The Kitsap Humane Society has been awarded a $100,000 check from the Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island to support the animal shelter’s building project.
The Rotary grant was bestowed on Oct. 29, and funds came from proceeds from the annual Rotary Auction & Rummage Sale.
The Kitsap Humane Society has started construction of a new $7.5 million animal shelter in Silverdale. Officials say the new facility will double the size of the existing facility, vastly improve housing and care for more than 7,000 animals a year. In addition it will create a more welcoming environment for prospective adopters and other visitors from Bainbridge Island and across the region.
“We’re tremendously grateful to the Rotary Club of Bainbridge Island for their generous support as we take this momentous step” said Eric Stevens, executive director of Kitsap Humane Society.
“It’s time for a shelter that matches the excellence of our work,” he said.
Stevens said the $100,000 grant from Rotary was a “matching grant” met within 90 days, primarily from gifts and pledges made by KHS volunteers.
The “quiet phase” of the capital campaign to build the new shelter has raised $5.5 million in 18 months from major donors, foundations, businesses and the Bainbridge Rotary grant.
The new facility will create spaces for the care and shelter of animals that reflect best practices in animal welfare and promote health and well-being, improve ventilation, disease prevention and efficiency, all of which help animals get adopted sooner.
The current shelter was built in 1989 and has served over 200,000 animals since that time. Several small renovations have occurred since then, but the number of animals coming through the doors, and the breadth of lifesaving programs, has far outpaced the capacity of the current facility.
“We are building a better environment for animals, better facilities to treat animals with medical and behavioral needs, a more efficient work environment for staff and volunteers, and a place that we know prospective pet owners will want to visit. It will enable us to build a more humane community for Kitsap County and our region,” Stevens said.
Rotary President Robin Goldston was among the guests at a ceremony in October and helped commemorate groundbreaking by donning a hard hat and a golden shovel.
“We adopted Rosie, a dog from KHS, 20 years ago,” Goldston recalled. “She was with us for 17 years. Rosie and KHS both hold a special place in our hearts.”
The project will be built in two phases, beginning with a new 9,000-square-foot Pet Adoption Center adjacent to the existing shelter, to be completed in summer of 2019.
Phase 2 will involve an extensive renovation of the old building to improve medical and surgical facilities for sick and injured animals, as well as support more than 6,000 spay/neuter surgeries per year, nearly half of which are provided at low cost for pets living in low-income households.
