The fun lasted all day at the Bloomfield John A. Bukowski Animal Shelter holiday fundraiser on Sunday, held this year at the Bloomfield fire department headquarters on Franklin Street.

The firehouse was open to the street with hand-painted signs advertising the event.  Beside a fire truck, Santa and Mrs. Claus sat together in a festively decorated tent, holding visiting kids and pets on their laps.  On hand to help were several cheerful and mischievous " elves," who kept things lively as they danced around the firehouse.

“We've had a steady stream of visitors all day.  We even had a bunny rabbit!” laughed shelter fundraising committee co-Chair Nancy D’Auria.

“It's such a happy day,” agreed D’Auria’s sister Lori Monaco.  “People are so generous, it just takes my breath away.  Pictures were a $10 donation and some people gave $40, do you believe that?  Times aren’t so good, you know?”

“We had about 50 people here today,” D'Auria estimated. "People come back with pets that have been adopted out.  They come back and visit us.  It's so nice."

The John A. Bukowski Bloomfield Animal Shelter has been very busy this holiday season.  Tuesday December 13 is the shelter’s Open House, where people can adopt a pet for only $25 as part of the “Home for the Holidays” program. 

The Open House will take place at the shelter from 4 p.m.-7:30 p.m., 61 Bukowski Place in Bloomfield.  There will be a variety of homemade baked goods, finger sandwiches, appetizers and beverages – including coffee and hot cocoa to prospective customers. 

On December 1, the BAS hosted their annual Tricky Tray/Fundraiser, held this year at The Chandelier in Belleville.  Drawing a crowd of 225 people, it was deemed a “resounding success” by the fundraising committee.  

Perhaps one of the keys to the shelter’s success is the spirit of joy and cooperation among the volunteers, evident at the firehouse event on Sunday.  As Mr. and Mrs. Santa happily posed with pets and babies in the tent, teen volunteers dressed as elves danced outside, holding up a sign inviting people to share the celebration inside.

“Everybody bakes, everybody chips in,” commented D’Auria, whose daughters Jes and Kristin were dressed as elves. 

One of the shelter’s dedicated volunteers was Marilynn Lomazow, who was taking photographs of the children and pets with Santa.  A Montclair resident, Lomazow said she helps out at the Bloomfield Animal Shelter and also the Human Needs Food Pantry in Montclair.

“I pick up food at the human needs food pantry and bring it to five families I ‘adopted’,” she said. “For the past eight years I've been picking up bread for the Human Needs Food Pantry every Thursday.  This is day-old bread that will feed 100 families.  We make packages for the families.”

Despite its name, the Human Needs Food Pantry doesn’t just benefit people.  By supplying pet food on their shelves, owners who wouldn’t otherwise be able to  to can afford to keep their pets. 

“I may [soon] be doing some fostering of animals, too,” said Lomazow, a photo retoucher who works from home. “Right now I just do the food deliveries.  But I'll be back to photograph the pets for Easter.”

As she spoke, the elves and Santa were ringing bells and brandishing signs inviting passersby to come inside.  Some people honked their horns and several stopped to make a donation, among them some bartenders from Obal’s Inn.

“See how nice people are,” marveled D’Auria.  “Santa was outside ringing his bell and some bartenders from Obal’s saw him and pulled over and gave him a generous donation for the shelter!” 

Before long, D’Auria donned a dalmation character costume and joined the elves and Santa outside the firehouse.

Standing and watching the spectacle was Bloomfield Firefighter Tom Laiacona.

“Last year we had [this fundraiser] at Station three,” he said with a smile.  “This year it’s headquarters.  It was a good day for them.  They had a good turnout.”