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38 WHAT'S UP! DECEMBER 12-18, 2021 'Fixer To Fabulous' Bella Vista Animal Shelter gets makeover LYNN ATKINS Special to What's Up! T he staff at the Bella Vista Animal Shelter has been keeping a big secret. On Nov. 22, the shelter's Facebook Page shared the news. The shelter was selected by Jenny and Dave Marrs of the television show "Fixer to Fabulous" to receive a makeover. The episode featuring the shelter will air at 8 p.m. Dec. 14 on HGTV. The timing was fortuitous, Nancy Cullins, interim director of the shelter, said. Most of the work took place over the summer and keeping the project secret meant closing the shelter. So for much of the summer, potential adopters were asked to make an appointment. Most of them assumed the policy was a result of covid and not a secret makeover project. "It was a really fun project," Jenny Marrs said. "We wanted to do something different and be able to give to others." The couple, hosts of the popular series, adopted a cat from the Bella Vista Animal Shelter several years ago and knew that the organization could use the help. The network had to approve the project and wanted one that would appeal to the audience. "We wanted a place we had experience with and they were willing to accept," Jenny Marrs said. She and her husband just finished season three of the show and are now working on an older home in Rogers that won't be on television. Their projects, for both the television show and their own business, are usually located in Benton County to make travel to the work sites easier, Dave Marrs said. Most of the people who receive a makeover from the show have to share the cost of the renovations, but not the shelter. The show covered all the costs. "We couldn't have come up with that much money," Cullins said. Although no new space for the animals was added, the renovations improved the existing space, Shelter Manager Laurie May explained. A new entry with a covered porch was added, and the dog kennels that are used by the animal control officer to hold dogs picked up after hours were repainted and wooden fronts were added. A privacy fence was added. Changes to the indoor kennels give each dog a little more privacy, which cuts down on barking, May said. The office and the cat rooms in that area were also renovated. "They are some of the nicest people I've ever met," May said of the TV hosts. The shelter will continue to do fundraising, Cullins confirmed. There will always be more animals that need help. The next big project may be replacing the original shelter building, which is no longer usable, with a new building dedicated to cats, May said. Keeping the cats further from the dogs will help both species. That project may also include meeting space for volunteers and employees. With most of their large fundraisers canceled because of covid, the shelter staff has been working hard to make ends meet. Right now their biggest needs are OdoBan and bleach for cleaning, along with non-clumping clay kitty litter. "People are generous," May said. "We always have people that will step up and volunteer." So far, no watch party has been planned for the "Fixer to Fabulous" episode, but Cullins isn't ruling one out. She plans to keep the public updated on all shelter news via their Facebook page and newsletters. This shipping storage container at the shelter was dressed up with a colorful mural by crew members of the "Fixer to Fabulous" television show. (NWA Democrat-Gazette/Bennett Horne) FAQ 'Fixer To Fabulous': Bella Vista Animal Shelter WHEN — 8 p.m. Dec. 14 WHERE — HGTV COST — Donate to the shelter via PayPal or Venmo INFO — bellavista-animalshelter .org ON TV!