Pawtastic Pottery hosted a bake sale in support of the Super Senior Cat Sanctuary on Saturday, April 25, and Sunday, April 26, 2026.
Run by Debra Varey, Pawtastic Pottery is a paint-your-own pottery studio located on Stanley Street in Brantford.
“We’ve been open since September 2025, and 95 per cent of everything here is poured ourselves so you won’t find them anywhere else; we have everything from vintage molds to modern molds and over 200 glaze colours,” she said. “Every single month, we support a different animal organization, and so every piece painted helps a paw in need.”
The business owner said she’s also going to be offering stained glass workshops, hosts team-building activities, and will continue to expand her offerings.
In an effort to help make a difference for local animal rescues and shelters, Varey hosts monthly events for children and adults, and donates ten per cent of all sales directly to the different organizations.
She also partners with rescue groups to host and showcase adoptable animals in the studio, and runs awareness campaigns to give animals more visibility and up their chances of finding a forever home.
Since late 2025, Varey and her customers have helped raise funds for Sato Saved End of the Line Dog Rescue and Rehabilitation, Good Will Good Karma, Simcoe and District Human Society, Autism Dog Services, The Remmy Project, and now Super Senior Cat Sanctuary.
For the rest of 2026, the business will continue its fundraising efforts in support of Northern Connections Dog Rescue, the Weiner Festival, Brant County SPCA, Pantry Four Paws, Hearts to Homes Feline Rescue, Tales From the Crate Dog Rescue, Miss Dixie’s Foundation and Good Will Good Karma.
The owner added that when people come in and make physical or financial donations towards that month’s chosen rescue or organization, they’re entered to win a $10 gift card. Residents are also welcome to bring in food, litter, blankets and other supplies for animals in need as well.
When asked what inspired her to start Pawtastic Pottery, Varey’s answer was simple.
“I want to help as many animals as I can, and honestly, there’s no more room on my bed,” she said with a laugh.
On top of day-to-day operations and events, Varey also teams up with the animal organizations to find other ways to support their cause.
“With the Remy Project last month, they brought in 80 cat bags and they were all sold,” she said. “With the Super Senior Cat Sanctuary, we’ve organized our first bake sale. We did it last weekend as well, and we completely sold out which was great, and this weekend has been good too; we actually had people drive from Hamilton this morning to buy something so that was nice.”
From brownies to cookies, raspberry crumble bars, jars of granola, rice krispie squares, banana bread, corn muffins, and more, there were plenty of vegan sweet treats to enjoy.
When asked how much she’s helped raise for this month’s benefactor, Varey said that while hadn’t tallied the numbers yet, the April 18 bake sale raised over $275.
She went on to say that not only enjoys getting to run a business that helps animals in need, but that she also looks forward to seeing her regulars and hearing various stories from her customers.
“It’s just great,” she said. “I hear so many amazing stories from people saying things like, ‘I remember doing this with my aunt’ or ‘I remember my grandmother’s vintage trees, but my sister got them and I want my one too.’ It’s just fun to give back and provide something people can enjoy. I really consider us Brantford’s all-age fun spot.”
Kimberly De Jong’s reporting is funded by the Canadian government through its Local Journalism Initiative.The funding allows her to report rural and agricultural stories from Blandford-Blenheim and Brant County. Reach her at kimberly.dejong@brantbeacon.ca.
