2/1/07

‘O Happy Day’
County animal shelter opens amid fanfare and gala celebration
By Eric Goold

BRIAN JARVIS/Manning Times
Summerton’s Yvonne Curry dances in jubilation with Shelter mascot, Clary the Cat (Marion Pickins) as the Animal Shelter celebrated its grand opening, Jan. 25.

The Clarendon County Animal Shelter reached a milestone last Thursday afternoon, then embarked on a whole new journey.

In a gala celebration attended by well over 300 people, including Senator John Land, Representative Cathy Harvin, County Council chairman Dwight Stewart and Manning City Council member Sherry Evans, the Clarendon County Animal Shelter opened its doors for business (and animals) under bright sunshine and to much fanfare.

It was a double celebration for Sen. Land.

“I appreciate that we’re having this dedication on my birthday,” he told the crowd. “This is a wonderful birthday present in its own right. All of you gave all of your hearts to this project, and this is really meaningful to Clarendon County.”

The event marked the conclusion of the effort to build an animal shelter in Clarendon County that started in 1998, when the first group of citizens interested in creating a shelter got together. Since then, countless volunteers, citizens and administrators have picked up the cause.

“We live in a better and more caring county because of you,” said Sen. Land.

The celebration for the grand opening honored some of the people who helped the shelter come into being. It would have been impossible to honor all the people who helped, simply because there were so many people involved in a process that evolved over a decade.

“Having the animal shelter is essential to making this the kind of community we want to live in,” said Rep. Harvin, “and the kind of community we want people to move to.”

The Manning High Pep Band treated dignitaries and citizens to music. A nice buffet of finger food and birthday cake was available, and the shelter staff fellowshipped and gave guided tours of the new facilities throughout the day.

The shelter itself is flanked by an administration building as well as a large dog yard, active with the barks and yips of puppies looking for homes. The county’s need for the shelter was obvious to everyone who observed the dog yard, which is already full with several animals and more arriving every day.

“I’m so happy to be here today,” said Executive Director Nancy Cave. “I feel happiness and relief. It’s been a roller coaster.

“It’s so wonderful to be open finally, and I’m so excited about that,” she said. “At the same time, I’m overwhelmed with the problems and the needs of these animals.”

Staff members were thrilled at the large turnout of animal lovers that came to celebrate the opening of the shelter.

“It’s a wonderful turnout,” said Cave. “That part is the best part. These people are why we’re open today. They just do everything they can to help us and I’m so grateful for all they’ve done.”

John Belding, President of the Board of Directors, was honored by the animal shelter staff and was presented with the Virtue, Value and Vision Award for his tireless efforts to make the shelter a reality.

“Every sports team needs a coach, every band needs a director,” said Cave. “This animal shelter needed a project manager, and that was John Belding. We’ve dedicated this building to him. None of us would be standing here today if not for John Belding.”

Belding was quick to focus the praise elsewhere.

“This is not about me,” he said. “This is about the animals and this shelter and all of you who have made it happen.”

In a quiet moment after the ceremony, Belding said he too was overwhelmed by the huge turnout of supporters.

“It shows that people do care, and that’s good,” he said. “People in our community do care, and there’s nothing better than that.”

Like Cave, Belding said that the opening of the animal shelter marked the beginning of a new journey. There’s so much more work to do.

“The building is complete, that’s the first step,” said Belding. “Now we need to expand that program. We need to educate the community. A lot of people don’t have their pets spayed or neutered, and it is so important to control the animal population in this county.

“We need to educate the community and get the people to understand good values,” he said.

Councilman Stewart summed up the occasion when he spoke to the crowd.

“Oh, happy day,” he said.