Marion Area Humane Society raises over $9,000 in honor of Betty White's birthday
The Marion Area Humane Society's "Golden Girl" is a little furrier than the women on the iconic show starring the late Betty White.
Still, Bella, an eight-year-old Akita, happily greeted guests at the humane society Monday, welcoming them to an event raising money in honor of Betty White's 100th birthday: the "Betty White Challenge" fundraiser.
Many might be thinking: what do animal shelters have to do with Betty White?
The fundraising campaign #BettyWhiteChallenge went viral across the country on social media, with fans asking their followers to donate to their local animal shelters in honor of the beloved actress who was an avid animal-lover.
Marion Area Humane Society Adoption Coordinator Riley Bails said the Marion community exceeded the organization's expectations, donating over $9,000 to the local shelter.
"It's truly amazing. Our community has always been truly supportive. We are a pretty small facility here, but Marion always shows up for us," Bails said. "It was really impressive just how many people did support Betty White. I really think it made her happy, and we just had so much support it was truly incredible."
Bella the Akita, wearing a "Birthday Girl" bandana like it was her own birthday, was the star of the fundraiser, which as of Tuesday had raised $9,195, including just under $3,000 through Facebook online donations alone.
The Marion community also filled the lobby with donations like food, toys and treats: all of which will go straight to helping the humane society's animals.
"We are a total nonprofit - we run fully on donations, so these donations really are just going straight to our animals in need. We don't have any certain things that we're using this money for other than just needs around the shelter," Bails said.
The Marion Area Humane Society has worked to provide a safe process of pet surrender and adoption and educational resources to the community since it began operating in 1967.
It has since become a staple part of service to Marion's residents, evident through the support from the community, whether through attending the event to drop off a bag of food or donating online.
One group who donated physical donations including dog food, bleach and treats, is Marion Harding High School's Expanded Learning Program led by instructor Ryan Daum.
The group not only donated to the Betty White fundraiser, but donates its time on a regular basis, as Daum brings Harding students to the humane society as a community service project to help clean cages, bathe animals and walk the dogs.
"I knew about the Betty White thing, and we wanted to donate because I knew they were in need just being here previously and we saw pictures of what other organizations donated, so we wanted to give something as well," he said.
The students with the Extended Learning program love to help the shelter through the service project, Daum explained, to which Bails replied: the dogs love it just as much.
Though no pets like Bella were adopted at the Monday event, the money raised will help the humane society find her and others like her forever families within the Marion community.
To donate to the Marion Area Humane Society's Betty White Challenge fundraising campaign, visit its Facebook, Paypal donation link or donate in-person at 2264 Richland Road.
Story by: Sophia Veneziano (740) 564 - 5243 | sveneziano@gannett.com
This article originally appeared on Marion Star: Marion Area Humane Society raises over $9,000 in honor of Betty White
