Betty White still a friend to animals in local shelters

Betty White may be gone, but she’s still making a difference in the lives of Mr. Fox, Bizarre, Pete, Roscoe, Sally and the thousands of other dogs and cats in local shelters.

The Betty White Challenge, a nationwide campaign to raise money for humane organizations on Jan. 17 — which would have been the late star’s 100th birthday — generated thousands of dollars for local rescue groups at a time when the COVID-19 pandemic has seriously curtailed fundraising efforts.

White was nearly as well known for her advocacy on behalf of animals as for the iconic roles she played on TV.

The Herkimer County Humane Society set a modest goal of $999 for the challenge, board Vice President Gina Werczynski said. The total ended up being more than $10,000, she said.

“What an amazing, amazing lady, that’s what I said,” Werczynski said, speaking of White. “It’s just a testament to who she was, the way people come out in honor of who she was.”

The money, which will make up for the rescue’s annual Valentine’s dance if it has to be canceled again this year, will help dogs like Chuckie, a stray and one of the shelter’s longest-term residents, she said. Chuckie is a mixed-breed sweetheart who loves people, car rides and toys, Werczynski said. But he’s hard to adopt out because he’s terrified of other dogs, the result of a vicious attack that left him with serious injuries, she said.

The Betty White money provided an unexpected cash boost for area humane organizations coming right after the biggest fundraiser of the year for them, the Staffworks Fund Save-A-Life Campaign, which raised $2.5 million for 32 humane organizations in 33 days at the end of 2021, a total announced earlier this month.

And humane nonprofits have been more dependent than ever on direct donations given how many fundraisers have had to be canceled or made virtual events during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Humane Association of Rome raised $186,584 through the campaign, the fourth highest total and its best year ever.

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“Adoption money doesn’t really make much impact because of the cost, especially now, of veterinary care,” said Sara Tuthill, the association’s bookkeeper. “Everything has increased so much. That will help us be able to provide the medical care that all of the animals need throughout the year.”

Betty White Challenge

For the Betty White Challenge, Anita’s Stevens-Swan Humane Society launched a campaign, including a radio program, and ended up bringing in about $10,000 through it, an amount that is being matched by the Staffworks Fund, said Nicole Todd, fundraising and events coordinator.

The shelter currently has a kennel full of dogs and about 250 cats, including Hogan, whom visitors often see at the front desk.

This one-time stray, who gets along with cats, dogs and people, also spends time doing a statue imitation on top of the copier, sleeping in his favorite moose bed and stealing pens, cat meds or whatever else he can get his paws on, according to staff.

The Rome Humane Society received over $1,200 and some supplies through the challenge, CPV Rescue and Sanctuary in Clinton just over $1,400 for its about 25 cats, Wanderers’ Rest Humane Association in Canastota almost $9,000 and the Susquehanna SPCA in Cooperstown more than $5,000 through the challenge in donations from $5 to $500.

“This is huge, especially for one day,” said Sabrina Wilcox, executive shelter manager at Wanderers’ Rest. “We actually would like to make it an annual thing in honor of Betty White. I know that Betty White would be proud of our community and beyond.

“If WRHA raised the much in one day, we cannot imagine how much was raised for shelters and rescues throughout the country. It’s amazing and really says a lot about the impact she had.”

Save-A-Life Campaign

The Save-A-Life campaign also relies on the generosity of area residents, in what Anita Vitullo, founder and president of the company Staffworks and founder of the fund, calls “interactive philanthropy.”

The Staffworks Fund provides a tool to spread the mission of nonprofits and to cultivate donors, and pays for marketing and promotional materials, Vitullo said. “And they take it and they run with it,” she added.

The amount that donors raise determines how much nonprofits earn in matching funds from the Staffworks Fund — an equal match for up to $10,000 and then $500 for every $5,000 raised up to a maximum match of $25,000 per nonprofit.

Here’s how much the 2021 campaign raised for area humane nonprofits:

• Susquehanna SPCA, Cooperstown: $194,790

• Humane Society of Rome: $186,584

• Wanderers’ Rest, Canastota: $112,565

• Herkimer County Humane Society, Mohawk: $91,500

• Anita’s Stevens-Swan Humane Society, Utica: $82,600

• Helping Animals Live Organization (HALO), Little Falls: $37,352

• CPV Rescue & Sanctuary, Clinton: $34,700

• 4PetSake Food Pantry, Mohawk: $31,844

• Kindred Spirits Dog Adoption, Clinton: $29,980

• House of Paws Rescue, Utica: $26,129

• Bubba’s Beds for Shelter Friends, Whitesboro: $24,669

• Pause 4 All Paws, Little Falls: $22,273

• Dolgeville Forward CAT Project: $16,867

The campaign is a “life-saver” every year, Wilcox said in an email. “It helps us to start the new year off on the right foot and allows us to know where we stand. Every year we get new donors and the new (and old) support is amazing. Most people prefer to donate during the campaign because they know their money goes further.”

Amy Roth is the health and education reporter for the Observer-Dispatch. Email Amy Roth at aroth@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Observer-Dispatch: Betty White fans continue her advocacy, sending money to area shelters