MASON CITY – The Humane Society of North Iowa recently announced the recipients of two awards given by the organization annually: Volunteer of the Year and the Alice Anne Blackmore Leadership Award.
This year’s Volunteer of the Year is Mason City resident Larry Montgomery. Larry spends countless hours walking the dogs that reside temporarily at the shelter. Larry had set a goal to walk 500 miles in the year 2014. He kept track of his miles and by the end of the year, had clocked 543 miles. The majority of these miles were spent walking the dogs at the Humane Society of North Iowa.
“We are so grateful to Larry for the time and the miles he’s given to our shelter dogs,” said Humane Society Executive Director Sybil Soukup, “We are especially grateful that Larry focuses his walking time on the bigger dogs or dogs that needed some leash training. Larry sure has made a difference in the lives of many dogs that have come and gone from our shelter last year.”
“I wish more people would come walk dogs at the shelter,” said Larry. “I would be happy if every dog at the shelter was able to be exercised every day,” concluded Montgomery.
The Humane Society of North Iowa also honored Denece Knudson as the recipient of the Alice Anne Blackmore Leadership Award. This award was named for the founder of the Humane Society of North Iowa, Alice Anne Blackmore, and is awarded annually to an individual who has shown leadership in their volunteerism role with the organization.
Denece Knudson received this year’s award for her exemplary service as the organization’s Treasurer, a role she has served for almost 15 years. Denece has been a member of the HSNI Board or Director’s for almost 20 years.
“Denece is an extremely important member of our organization,” explained Soukup, “She volunteers her time and keeps track of all our finances, bills, payroll and lots of other information. She is truly an asset.”
The Humane Society of North Iowa is a non-profit organization that serves a 9 county area in North Iowa and operates a no-kill rescue animal shelter in Mason City. In the past 25 years, HSNI has found loving homes for over 8000 abandoned, displaced, and neglected animals.
