Tracy Balazy holds Einstein, one of the star guests at Black Tie & Tails Oct. 24 at the Dearborn Inn, 20301 Oakwood Blvd.
DEARBORN — The Friends For the Dearborn Animal Shelter’s Black Tie & Tails charity fundraising event returns Oct. 24.
Tickets are $175 and are available online or by calling the shelter at 313-943-2697.
Festivities begin 7 p.m. at the Dearborn Inn, 20301 Oakwood Blvd. The 2014 theme, is Passport to Paris, celebrates the adopted animal love stories that have been created in the organization’s 20-year history.
Guests will be transported to Paris, the ultimate City of Love, starting with a French wine tasting hosted by Merchant’s Fine Wine. There will also be “passport stops” throughout the evening, including the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre “adoption gallery.” There also will be champagne and French-inspired entrees.
Since its inception, Black Tie has been a community event that has attracted local celebrities, athletes, auto industry and business leaders, politicians and concerned citizens, gathering to help fund the FFDAS’s ongoing efforts to care for and find permanent homes for unwanted animals.
More than $1 million has been raised since the start of Black Tie in 2001; this year’s target is to top $150,000.
New this year, WDVD FM 96.3 morning show personality Allyson Martinek from “Blaine & Allyson in the Morning” will emcee the event, including a live auction.
Metropolitan Detroit businesses, artists, and individuals donate auction items such as tickets to sporting events, tours, dinner excursions, weekend getaways and luxury merchandise. Black Tie is also known for offerings such as a meet-and-greet during a morning skate with Detroit Red Wings play-by-play announcer Ken Daniels, and a hot-lap, test-drive experience at the Ford Motor Dearborn Development Center.
Leading up to the evening, a host of the many auction items can be previewed at www.dearbornanimals.org/events/black-tie-tails-2/auction/#127462
For more information about events, volunteering, donating or adoptable animals, go to www.dearbornanimals.org or call 313-943-2697 or go to www.dearbornanimals.org, www.facebook.com/DearbornAnimals or http://twitter.com/#!/FFDAS”.