This year marks the 95th anniversary of our organization – and to celebrate reaching this milestone, we hope you’ll enjoy this walk down memory lane as we reflect on the evolution of Humane Society Silicon Valley since its humble beginnings in 1929.
A Brief History of HSSV
We were founded as the Humane Society of Santa Clara Valley – a sanctuary for retired horses. For decades, our primary function was animal control.
The new $57,000 shelter facility opens at Lafayette Street. 80 dogs and 20 cats move to the new site. The shelter is touted as ‘modern in every respect’.
In an updated certificate of status, Santa Clara County Humane Society changes its name to ‘Humane Society of Santa Clara Valley’ in 1960.
The organization made significant strides during Christine’s leadership, which included reducing euthanasia and employee turnover, growing volunteer and donor bases, and raising $25.5 million to build a new facility.
In the early 2000s, we made a strategic shift from protecting people to rescuing animals. This is the foundation of our lifesaving mission.
Honorary Board Member Judy Marcus was part of the board’s original fundraising team who came up with the concept for a unique gala for animals and people with the iconic name “The Fur Ball”.
City of San Jose Animal Care Center opens a new shelter on Monterey Road. HSSV works with them to transition county animal control to their newly created Animal Services department.
WeCARE was formed to increase adoptions and spay/neuter surgeries, increase communication between organizations and to heighten community-wide awareness about saving healthy and treatable animals.
WeCare partners include Humane Society Silicon Valley, City of Palo Alto Animal Services, San Jose Animal Care Center, County of Santa Clara Animal Shelter, Silicon Valley Animal Control Authority, and Town Cats.
HSSV also becomes the first animal community center in the nation to receive Gold LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council. The first shelter of its kind, HSSV’s Animal Community Center changed the paradigm from warehousing animals to being a safe and welcoming place for pets and people.
Novello first served on HSSV’s Board of Directors before being appointed President succeeding Christine Benninger, who retired in 2010 after 17 years of service.
With extensive experience in Shelter Medicine, Dr. Cristie Kamiya is one of a handful of residency-trained Shelter Veterinarians in the country. Dr. Kamiya joined Humane Society Silicon Valley as Vice President, Medical Operations in November 2012, then in July 2014, stepped in to her current role as Chief of Shelter Medicine to oversee medical and shelter operations.
On February 14, 2016 HSSV released “Eric & Peety“, the story of a man and a shelter dog who rescue each other. Since then, our Mutual Rescue initiative has built a national presence by creating award-winning short films, publishing a popular book, helping dozens of shelters launch Doggy Day Out programs, and partnering with corporate sponsors to bring new funding to shelters across the country.
HSSV becomes the first shelter to meet the 543 guidelines for the Standards of Care in Animal Shelters put forth by the Association of Shelter Veterinarians.
Programs are established to prevent and alleviate suffering in pets whose caretakers would otherwise be unable to provide this care. In addition to targeted spay/neuter programs and an Essential Care Clinic to provide treatments for common illness in pets, HSSV also offers wellness exams, core vaccinations, microchipping, flea/tick treatment and dewormer at our facility in Milpitas and via mobile clinics throughout the community.
After previously serving as Chair of the Board of Directors, Kurt Krukenberg is appointed President in January 2020. “I am thrilled to step into this role at a time when HSSV has both a strong foundation of existing capabilities and an ambitious strategic plan to further expand our mission impact,” he says.
In response to massive need in the community, HSSV’s Pet Pantry program ramps up its efforts to prevent pet surrender due to hardship- supporting 875 pets in 400 households to ensure that families who love their pets can continue to care for them regardless of financial ability.
HSSV’s Animal Community Center is renamed in honor of Peter Detkin and Michelle Oates Detkin, recognizing their $10 million multi-year investment to expand access to veterinary care, especially for families impacted by economic challenges.
HSSV defines its mission to save lives, keep families together, and create a better future for pets and their people – envisioning a world where all animals can thrive, all people experience the magic of the human-animal bond, and all families are able to care for their pets.
Looking to the future, we will continue to expand our impact by saving more animals, keeping vulnerable families together, and helping shelters across the nation do the same.
5 Comments on “Celebrating 95 Years of Innovation”
Seeing the picture of the old site makes my heart ache. So many happy memories with old friends.
Very cool! Is the last picture of the dog Pretty Girl?
Yes it is! She’s so pretty 🥰
My memories of working at the Santa Clara site are full of great friends working together to make a new beginning for sheltered animals. Christine Benninger’s vision and a team of true open hearts made it happen. I miss all those amazing co-workers!
I met some of my most treasured friends as a volunteer at the old site in Santa Clara and at the new Milpitas site. We, along with the dogs, cats, pigeons and rabbits I had the pleasure of matchmaking, formed quite the close bond. In the 19 years that I volunteered, my beloved shelter family grew. I deeply miss those special days. Thank you for ably guiding us to greatness, Christine!