5-Minute Interview: Howard Baskin, chairman, Big Cat rescue

* Fur Ball. We started doing a gala in 2003. We have gone from 300 attendees at $50 each to 700 at $150 each, with net amount rising from $17,000 the first year to $119,000 in 2007.

A key element of the ball is the “safari costume formal” attire. Guests can come in purely formal outfits or, at the other extreme, in cat or safari costume, or in the middle in formal attire with cat accessories. Just seeing what people wear has made the event fun.