The Rotary Club Hosts St. Puppy’s Day

As we pause to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day during March, we also ‘paws’ to honor an equally important holiday: St. Puppy’s Day!

The Rotary Club of Spring Hill Central presents St. Puppy’s Day, a popular annual event for folks of all ages—and, of course, their fur babies. This year’s St. Puppy’s Day happens Sunday, March 10, at Marker 48 Brewing, 12147 Cortez Blvd., Brooksville, a pet-friendly establishment, from 11 a.m.- 3 p.m. The 501c3 Rotary Club of Spring Hill Central Foundation hosts this event.

St. Puppy’s Day offers a vendor fair, pet contests, a silent auction and many prizes. The club’s famous Rotary hotdogs will be available for sale as a bonus.

And it’s all for a good ‘paws cause.’ Proceeds from St. Puppy’s Day will go to renovating the only dog park in Spring Hill: Rotary Centennial Dog Park, 10375 Sandlor St., Spring Hill. The eight-acre dog park was built in partnership with Hernando County Parks and Recreation and Spring Hill Central Rotary Club. The park includes the county’s first dog park, with three runs for large, small and service dogs. Additional amenities include picnic shelters, a pavilion and restrooms.

“Rotary has been hosting St. Puppy’s Day for a few years now,” said Rotary Club of Spring Hill Central spokesperson Kiani Segree. “What is new is the location that we are hosting it at. This year’s St. Puppy’s Day will occur at Marker 48 instead of at the dog park.”

Through the years, St. Puppy’s Day has proven a successful ‘furry fund-raiser’ for Rotary and its causes. “Last year, we raised $3400, and we hope to raise even more this year,” said Segree.

Proceeds from this year’s St. Puppy’s Day are set to benefit the park that generally hosts the event, supporting its refurbishment and enhancement, along with a full spectrum of worthwhile projects for which Rotary is usually known.

“At the dog park, we plan on putting out more waste stations, covered seating areas, and landscaping. As well, we contribute to the new splash park, where we have pledged $25,000,” said Segree. “We also continue to buy dictionaries for the 3rd grade. This year, we doubled up because the 3rd grades the year before did not receive dictionaries because we could not go into the schools due to COVID restrictions. Seeing those kids light up when they get to have a book that is all theirs to take home and will help them on their projects was so heartwarming to see this year.”

And as folks support these worthwhile causes, they also get the chance to spotlight their beloved fur babies via some fun and energetic St. Puppy’s Day competitions. “At the event, there will be three contests to enter your pup in,” said Segree. “1. Best St. Patty Costume. 2. Look a Like Contest. 3. Most Tricks.”

St. Puppy’s Day is a signature event on the Rotary Club of Spring Hill event calendar that supports and furthers the club’s philanthropic mission. “Our club wants to continue to do good in the community and give back. We are a small but mighty club,” Segree said. “We donate our time to host events, and those events raise money to donate right back to the community.”

The Rotary Club of Spring Hill invites the community— and their pets—to this popular seasonal event.
“St. Puppy’s Day has a little something for everyone in the family,” said Segree. “We will have a vendor fair where local vendors will have their products for purchase. Marker 48 beer garden is a nice area for the green St. Patty’s beer. We will have baskets to raffle, a 50/50 raffle, Rotary’s famous hotdogs, and music. If, for whatever reason, someone can not make it out to support that day, they can also be a sponsor. Just by going to our website, www.stpuppy.com, they can sign up and learn more about our event.”