Retrospect: Humane society faced closure

Forty-five years ago, Jay County Humane Society was in danger of becoming defunct. 

In an article published on Oct. 6, 1973, the society’s director, Judy Butcher, said the organization, which had been founded about nine years prior, was becoming a financial burden without a place to keep the animals it rescued. 

The society was seeking financial assistance from the county to build a shelter on land near the wastewater treatment plant that it had recently rented from the City of Portland.

Butcher had asked for $12,500 from Jay County Commissioners to build a brick structure to use as a shelter for the animals. But commissioners had denied the request. 

Without the money and the shelter building, the society was in danger of shutting down or cutting back on its operations. Butcher said that Thelma Swinford, a Pennville resident, had “practically made a shelter out of her home.” 

A last resort would be taking out a bank loan to pay for the building, Butcher said. The society raised money through events such as bake sales or rummage sale and by selling membership cards. That money, however, was used to pay for veterinary bills and the cost of food for the animals for which the society cared. 

Butcher appealed to the community to write to commissioners in support of the shelter. She said she was told by commissioner Lloyd Paxson that the decision could be reversed if enough people were in favor of the project.