—Submitted by the Animal Protection Society of Friday Harbor
For our present day story we begin with love and dedication. On July 14, 1991, the Animal Protection Society signed an agreement with the Port of Friday Harbor to lease a half acre piece of land on Cattle Point Road for 20 years. In 1992 a Conditional Use Permit was granted for the proposed new shelter.
A Texmo building was designed and then constructed by Alvord Richardson with sub-contractors Wilson Electric and Plumbing and James Bros. Heating. In the spring of 1992 the ground-breaking ceremony included APS leaders Kate Brooks and Randa Bouton along with Sparky the beagle.
The shelter was on its way to a new home and by the end of the year it was a reality! The doors opened at our current shelter in November of 1992 with the official ribbon cutting ceremony held in December. It was a very exciting time for the new shelter.
We can give credit to Dodie Gann and Betsy Gunther for their leadership and dedication. They organized the staff and board and they sold dog licenses for the county. It was the best way to find your lost dog on the island. Dodie coined the phrase, “A license is a phone call home for a dog without a dime.”
These generous people: Elizabeth Schwalbe, Holly Harbers, Angie Metts, Dodie Gann, Consuelo Larrabee, Shirley Owens, Lori Petersen and Sue Rich would be at Market Place selling dog licenses every January. Back then in 2001, licenses cost $8.00 or $15.00. (The shelter has always gotten a percent of that charge; we also receive a portion of the County Livestock Fund that is split between Orca’s and Lopez Island)
It was Dodie’s energy that fueled the board and volunteers as they implemented some wonderful educational programs for our community. She encouraged everyone to support their Local Animal Shelter. We grew stronger as a shelter and our mission statement says it all:
To reduce pet overpopulation through spay and neuter assistance, to adopted unwanted pets into quality homes, to protect animals from neglect, abuse, and abandonment, to advocate for their welfare through Education and direct assistance and to promote greater appreciation of human and animal interaction
In 1994 Leslie Byron started her career at the shelter. In 2004 she became the director. She is our force of nature. Lets just say she knows how to throw a party and raise money! Important skills for a non-profit organization. She created WAGS, The Spayghetti Dinner and the Senior-to-Senior program.
In Leslie’s eyes the Shelter is a team that works very well together. The team includes Jan Murphy, operating manager at the shelter. Her love for our four legged friends is remarkable, she often takes home the “elders” (very old dogs that have been placed in the shelter’s care). If Jan sees a dog left in a car on a hot day she will find you and ask you “why would you do that?” In our town there is no animal control officer.
We have Jan! All strays, abused and neglected dogs or cats come to the shelter. Jan is usually the first person that they meet and they start to feel safe. The current board is a hard working group off people with Jaime Ellsworth as president. Jamie has been with the shelter since 2006.
She has the best animal and people skills. You can see her love for animals in her paintings that she so generously donates to our fundraising events. Her heart is always in the right place.
It has always been about our beloved four legged furry friends. Its so easy to look into a shelter animal’s eyes and see why. We are very thankful to have the past and the present Animal Shelter and we are so excited about our future!
Next week: Our New Hope New Home Campaign
