It’s always a boon to nonprofit organizations when celebrities lend their name to a cause or donate money. Some celebrities give hefty donations, some appear at events, some participate in advocacy and some, like the late Betty White, do all of the above and more.
White championed the plight of pets in animal shelters and was a fierce advocate for animal adoption. She was an active supporter of the Los Angeles SPCA since the 1940s, and promoted the human-animal bond through the show “The Pet Set,” which she produced and starred in. The show featured celebrities like Doris Day, Mary Tyler Moore and Carol Burnett with their beloved pets.
“When I was chief executive officer at Seattle Humane, Betty White traveled all the way from Los Angeles to appear at our annual benefit, drawing a huge crowd,” Marin Humane chief executive officer Nancy McKenney recalls. “She exuded kindness to everyone she met and we were very grateful to have her support.”
White understood how the unique qualities of animals can help people in need. She co-authored two books on guide dogs and served as ambassador for the Seeing Eye, the oldest guide dog school in America, and for Marin-based Guide Dogs for the Blind. She even adopted one of their “career change” dogs. She was an ardent supporter of Illinois-based BraveHearts Therapeutic Riding and Educational Center, which uses horsemanship to help children and adults deal with medical problems. She became a close friend and generous supporter, attending fundraisers and sponsoring a golden-colored horse named Baby. The center referred to both the horse and White as their “golden girls.”
Her generosity and passion for animals extended beyond dogs and cats to wildlife and marine life as well. She donated money to San Rafael’s WildCare and was closely involved in the Endangered Wolf Center, founded by Marlin Perkins.
According to CNN, “White loved wolves all her life. She fondly remembered seeing and hearing them as a child on family camping trips. After White and Perkins met in the early 1960s, White sent a book about wolves to Perkins, and Perkins credited their friendship for sparking his own interest in the animals.”
After Hurricane Katrina, White quietly paid for a private plane to relocate otters and penguins from the Audubon Aquarium of the Americas in New Orleans to the Monterey Bay Aquarium. She funded the Betty White Wildlife Rapid Response Fund following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill to support studies on the spill’s impact on marine life.
A wonderful idea has emerged on social media to celebrate what would have been White’s 100th birthday on Jan. 17. The #BettyWhiteChallenge encourages people to donate five dollars to their animal shelter or rescue. To donate to Marin Humane, go to marinhumane.org/give.
Toward the end of her life, White said, “I just don’t know how I would have lived without animals around me. I’m fascinated by them — both domestic pets and the wild community. They are the most interesting things in the world to me, and it’s made such a difference in my lifetime.”
I think many of us feel the same.
Lisa Bloch is the marketing and communications director for Marin Humane, which contributes Tails of Marin articles and welcomes animal-related questions and stories about the people and animals in our community. Go to marinhumane.org, Twitter.com/marinhumane or email lbloch@marinhumane.org.