Animal shelters had donations flood in to honor Betty White’s 100th birthday, according to a CBS News article. Shelters in Toledo also are witnessing this trend and share why they are thankful to this day of honoring the late Golden Girl.
Actress Betty White passed just two weeks before her 100th birthday. Through social media, fans curated the #BettyWhiteChallenge, which asked fans to donate $5 to their local animal shelter in honor of her centennial day.
Toledo Humane Society, founded in 1884, shared on their social media the #BettyWhiteChallenge raised $27,846.12 on Jan. 17. These funds will go toward the nearly 5,000 animals who come through the shelter doors annually. Alongside surrenders and adoptions, THS investigates over 2,000 animal cruelty cases per year.
Marketing and Event Coordinator, Alexandra Patterson said, “It’s been really great, just it’s really been nice to see the community support us in that way. Honestly we weren’t originally going to participate in this challenge. We more wanted to focus on what Betty White did with her career and how she was an animal advocate. We more wanted to focus on that rather than trying to use it as another day to receive donations. But the community rallied behind us and kept demanding that we have the Betty White Challenge, and it took off. We really couldn’t have imagined this big of an outcome.”
Patterson shared that there is a need for donations year-round, as the on-site clinic vaccinates and spays or neuters all animals available for adoption. The clinic also addresses any surgeries that will improve the animal’s quality of life, such as dental work.
“We are definitely impacted by that (The Betty White Challenge), and the animals, we can help so many animals with that money. So it’s very exciting to have that support in the community,” she said.
On THS’s website, there are opportunities to adopt, foster and donate year-round. Alternative options for donating include pet food, office supplies, enrichment activities, treats and comfort items. These options are under the tab on the menu labeled, “Give.”
“Honestly we were all pretty speechless at the amount that came in and so, just thank you from the staff, the volunteers and of course the animals, the ones that matter most. Those animals are impacted by this greatly and the fact that we were able to do this in Betty White’s memory. She was a great actress, but the fact that she was such a huge animal advocate and used most of her time to dedicate to animals, it’s truly, we are very fortunate to be the recipient of those donations in her honor,” Patterson said.
Paws and Whiskers (Paws) is Toledo’s only all-feline no-kill shelter. The shelter has found “furever” homes for over 11,000 cats and kittens since opening in Oct. 1996. On average, over $225 is spent on a cat while staying at Paws and Whiskers. On their Facebook, the shelter shared the #BettyWhiteChallenge or as they called it, “Betty White Day,” raised $7,613, as well as dozens of donations in shelter supplies.
Shelter Manager, Sara Baker said, “We had a wonderful Betty White Day. We actually started it on Sunday, and did Sunday, Monday, Tuesday as our website was concerned for donations, but we have been receiving donations even before that. We had been getting checks in the mail for people that, you know, had in the memo put Betty White Day. The actual day itself was incredible. We’re usually closed on Mondays, so we did like a special, where we were open special for that day.”
Baker shared not only has the shelter been serving the Toledo area, they are also helping the Cat Coalition of the New South, located in Marshville, N.C. Over the past few months, Paws has taken in about 50 kittens to help them get adopted. She also shared that there will be further collaboration between the two shelters.
On Paws’s website, there are multiple ways to donate. Under the “Donate” tab, there are annual membership options, Phoebe’s Fund, an Amazon wish list, as well as the Cool Cat Club. Donations go toward medical care, shelter supplies and other necessities to make sure all cats and kittens who come through Paws’s doors are taken care of.
“It [donations] helps us with medical supplies because everybody has to be vaccinated, spayed or neutered, flea prevention and that’s just routine stuff. That doesn’t count when they get sick and we have to go to the vet because there is another added expense,” she said.
Some shelters raised upwards of $50,000 in honor of Betty White and her commitment to animals small and large. One student shares why she felt compelled to take on the challenge and donate.
Senior Psychology Major, Leah Schulze said, “My first babysitter, when I was like four, I grew up watching Golden Girls with her. This was when I was from like when I was five to maybe 10. I also watched some of her other shows and I just grew up watching her.”
Schulze, who donated to the Wood County Animal Shelter, also commented on how Betty White was not only a childhood favorite, but someone she looked up to.
“She was one of those people who you would have liked to think, just wasn’t going to die,” she said.
