! We also know that dogs love a special treat from our bakery so we created a yummy ‘pupcake’ with pet-friendly ingredients. We are so happy to show our love for rescued pets by supporting the 2022 Rescue Brew Beer contest with the Charleston Animal Society.”
Any family who enters a pet in the Spokesdog or Spokescat contest can present their entry certificate at either bakery location, Cupcake DownSouth, 644 D Long Point Road, Mount Pleasant, SC 29464 or Cupcake DownSouth, 1213 Lincoln Street, Columbia, SC 29201 to receive their free pupcake.
