Cat Association of Topeka to host annual fundraiser

TOPEKA (KSNT) – The Cat Association of Topeka (CAT) will be hosting its annual fundraiser at a local event center later this month.

The fundraiser, Hairball 2025, will be held in Topeka at The Beacon on Sunday, Oct. 19.

CAT was founded in 1988 and was operated by volunteers who had a passion and commitment to helping cats and kittens while they await adoption. Although its grown significantly over the years, the group has provided opportunities for adoption of relinquished, stray and abandoned cats and kittens.

“Cat Association is a no-kill, cat only shelter that has been a part of the Topeka community for 37 years,” said Debra King, chair for Hairball 2025. “We’ve been no-kill since we opened. We are a small shelter that focuses on cats only and trying to get them in their forever homes. We are a volunteer based operation with only two full-time employees.”

King said that, at any given time, the shelter has anywhere between 60 and 70 cats. Her organization’s goal is always to adopt them into their forever homes, but they will take cats back if something comes up and situations change. They typically adopt out around 20 to 25 cats a year.

Hairball is the organization’s biggest annual fundraiser, and this year the group hopes to raise $10,000. There won’t be ay cats at the event, but there will be dinner, auctions and mini stations with games and grab bags for each attendee.

CAT generally costs $150,000 to $200,000 a year to operate, and this fundraiser is their largest event they have to raise money. Last year, CAT raised almost $13,000, but this year they think certain economic factors may affect how much money they can raise.

“At the end of the year, we focus our fundraising on raising money for building maintenance, repairs, and updates and what we call our building fund,” King said. “Over the last few years it helped cover a new HVAC system, new roof and lighting. Upcoming updates will include some repairs to our flooring and catios.”

Tickets start at $40, and there will be opportunities to donate more. The event runs from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. For tickets and more information, check out the event page.

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