HOULTON, Maine — Indian film actress Nagma once said, “You cannot expect rewards without putting in hard work.”
It was this kind of thinking that Nancy Carhart, a volunteer and board member for the Houlton Humane Society, had in mind when she decided to enter HHS in the Freshpet Fresh Start contest.
At stake was a possible $12,000 grand prize or one of two $3,000 prizes for runners up.
“I thought Houlton Humane Society had a chance,” Carhart said. “The application required our website and I felt that if the jurors read through the shelter posts that they would get a good feel for our work.”
In particular, she emphasized the work done by shelter director Catherine “CJ” Virgie.
“On any day you might find her bottle feeding a litter of abandoned kittens, rushing a sick cat to the vet, answering the phone that rings off the [hook], consoling the owner of a found cat, walking the shelter dogs, and reuniting a lost pet with its owner,” wrote Carhart in her entry.
Prizes were awarded based on votes received from readers. There were 435 entrants in the Northeast region alone. The grand prize winner received more than 5,000 votes and runners up garnered more than 3,600 votes each. HHS did not win.
But Carhart’s entry did grab the attention of the judges. HHS was given a special “Wunderdog” prize of $3,000. One was awarded in each of the five regions.
“It was the focus Nancy put on CJ having her heart all the way in,” said Steve Elwell, a member of the Freshpet marketing team and one of the judges, during a telephone interview. “It’s the people at the heart of these efforts. [CJ’s] story encapsulates the kind of person we find inspiring.”
Carhart said she was “ecstatic” when she learned of the award. Virgie is humbled and even somewhat embarrassed by the attention she has received.
“I’m usually behind the scenes,” she said. “I never even knew what [Carhart] wrote until the following Monday.” She added, however, that as a nonprofit organization HHS is in need of every dollar that comes in.
“This is huge to us,” she said, noting that this summer the animal shelter had to deal with not only the theft of its van’s catalytic converter, but also a larger than usual number of sick animals and scores of kittens.
Freshpet is a New Jersey based company that specializes in making sustainably sourced fresh pet foods. According to the company website, the Fresh Start contest is an effort to recognize animal organizations that don’t always get the credit they deserve.
