Thursday was a good day for pets in two of Santa Clarita’s shelter facilities after they received donations from this year’s annual SCV Charity Chili Cook-Off.

Each year, the chili cook-off chooses two charities to donate to from a pool of nominees. This year, Shelter Hope Pet Shop and the Lange Foundation’s St. Bonnie’s Sanctuary were the two organizations selected by the cook-off’s founder Nicole Stinson due to the care and attention they offer to all the animals they save.

The cook-off raises funds through competitor registration fees and attendee ticket sales but most of the revenue is gained through sponsorships.

This year, about 700 people attended the event, according to Stinson, and the cook-off was able to donate $31,000 after expenses to both organizations, split evenly between the two charities.

“The charities were shocked and crying because I don’t think they expected us to raise that much,” Stinson said. “They told us things like, ‘You have no idea how many animals’ lives this is going to save.’”

Stinson said she also found out that event attendees adopted animals from both Shelter Hope and St. Bonnie’s directly because of the cook-off.

“Not only did we raise money but we raised awareness that these two rescues were local,” Stinson said. “They have documented successful adoptions from our event.”