by Mary Wilson
For three-quarters of a century, Wayside Waifs has been
preparing pets and people for the bond of their lives. This year, as they
celebrate their 75th anniversary, the nonprofit organization focuses
on remembering their rich history while preparing for the next 75 years.
Fenby Webster recognized that conditions for animals in the
community simply weren’t right, and she sought to do something about it. With
$5,000 and 28 other volunteers, 75 years ago, she purchased farm acreage along
Martha Truman Road in Grandview to create the Jackson County Animal Betterment
Association, which has grown to the almost 50 acres Wayside Waifs sits on
today.
“This organization was created out of recognition by Fenby
Webster of how animals were cared for at the local dog pound,” said Wayside
Waifs President Geoff Hall. “She knew that what she was seeing wasn’t right.
That was a sea change in society in recognizing that we should care about
animals and that animals have intrinsic value beyond the utility.”
The farm that Webster purchased served as Wayside’s shelter
for the vast majority of the organization’s existence. At some point, the
Jackson County Animal Betterment Association became known as Wayside Waifs, and
the organization has always been an independent nonprofit.
“Like most nonprofit organizations, we were hand-to-mouth,
struggling to make ends meet,” said Hall. “The need for all these homeless
animals in the area far exceeds what we could do. They were great intentions to
do good, and they did good, but they didn’t have the luxury of resources.”
Expansion of the facility happened gradually overtime, as
funding allowed. Hall said that the organization operated in this fashion up
until the mid-90s. At that time, the Missouri Department of Agriculture said
that Wayside was maintaining deplorable conditions for the animals in the
organization’s care, and that a new shelter would need to be built or they
would be shut down.
“Thankfully, a group of people said that we could either
fold up, or we can forge ahead just like Fenby Webster and her friends did
decades earlier,” said Hall. “They raised a tremendous amount of money to build
the shelter we’re in today.”
The current shelter at Wayside Waif’s opened in 1998. Hall
said that while the agency has had a good reputation in Kansas City since the
beginning, the organization ran short of the goal to air condition the new
building.
“We had the building built, but we didn’t have the climate
control that we needed in Missouri,” added Hall. “At that time, a board member
stated that she had a friend of the family who may have the interest and
capacity to donate.”
That turned out to be successful local entrepreneur Harold
Melcher, who, along with his business partner, was revolutionary in introducing
the world to canned meats after World War II. At the time, the board member
informed Melcher that there was a dog named Sophie at Wayside that he should
come see.
“Harold said no. He didn’t like animal shelters and refused
to come meet this dog,” said Hall. “So, Susan brought Sophie to him. He loved
Sophie right away. The irony is that it took Sophie an entire year to love
Harold. But, Harold loved this connection, and Sophie then became known as the
dog that saved Wayside.”
Hall added that Melcher was generous to the organization,
but his involvement went beyond his financial philanthropy. He recruited his
own friends to become involved with Wayside Waifs, and Melcher fell in love with
the organization and found a way to utilize his expertise in entrepreneurship.
“What he gave this organization was not only the gift of his
time and his treasure, but also his talent of having professional expectations,
hiring competent staff, the appreciation of branding, and recognizing the
benchmarks of successful nonprofits organizations, and specifically successful
nonprofit animal shelters,” said Hall. “Of all the previous 60 years, I
consider Harold sort of a virtual founder. Without his influence, we wouldn’t
be who we are. We’d probably be here, but Harold was an important secret
ingredient to Wayside’s success in a lot of ways. The one thing he added that
money can’t buy is leadership.”
Melcher, who turns 100 this year, served as Wayside’s board
chairman for a number of years, and has since been named chair emeritus. Hall
said that Melcher’s influence has helped Wayside maintain its credibility in
the community as being an exceptional organization, but the nonprofit continues
to recognize that resources are finite.
“We have to make decisions all the time based on allocating
resources for the greatest good,” said Hall. “In its essence, Wayside is Kansas
City’s largest no-kill pet adoption campus. What that means is adoption is our
primary focus and means of helping animal welfare.”
Every animal that comes to Wayside is homeless, which can be
the cause of many different scenarios. Some come from unsafe or unhealthy
conditions, some are cases of neglect or abandonment, and others the volunteers
or staff simply don’t know why or how they got there.
“Wayside is here to help animals,” said Hall. “We are a
no-kill animal shelter. Euthanasia is a very rare occurrence here, and the
condition in which we will choose euthanasia is a chronic medical condition
that will practically guarantee suffering, or if behaviorally they are such a
risk to people and other animals.”
Wayside maintains a nearly 98 percent live release rate,
which means the animals that come to the shelter leave as pets. The
organization is a managed-admission shelter. They control the intake of animals
in order to provide the shortest stay possible for each pet, providing the
opportunity to care for more animals over time. Working strictly with domestic
animals, the average stay for each pet is right around 13 days, caring for
nearly 6,000 animals annually.
“We strongly believe that a community of responsible pet
owners is an embraceable community, a safer community. People are looking after
each other. There are tons of benefits of pet ownership. But, pets aren’t for
everybody,” said Hall. “We’re not saying that everybody should have a cat or a
dog, but I think many people will say that their lives are better because of a
connection with a pet. Even though we are an agency that helps homeless
animals, we are really a human agency. We’re a people organization. Without
people, none of these animals have hope.”
Moving forward, and to fulfill what Wayside sees as a
necessity in the community, the organization will soon embark on creating the Wayside
K-9 behavioral center of excellence. The organization will scientifically
produce approaches to benefit shy and fearful dogs into becoming more confident
around people, and high-arousal dogs becoming more calm and peaceful around
people. With that will come brand-new, dedicated facility for these two
populations of dogs.
“We recognize that our biggest limiting factor is our own
facility,” said Hall. “While it’s great for some things, it’s not ideal for
others. This new facility will provide these dogs with the quiet space and a
professional staff to do this.”
Wayside has partnered with the American Society for the
Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), which started a similar program a few
years ago. SFS Architecture, out of Kansas City, will work with A.L. Huber
contractors to build the facility. There will also be a significant expansion
of the existing building to accommodate classroom space for public education
like dog behavioral classes, and provide additional staff workspaces.
Hall invites anyone who hasn’t experienced Wayside Waifs in
the last several years to come out and see the facility and the grounds. There
is a pet cemetery (even a monkey is buried there) that dates back to 1946, an
off-leash dog park, and walking trails on the 50-acre site.
“75 years is a big deal,” said Hall. “We recognize that at
numerous points over the last 75 years we could have ceased to exist. I’ve been
very lucky to inherit the hard work of so many of my predecessors. It is the
love of this organization that was founded by Fenby Webster in 1944, and a
recognition that we have been here for people and animals that entire time,
that has made us a Kansas City metro region asset and resource.”
He added that the most important part of the Wayside
organization is the people. With a staff of around 75, and a regular volunteer
core of 1,400, Hall said that a large portion of the people who do the hard
work day in and day out also contribute to the nonprofit financially.
“Culture, for me, is the most important thing that I can provide this organization,” Hall said. “The celebration of 75 years is more than a celebration of physical existence in Grandview and serving Kansas City metro; this is really a celebration of all the people who struggled through many, many years to provide the platform for where this organization is today. We’re looking forward to a future where the work done here is going to help animals far beyond our region.”
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