“I don’t know how to put this into words. I was in shock when I was told,” said Becky Felton, CPHS Director of Outreach and Development. “There aren’t enough thank yous to represent how grateful we are.”

Felton explained that since she began her fundraising efforts at the shelter nine years ago, she has signed off emails with “many thanks and thanks.” This is a reference to the way animals express gratitude.

Although the shelter conducts its own fundraising campaigns, the committee that selects Season of Sharing recipients believes the shelter’s efforts would be enhanced through this annual appeal program by reaching potential donors who may not know not be how it helps the community as a whole.

“The shelter is in dire need of increased financial assistance. They face an uphill battle repairing an old building with outdated, inefficient furnaces and windows and leaky roofs. Plus, they face rising utility costs,” said publisher Dan Slep. “We hope to reach readers and others in our community who are unaware of the valuable services the shelter provides and will dip into their wallets to help.” The shelter has been helping the community for decades and it’s time for the community to help more.

CPHS volunteer Skyler Fogle spends time with Phoebe, a short-haired domestic mixed race. Mirror photo by Patrick Waksmunski

The annual Season of Sharing holiday appeal uses the reach of the local newspaper and its online community at altoonamirror.com, the expertise of the Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation and the generosity of residents to help the nonprofit organizations of the region. It has raised $394,266 since its creation.

“We are once again excited to work with Altoona Mirror on Season of Sharing and help CPHS grow to meet its financial needs by expanding beyond its usual network of lovers and donors loyal pets,” said Jodi Cessna, executive director of the Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation. “Their dedicated staff and volunteers help control the community’s pet population through its spay/neuter practices and find forever homes for abandoned animals. Without the services provided by CPHS, animal cruelty and abandonments will increase. And the number of feral cats and stray dogs is likely to increase further as pet overpopulation goes unchecked.

Founded in 1894, the shelter’s original building at its current site, 1837 Pleasant Valley Boulevard, was erected in the 1920s. “It literally comes down around us,” Felton said.

“We’ve expanded in all four directions – last time in the 1950s – we can’t expand anymore,” Felton said. Due to their age, the buildings are not properly insulated and have drafty windows. Heating bills between November and March amount to $3,200 per month. Its fragmentary construction requires five ovens. A sixth furnace heats the wellness center where veterinary care is given to animals and is a separate building so staff and animals go outside to access it, leading to further problems.

“I’m constantly calling someone to fix the roof, every time it rains it leaks. Last time we had $12,000 worth of water and electrical damage,” she said. “It seems like it’s one thing after another and we’re taking a lot of money and continuing to throw it at it.”

The organization became a nonprofit in the 1980s and its mission is to “prevent neglect and cruelty to animals through education and law enforcement, while providing a safe haven and finding a permanent home for those in need.”

About 11 years ago, it became a no-kill shelter, meaning that even if an animal is unadoptable, it will not be euthanized. A dog remained at the shelter for more than five years and was not adoptable due to its aggressive nature which seriously injured two people.

Felton is responsible for connecting with area individuals and businesses to sponsor fundraising events to raise money to cover the shelter’s operating costs. When the shelter announces an event or campaign, a sponsor has paid for the billboard or advertising. Donations intended for animal care are not used.

In addition to increasing maintenance and utility costs, there is an ever-increasing demand for care for animals abandoned by owners, found strays, or discovered neglected and diseased in animal hoarding circumstances. The constant demand exceeds the physical capacity of the shelter.

“Being a no-kill shelter is part of the reason we’re bursting at the seams. Being a no-kill shelter means unadoptable animals stay for their entire lives,” she explained.

Shelter Director Dylan Kotrick said the shelter faces criticism for limited capacity from those who call to surrender a pet.

“We are only allowed a limited number of animals and the animals must be in a cage compatible with their size. We can’t put a 70 pound dog in a crate meant for a Jack Russell.

When police discover a pet hoarding situation, the shelter responds as it did when 96 sick and neglected animals were discovered earlier this year. Hoarding situations are becoming more common and each incident puts a strain on already strained resources, officials said. Hoarded animals suffer from neglect and have many health problems. So with two large hoarding interventions, veterinary bills are expected to exceed the budgeted $400,000 by an additional $50,000 to $100,000, Felton said.

The shelter receives an average of three calls per day from owners who can no longer care for their animal. This year, a record 22 calls from dog owners were recorded in a single day. The reasons vary, but abandonments are most often caused by the owner moving to a new home that doesn’t allow pets, Kotrick said. The shelter also receives about five calls a day from cat owners wanting to abandon their pets and many more calls about stray animals found roaming.

Providing care — vaccines, microchips, spaying and neutering and food — for a dog costs an average of $300 a month, Kotrick said. It costs an average of $170 to prepare a cat for adoption and feed it for a month.

The shelter is considering building new, larger facilities that would allow it to better meet the needs of the community. However, construction is expected to exceed $3.5 million. The new shelter would increase the capacity to house dogs from 48 to 78.

“It’s a big difference in how we can help our community and our animals,” Felton said.

“We do the best we can with what we have,” Kotrick said, emphasizing that more and more often, that’s not enough. “The new shelter, designed to be more functional, will help us make a bigger difference. »

Even though an anonymous donor generously provided the land for a new shelter, the organization does not have the cash to begin building, Felton said.

“People want to know that the money they give is going to help animals. Everything we do is for the animals,” she said. The paid staff of four is supported by 13 part-time employees. “You don’t get rich working here. The people who work here are here because they love animals. Everything we do is for the animals,” she said.

Those wishing to donate to the Central PA Humane Society as part of the Mirror’s Season of Sharing should use the form on page A9 of today’s Mirror. For added convenience, a self-

An addressed envelope has also been inserted in today’s newspaper or those donating can use their own envelope.

Staff writer Patt Keith can be reached at 814-949-7030.

Recipients of the past sharing season:

2005 – Mothers of the American Armed Forces

2006 – Brian Morden Foundation

2007 – Shriners Hospitals for Children

2008 – Gloria Gates Foundation

2009 – Food soup kitchen for families

2010 – Zack Hinish Foundation

2011 – Big Brothers Big Sisters of Blair County

2012 – Nursing Home Agency Healing Patch

2013 – Blair County Miracle League

2014 – Mountain Lion Backpack Program

2015 – Family Services Teen Center and Shelter

2016 – Salvation Army Emergency Disaster Services

2017 – Help for hurricane victims

2018 – Blair County Suicide Prevention Task Force

2019 – Central AP Skills

2020 – Altoona Food Bank

2021 – Blair County Library System

2022 – St. Vincent DePaul Assumption Chapel Food Pantry

2023 – Sweat for veterans

2024 – Central PA Humane Society