Cat’s the way to have purr-fect wedding day
APAIR of newlyweds dedicated their special day to fundraising - by giving their nuptials an unusual theme.
When Mandy Hobbis’s friends and family turned up to celebrate her big day with armfuls of cat toys, food and bedding, she was absolutely thrilled.
Mandy, 33, and her new husband Damien, 34, decided to make their wedding day cat themed, to support the Rochdale Cats Protection charity and help to find new homes for nearly two dozen rescue cats.
The couple put photos of 23 cats in their programme, deliberately choosing older animals, as they can often be overlooked in favour of kittens and spend years waiting for new homes.
Incredibly, 18 of the cats have been adopted by the Hobbis’s guests, with some already settling into their new homes just days after the wedding. But the couple didn’t stop there.
Instead of gifts, they asked their 70 guests to give donations for the charity, and received more than 300 items, including food, toys and even litter. Mandy’s mum Susan Lowe went one step further and dressed up in a furry cat suit to welcome guests to the reception.
Mandy was determined to give something back to the them, and the result was her cat themed wedding.
The couple are sharing the details of their special day in the hope that it will encourage more people to have charity themed weddings.
Mandy, who is a ranger for the National Trust, said: “I wasn’t expecting so many cats to be adopted, so it’s just brilliant.
“When someone asked what we wanted for wedding gifts, I joked that I wanted for all the homeless cats to be fed and have a home. It soon clicked I could actually try and make that happen!
“Knowing we’ve fed and homed homeless and hungry animals in need is much more special to us.”
The couple had another poignant reason for their unusual wedding theme.
They both lost their dads several years ago, and knowing it would be emotional without them there, they were determined to make the day fun for everyone.
They ended the night with a pyrotechnic show and even had a Del Boy impersonator to make the guests laugh.
Mandy added: “We didn’t want everyone to be upset all day, we wanted it to be a happy occasion. It was a bit random, but that’s what we wanted.”