Beaver County Humane Society asking for community support in 'A Community Thrives' program

CENTER TWP. — Hoping to raise more funds for local pets in need, one Beaver County nonprofit is asking the community to lend a "paw" with its new fundraiser.

Competing in USA Today's "A Community Thrives" program, the Beaver County Humane Society is asking community members to join the fundraising drive in an effort to fund a new Mobile Pet Food Pantry to help pet owners in need around the region. If the humane society is the organization with the most unique donors by July 25, it will be eligible for an additional $5,000 prize.

"The last few years have been pretty rough," said the BCHS. "Between the pandemic and the economy, even the most well-intentioned of us may be finding it challenging to keep up with family, work, bills, and even the needs of our pets. BCHS knows that some in our community are struggling more than ever to feed their pets. Through 'A Community Thrives,' we are raising money to create a Mobile Pet Food Pantry so that instead of asking people to come to us, we can go to them! To do this, we need your help."

BCHS history of helping Beaver County's pets

Offering a way for local pets to find their forever homes, the Beaver County Humane Society has been an active part of the Beaver County community for over seven decades. With many animals for adoption and plenty of mouths to feed, the humane society remains grateful for the public support for its mission to help animals and hopes to see those looking for new furry friends consider some of the pets in their care.

"The number of animals currently available for adoption changes frequently," said Susan Salyards, executive director for the BCHS. "However, I can tell you that as of the morning of July 15, we had 153 animals in our care: 47 dogs, 107 cats, four rabbits and one ferret."

The earliest efforts to form a humane society in Beaver County came from Lois Glenn Wolfe, a New Brighton native who took in stray dogs at her home in the 1940s. During this time, Wolfe housed the dogs in six wooden barrels that served as kennels. After the dogs were spayed and neutered at her expense, she attempted to find homes for these pets with the help of neighbors and newspaper ads.

In 1947, Wolfe convinced her friends that Beaver County should form its own humane society to address the number of strays and abandoned animals in the area. By 1950, Wolfe's hard work made the Beaver County Humane Society a reality and the nonprofit began operations "regarding the interests of animals in the state of Pennsylvania."

While the organization has been around for over 70 years, there have been many homes for the Beaver County Humane Society. Starting as a fenced-in area behind the Beaver Falls High School, the humane society eventually grew too large for its location and had to move to Industry. Renovating old chicken coops as kennels, the humane society would remain in the area until 1968.

Moving to Center Township, the humane society constructed a new facility that was 2,700 square feet on land leased from the St. Joseph Lead Co. This building, which would soon become neighbor to the Beaver Valley Mall, began to expand and adapt more medical facilities throughout the next two decades. Moving into the digital age, the humane society also began building its own computer network and further expanded the services available for local animal care.

In 2013, the shelter addressed the growing need for animal sheltering in the area with its current facility along Brodhead Road. The shelter continues to thrive due to local support for the organization, allowing animals that are without homes or mistreated by owners to rest and wait for their new forever homes.

"Many in our community hold third party fundraisers, ranging from children hosting lemonade stands to community groups hosting concerts, dinners, contests, etc. for the benefit of the humane society," Salyards said. "We hold a variety of fundraising events each year that members of the community can participate in as sponsors, volunteers, or participants. This year, our Designer Purse Bingo takes place on Sunday, Aug. 7 at Monaca Turners and the ever-popular Beastly Haunted Trail, which takes place on Friday and Saturday evenings in October."

According to Salyards, the Beaver County Humane Society also receives support from businesses collaborating with the shelter through various corporate partnerships. Local businesses have also collected funds for the humane society for many years, with 53 businesses offering "dog banks" for spare change. Members of the humane society have also found ways to give back to the community that supports them, such as their "Veteran's Kitchen," which helps low-income families in the area get access to pet food.

A Community Thrives fundraiser info

To support the Beaver County Humane Society's most recent fundraiser, the community is encouraged to donate through the "A Community Thrives" website through Aug. 12 for eligible grants.

The "A Community Thrives" foundation is a part of the Gannett network, the parent corporation of The Beaver County Times and other news organizations in the USA TODAY Network. To date, more than 700 organizations have applied for the program and $17 million has been raised for local organizations across the United States.

The nonprofits in the program will have one month to raise money through the online platform Mightycause to reach a minimum of $3,000 or $6,000, depending on the group’s operating budget, in order to qualify as a grant recipient. Users can donate to an organization of their choice by filtering the cause type, location and category on the website.

The Beaver County Humane Society will get to keep all of the money they raise through A Community Thrives and will also qualify for additional grants if the fundraiser is one of the top projects in the program. Top fundraisers will receive a total of $200,000 in grants and all eligible organizations will qualify for consideration of the National Project and Local Operating grants.

With a $15,000 initial fundraising goal, the funds raised for the humane society through this program will be used for a Mobile Pet Food Pantry to help pet owners in need around Beaver County. By raising these necessary funds, the Beaver County Humane Society can purchase a vehicle for the pantry and hire a staff member to act as the coordinator for the new program.

"The pet food pantry is currently only available to people who can come to our shelter to obtain needed food, litter and treats, " the BCHS said. "Recognizing that our shelter is anywhere from 3 to 10 plus miles from lower-income neighborhoods and that heavy pet food bags is difficult to carry on a bus, we easily have identified a need to take our food pantry out into the community to best serve especially the people who are most in need."

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Beaver County Humane Society asking for community support in fundraiser