When the first guests gathered for the inaugural Friends of the Alameda Animal Shelter (FAAS) After the Ball [1] fundraising gala in 2011, few could have imagined the legacy that would follow. What began as an evening to support Alameda’s homeless animals has grown into one of the city’s most popular charitable events—a celebration of compassion and generosity, rooted in the belief that every animal deserves a second chance.
[2]Celebrating its 15th anniversary on Friday, October 16, at Gold Bar Whiskey Distillery, this year’s After the Ball will honor a community that helped transform the lives of thousands of homeless animals.
No one understands that evolution better than FAAS CEO Adrien Abuyen [3]. Last year, he attended his first After the Ball as the organization’s new Executive Director, expecting an important fundraiser. Instead, he discovered something much more meaningful.
[4]“What surprised me most was the sheer amount of heart behind the evening,” Abuyen said. “There was this wonderful combination of celebration and purpose. People were dancing, bidding, laughing—and underneath it all was a very real commitment to making sure animals in Alameda have a place to go when they are lost, abandoned, surrendered, or in need of care.”
But before “After the Ball,” there was a community determined to save its animal shelter from closure. In 2009, a group of dedicated volunteers came together to form FAAS with a simple mission: to ensure that Alameda’s homeless animals continued to receive the care and compassion they deserved. What began as a grassroots effort became a movement that would save not only thousands of animals, but the shelter itself.
[5]With the shelter’s future secured, FAAS’s founders recognized that long-term success would require sustained community support. The answer was “After the Ball.” Launched in 2011, the gala was created not simply to raise money for the coming year, but to build a lasting tradition of philanthropy that would help sustain FAAS’s lifesaving mission for years to come.
The event has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars through the years, providing for veterinary care, enrichment programs, behavior support, medical intervention, and the day-to-day work of getting animals healthy and ready for adoption. The funds also provide for investment in the infrastructure and programs designed to make the shelter stronger over the long term.
[6]Abuyen further stated that FAAS’s impact extends to the community. The shelter helps families keep beloved pets during difficult times, offers grief support for those mourning the loss of a companion animal, advocates for vulnerable animals with no one else to speak for them, and supports the dedicated staff and volunteers who care for them every day. Through its new FAAS Medical Center, the organization also performs hundreds of spay and neuter surgeries each year, helping reduce pet overpopulation before animals ever enter the shelter.
After the Ball has also become a celebration of the people behind those successes. Volunteers who walk dogs before work, foster families who open their homes, veterinarians who donate expertise, local businesses that sponsor the event, and donors whose generosity make the impossible possible all share in the fundraising gala’s success.
[8]This year’s gala, hosted by KRON’s morning meteorologist John Shrable, promises an elegant evening featuring hosted beverages, dinner, live music, games, and silent and live auctions. The highlight of the evening is the paddle raise benefiting the Starfish Medical Fund, a dedicated emergency medical fund that ensures a shelter animal is not denied lifesaving treatment because of cost. Unlike routine shelter care (food, vaccinations, spay/neuter surgery, and basic medical treatment), the Starfish Medical Fund pays for extraordinary veterinary care for animals that arrive seriously ill or injured. Every ticket purchased, every sponsorship secured, every auction bid, and every donation received allow Alameda’s shelter animals not merely to survive, but to thrive.
During last year’s paddle raise, CEO Abuyen watched supporters lift their paddles one after another in support of the Starfish Medical Fund.
“I wish they could follow that dollar all the way through the shelter,” he said. “I wish they could see the frightened or injured animal who receives the medical care they need, begins to trust people again, and eventually walks out the door with a new family. That’s what those paddle raises make possible.”
[9]Abuyen acknowledges that, like many nonprofits, FAAS is navigating a challenging funding environment. Every dollar must stretch further as fundraising grows more competitive, grants become harder to secure or disappear altogether, and the needs of shelter animals continue to rise. At the same time, the cost of caring for them continues to increase. Veterinary care, medications, food, staffing, facility maintenance, and the costs of operating an aging shelter continue to rise. That is why After the Ball is more than just a wonderful celebration. It provides critical unrestricted funding that allows FAAS to respond quickly and effectively as needs arise.
Looking forward to his second After the Ball, Abuyen believes the anniversary is not simply an opportunity to reflect on what has been accomplished, but to imagine what is still possible. His vision is tied to his hope that Alameda becomes known for its top-notch, standard-setting animal shelter and as a community known for its pet-friendliness and care.
[10]“Fifteen years is something to celebrate,” he said. “But for me, the most exciting question isn’t simply, ‘How do we celebrate the last 15 years?’ It is, ‘What can we accomplish together over the next 15?’”
The past 15 years have proven that when Alameda comes together, remarkable things happen. Thousands of animals have found safety, healing, and loving homes because a community chose compassion. On October 16, that story continues—and every guest, every sponsor, every auction bid, and every paddle raised will help write its next chapter.
For additional information, please visit AfterTheBall.org [11].
Ophelia Nicandro is a member of the Board of the Alameda Post and a member of the FAAS After the Ball Auction Committee.