Rappaport To The Rescue

It's a star-studded night of compassion, celebrity glamour, and lifesaving love as award-winning animal advocate Jill Rappaport takes Rappaport to the Rescue LIVE to New York City's Best Friends Animal Society Benefit Gala to Save Them All! Country music superstar Trisha Yearwood kicks off the evening with a heartfelt tribute to animal rescuers, while Destiny's Child singer Michelle Williams delivers a moving performance of "True Colors." Jill catches up with The View co-host Sara Haines about her passion for pet adoption, and Dylan's Candy Bar founder Dylan Lauren shares her love of rescue animals and the emotional journey of losing a beloved pet. The celebrity-filled evening continues with Andrew Lauren, Lauren Bush Lauren, and passionate animal advocate Stephanie Mattera, before Jill sits down with Best Friends Animal Society CEO Julie Castle for an inspiring conversation about the organization's lifesaving mission and exciting plans for a new animal rescue facility in Oyster Bay, New York. From the red carpet to the rescue mission, it's an unforgettable celebration of the people working to give homeless dogs and cats the second chances they deserve. Together, we really can Save Them All!

Listen to Episode #93 Now:

Transcript:

Welcome to Rappaport to the Rescue. I'm Jill Rappaport, live from the Best Friends Benefit Gala in Manhattan to save them all. And the evening got off to a stellar start with country icon Tricia Yearwood.

Hi, I'm Tricia. It's great to be here and I am here because I've always been the can I keep it kid and so I've always raised my dogs and cats and whatever showed up. We're a really small town in the country.

So I learned in an early age that you can draw wild animals and try to find homes and I'm kind of still doing that. What Natasha said about my my lonely daddy's yard is it's true it was the way that I could I learned that I can't volunteer very much because I'll take a dog home. I can't foster because I will keep a dog.

And I had to figure out a way to get back without getting so emotionally attached. That's what I want to do. I do want to make an addition to thank Best Friends for throwing this right which should celebrate you who do all this work because this is truly God's work and you don't get recognized enough for what you give.

And it's so important what you do. So that's why I'm here. So I'm just so proud to be honoring you tonight at what you do.

True colors, true colors, beautiful like a rainbow. Then Michelle Williams took center stage. And if this road makes you crazy, you've taken all you can bear.

Call me out because you know I'll be there. I see your true colors missing and shining through. I see your true colors and that's why I love you.

So don't be afraid to let them show your true colors, your true colors, your true colors. Amazing. All right, to the rescue.

I'm really excited to be here. I am so thrilled to be standing with someone I adore and have worked with almost 30 years ago at the Today Show, the one and only Sara Haines. We are at the Best Friends Gala, which for me is such an honor to be here.

You are the host of this. Yes, it's my third year doing this because we bonded long ago over the importance of rescues. You know, if you love animals, it's the rescue part that gets me because so many people go out and they might want an animal and there's lots of versions of how you do it.

But I'm just like if everyone who wanted to bring that little beautiful soul into their house matched with animals that didn't have a house or our home, excuse me, we would literally save them all. And don't you love that motto? I do. I do.

Oh, I when people say to me, that's unrealistic. I said, so what? Should we all live and hope that we can attain that? You have to aim for that. It's aim for the dream of the earth, aim for the moon and you'll land in the stars.

Now I am back with the wonderful, incredible and my dear pal, animal loving friend, Dylan Lauren, who of course is the provider, the owner, the creator of Dylan's Candy Bar and Dylan's Candy Barn, a true animal advocate and an amazing human being. Dylan, so good to see you. So good to see you again at the Best Friends Animal Gala.

This is one of our favorite of the events. This was amazing this summer. Yes, Dylan came to that event this summer.

That was incredible. Oh, but this is the one where they really raised the money. This is the big treasure.

And, you know, these animals, I'm seeing them all here and they're so cute, but they need homes and they need a lot of fundraising. I mentioned Best Friends Sanctuary and it's great work they do. I just hope these animals get adopted.

They're so cute. I'm all distracted looking at them. Oh, look at them.

They're precious. There's dogs, there's cats, they have little orange bow ties because that's their color. They're so sweet.

And there's their shelter here in New York City. I think people don't realize they have one in New York City. Exactly.

And you know what, people, if you listen to this podcast, Dylan is a regular. You do so much to save the bunnies, the rabbits, the animals. Bunnies are my favorite.

But I, you know, anything I can do to help the bunnies and the dogs and the cats and the horses and the goats and the birds. But, yes, bunnies are one of the best pets you can have. And they're so gentle.

I just love it. I love all these animals. I don't know.

I mean, I need a giant sanctuary and fall city's rescues. I love it. And Dylan, considering that Halloween is right around the corner and you'll have the most incredible business.

It is my fantasy. Yes. Candy from all over, the most beautiful candy, the most delicious candy.

I'm gearing up for a big event. Yes, Halloween is one of our biggest holidays. And we have all these bat-themed, skull-themed, trick-or-treat bags and ways to decorate your house and get trick-or-treaters really excited.

Very colorful candy. Very exciting. But our trick-or-treat totes are the most exciting.

You are truly amazing. And I know not so long ago lost your beloved Jersey. Yes.

And have you been looking for a beloved Jersey? I'm not yet. It's still hard to think about. I love Jersey so much.

And I sometimes feel a little guilty looking at other dogs. But I also know there's so many that need a home. So I'm between.

I know she's the one. But if I get like 10 rescues, I know that I might feel actually better. Because then I'm not like totally as into just one.

And I could have all these animals or a raccoon. I love that. I'd love to see a raccoon in your house.

I love raccoons. I'm really into them lately. Right now they're not legal in where I live.

But in some areas they are. There are so many cute animals here, though. They're all dressed in suits and ties.

And everybody is clamoring for a photo of her. They're all waiting for you on the red carpet, the orange carpet. Thank you so much.

We're about to catch up with your mother and your lord. That's right. He's another animal lover.

And it's fun to celebrate animals with him. Well, I am so excited now to be with Andrew Lauren. And who is your friend? No one gave me his name or her name.

I don't know. But he or she has already hissed at a little doggy. But he's very cute.

I mean, I would be tempted to adopt this one. Oh, well, could this he or she become part of your family tonight? Potentially. We have already two cats.

They're brothers. So they're rescue cats from Staten Island. So it could be a little difficult bringing in a new little guy.

But you never know. The night's still young. Now I am with the famous Lauren Bush Lauren, who is married to David Lauren.

I grew up with a lot of rescues. Right now we don't have a dog. We've had a few hamsters and fish.

But we're dipping our toes in if we're committing to a dog. But what? Oh, I don't know. This could be a match made in heaven.

Tell me about your business, how that's going. It's good. It's going well.

We continue to raise money to give school meals to kids around the globe and the U.S. So still working to fight childhood hunger and be a conduit for people to get involved in the issue. You're incredible. More to be done.

There's always more to be done. But at such a young age, you knew it was the thing to do. Well, thank you.

Oh, it's really amazing. And I'm so proud of your work. And, obviously, you love best friends.

I do love best friends. Save them all. I know.

Look how sweet, so innocent. He looks great. He looks very comfortable with you, Lauren.

He's very patient. What would David say? Should we put in a date of your husband? He's in Asia, and you're like, what did you do? But he's very sweet. Thank you.

Thank you so much. And continue your great work. Appreciate it.

I am here with the magnificent Stephanie Mattera, one of my closest friends and a huge animal advocate. What does it mean to you to do this event? Best Friends Animal Society is a charity and organization I actually discovered when I was 13 years old. I used to get the magazine sent to my house, and it's been a lifelong dream to go to Kanab, Utah.

I haven't been there yet, but I think Jill and I are going to plan a road trip, and we're going to go. But I have loved this organization for so long. They want to make the whole United States an Oak Hill community, and that is something that's near and dear to my heart, and I know it is for you as well, Jill.

We are here at the Best Friends Gala to save them all, and I am next to my legend, my hero, Julie Castle, the CEO. This is such an incredible event. I am so thrilled to be with you here.

Oh, my gosh. I'm so grateful that you came and that you're supporting this. You are amazing.

Thank you. I love you. We just saw each other at my rant.

I know. This is the most exciting news because you're getting ready to have an incredible facility. Yes.

Oyster Bay, New York. Yes. It's events like this that will make that possible.

That's absolutely right. Oyster Bay is going to help save so many more lives from animals from the southern United States and all over the country, really, to come up to New York, be rehabilitated, and either get adopted here or go to our partner rescue organizations in the northeast that have the capacity and have the adopters who want to rescue an animal. And so we are so excited.

It's going to be huge. It's a really big deal. Everything you do is huge.

And you have done it against all odds. Well, that means a lot. Really what that means to me is that the public wants this to happen.

People want to see animals saved. People want to take care of animals. People care about animals.

People want to adopt animals. And that is what makes the magic happen. It's the people.

We're just facilitating that happening, but the people and the animals are the magic. And events like this and your incredible, wonderful, generous donors are making this happen. Yes, and they are fabulous.

And they're, I mean, what joy it brings us and them to save so many lives. It's fabulous, incredible. And we are so grateful to them because we couldn't do this work without them.

And we couldn't do this work without you. We couldn't do this work without the exposure and the, you know, the care and the feeding that goes into so much of what we do from the public and our donors. And so it's really, I feel honored to be here and doing this work because it's a noble cause.

It really is. Your motto, your tagline is what I live by every day. Save them all.

Save them all. And you know what people will say, isn't that a little unrealistic or too optimistic? Why not? Why not? I mean, I think asking that question raises the bar for everything. It really does.

Because if we go back to what was before, it was okay to kill animals. It was okay to say, we don't have enough room. We don't have enough space.

We don't have enough homes. But at the end of the day, they all bear that examination to say, do these animals deserve a better life? And the answer most of the time is yes. Absolutely.

Julie, amazing. I love you. This is going to be such a great night.

Hope you tune in to this very special edition live from the Best Friends Gala to Save Them All. I'm Jill Rappaport. And please don't forget to open your heart and home to an animal in need.

"Rappaport to the Rescue" Theme Song Written & Produced by Mark Winter
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