Southampton Animal Shelter Holds Annual Gala at Beachfront Mansion
Article and Photos By Lieba Nesis
The Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation (SASF) held its 13th annual gala at the oceanfront Southampton home of Susan Allen on Saturday July 16th with cocktails beginning at 6 PM. Event chair Jean Shafiroff had been working tirelessly for the past two months to ensure the $1,000 per person plate evening would be well attended. Clad in a floor length Oscar de La Renta gown, Shafiroff presided over the evening as she posed with honorees which included former New York City Police Commissioner William Bratton and Founding President of SASF Jonathan McCann. Wealthy Hamptonites undoubtedly have a preoccupation with their privileged pets as dozens of grooming spas and mobile vans continue to line the streets of the gilded and dog-friendly Hamptons. SASF is one of the leading No-Kill open admission animal shelters on Long Island and serves the entire Southampton 7 days a week from 10 AM-5PM.
The evening began with a cocktail hour, silent auction with such goodies as Louboutin shoes- and a red carpet with hordes of photographers-a common sight in the celebrity friendly Hamptons. It was also a much awaited opportunity to fraternize with fellow Long Islanders as foodies Ian Duke and chef Rocco DiSpirito bumped into each other. Rocco is an American chef and reality television personality who has authored 14 cookbooks, with another one on the way, 5 of which were New York Times bestsellers. For the evening he spent weeks collaborating with the Foundation to produce the perfect vegan entree-which turned out to be chicken parmigiana tindle-and a nut and seed bread for the goody bag-both of which he carried in a frozen truck. He is coming out with an NFT in the fall on the Food Network-the contents of which he was reluctant to divulge.
Ian Duke is a similarly successful restaurateur who made his mark with the ever popular Southampton Social Club. Ian recalled the club shutting down a month ago when over 1,000 people showed up with him meticulously maintaining an upfront clocker to ensure no more than 380 occupants enter.
Ian started as a dishwasher at the age of 12-13 and has since become a partner in six major establishments including Prohibition, Lucky’s Famous Burgers, Union Burger Bar, Union Sushi & Steak and Baylander-a restored naval vessel located in West Harlem. Duke is one of the humblest, most well liked entrepreneurs on the Hamptons social circuit and looks more like a rock star than a successful Hamptons business owner. He and DiSpirito have collaborated on numerous foodie events and happily embraced after a lengthy Covid separation.
As a vegan dinner proceeded in the generous tent, which thankfully averted the predicted upon rain, a small animal show was presented to encourage attendees to adopt these adorable creatures. Jonathan McCann, the founding president of SASF since 2008, described the upcoming challenges of the shelter which include staffing shortages, and a host of new homeowners during Covid who chose to adopt and are now seeking to return their pets. McCann arrived on stage with dog Georgia and exhorted the crowd to house the adorable dog, as his six pets left him with little room.
Beaming fellow honoree William Bratton, also accepted his honor, with the caveat that he and his wife were not currently in possession of a pet due to their busy schedules which would be animal abuse, but promised in the future they would adopt. Bratton a superlative Police Commissioner was praised for his pioneering collaboration with the ASPCA in 2014 which established the NYPD Animal Cruelty Investigation Squad, making animal cruelty a crime. They have since rescued more than 6,000 animals and made over 1,000 arrests with more than 23,000 officers being trained to recognize these perpetrators of abuse.
MC and newscaster Bill Evans introduced a well spoken Jean Shafiroff who passionately described the shelters practice of turning no animal away from anywhere in the United States, including Puerto Rico, with its remarkable placing of over 900 animals including rabbits, guinea pigs, and cats in 2021 as well as 5,000 animals entering the shelter annually. Jean also gave a shout out to legendary photographer Patrick McMullan, who was in top form this evening enthusiastically shooting guests and their animal counterparts with the energy of a twenty year old. The live auction was a huge success with three lucky bidders purchasing $15,000 Billy Joel Madison Square Garden tickets-with access to his private booth. A $250 skin serum and $100 Bionova gift card were part of the desirable goody bags. The evening concluded at 10:30 PM with a delectable tiramisu and pudding dessert along with enthusiastic dancing by a crowd ready to party during the post-Covid unrivaled Hamptons summer season.
