7 minute read
Holly Frederick Reynolds
Animal Advocate Extraordinaire
by Karen B. Gibbs
HOLLY FREDERICK REYNOLDS has a “to do” list that looks something like this:
Impressive, right? What’s even more impressive is that Ms. Reynolds is almost 102 years old! A citizen lobbyist, she has the respect—and the phone numbers—of area lawmakers and doesn’t hesitate to bend their ear when it comes to animals. “Holly is by far the greatest animal rights advocate in the state,” says Jeff Dorson, executive director of the Humane Society of Louisiana. And she’s probably the oldest.
The only child of Helen and C. Sidney Frederick (Covington’s district attorney from 1922-30), Holly graduated from Ursuline Academy, earned a BA degree in sociology and physical education from Brenau College in Georgia and an MS degree in recreation from LSU in 1941. (That’s quite an accomplishment considering fewer than 4 percent of American women had more than four years of college at the time.)
With the exceptional qualification of a master’s degree in recreation, Holly served two years with the Red Cross in the European Theater of Operation during World War II. There, she was in charge of providing recreational programs for infantry soldiers on leave for rest and relaxation. While on that assignment, she met and married an American soldier, Robert Reynolds. Unfortunately, when the couple reunited after the war, the marriage fell apart. “I was very upset about the divorce,” says Holly. “I don’t know why I got a dog at that point, but for some reason I did. I think God had a hand in it.”
The dog was a stray, born on Abita Road in Covington on the 4th of July. Holly named him Yankee Doodle Dandy. Although Dandy lived only a short time—he died in 1950—having Dandy made Holly realize what a positive impact an animal can have on one’s life. “I was at rock bottom, and Dandy got me through the divorce. That’s when I decided to devote my free time to the care of animals.”
Unlike today, there weren’t many Humane Societies in 1953. “There was a need for someone to take over the problem of strays and unwanted pets,” says Holly. “Dogs were traveling in packs. They were sick, hungry and attacking people and pets.”
Hoping to form a local Humane Shelter, Holly contacted the Louisiana SPCA for help in getting the project rolling. “I put an ad in the St. Tammany Farmer and asked people who were interested in starting a Humane Society to call Holly Reynolds at 272. (That was my phone number back then—just three digits.) I had quite a few calls, about 24. The interest was there, they just needed somebody to gather it all together.”
First order of business for the newly formed St. Tammany Humane Society was to select board members and officers. Next on the list was to find a place to house the animals. For the first couple of years, some members kept animals in their own homes. “I kept the first dog at my house until she was adopted,” recalls Holly. “I remember taking her to Dr. Leicester Landon, the local vet, to have her spayed. At the time, interest was growing for spay/neuter.”
After convincing the Police Jury to lease property at the Covington Fairgrounds to the Humane Society for a shelter, Holly started looking for a building. “I found a one-room house off Lee Road and got it donated to the shelter,” she says. “We poured a cement foundation large enough for six dog kennels and a separate feline section. Thankfully, the city moved the building to the property at no charge.” To make it official, Covington Mayor Emile Menetre was invited to dedicate the city’s first Humane Society shelter. Many years later, the St. Tammany Humane Society (today known as the Northshore Humane Society) relocated to a larger facility on Harrison Ave. off Hwy. 59 in Mandeville. The shelter is one of the largest, nonprofit, no-kill animal rescue shelters and community veterinary clinics in Louisiana.
It is important to note that animal advocacy was not Holly’s full time job. For 24 years, she worked as head of recreation for two Louisiana mental institutions—Mandeville State Hospital from 1953-1973 and Jackson State Hospital from 1973-1977. It was while working in Jackson that Holly discovered that the Baton Rouge SPCA had gone out of business. “I thought it was terrible that our capital no longer had a humane society.” With retirement just a year away, Holly decided to move to Baton Rouge to remedy that situation.
“I didn’t have the connections in Baton Rouge that I had in Covington,” says Holly, “so it was a shot in the dark but it worked out very well.” Just as she had done in Covington, Holly turned to the local newspaper to get the word out. “I asked Smiley Anders if he would tell people to call me if they were interested in starting a Humane Society.”
Two years later, in 1979, Holly founded the Capital Area Animal Welfare Society. The oldest animal welfare organization in Baton Rouge, CAAWS is the first and only no-kill, nonprofit organization/shelter committed to the well-being of animals in the Baton Rouge community. To that end it offers adoption of homeless animals, provides education about responsible pet ownership and humane treatment of animals, and promotes spay/neuter.
With two animal welfare organizations set in place—one in Covington and one in Baton Rouge— Holly turned her attention to animal rights legislation. In 1981, she sent a letter to every Humane Society in Louisiana regarding the need for an
organization to create laws for animals. “We didn’t even have a law against dog fighting. I realized that the only way to get anything done is through the legislature. To do that effectively, we needed input and support from animal organizations throughout the state. That’s when I started working with the legislature. It’s the main reason I stayed in Baton Rouge.”
To promote this cause, Holly founded the Coalition of Louisiana Animal Activists in 1981. “COLAA helped promote the leash law and upgraded certain crimes, like animal cruelty and dog fighting, to felonies,” she says. “When we passed one of the laws, I was so excited, I jumped up and gave Representative Deano from Mandeville a hug!”
Dorson is quick to laud Holly’s work. “Holly is an enormous help calling legislators to support animal rights bills.” A few of the issues Holly’s worked on are: a registry of public animal shelters, a spay/ neuter license plate fundraiser and making cock fighting and dog fighting illegal for owners as well as spectators.
Holly was proud to be on hand for the signing of an animal rights bill in 2016 with Jeff Dorson of the Humane Society of Louisiana and Governor John Bel Edwards.
“She is amazing,” says Dorson. “A few years ago, we were at the Capitol when an animal welfare bill was passed. When Governor John Bel Edwards found out that a 98-year-old animal welfare activist was there to watch him sign the bill, he lit up and shook Holly’s hand.”
Although Holly is rightfully satisfied with the work of the organizations she’s established, she wants to make sure her work will continue long after she’s gone. (“I’m not getting any younger, you know!” she says with a smile.) In 1997, she established and generously funded the Holly Frederick Reynolds Support Foundation for Animal Welfare. This organization contributes annually to a great many national animal welfare groups, including those that fight puppy mills. “These mills are not run by people who care about animals,” says Holly. “They only want to make money, so they don’t take care of the mother dogs and breed them over and over again.”
Most recently, Holly requested $5,000 from her foundation to purchase pet food for pet owners impacted by Covid-19. Understandably, local food banks were unable to stock and pass out pet food, so Holly asked CAAWS to handle the distribution. “Ours was the first organization to do this,” she says.
Holly Reynolds is an eternal optimist when it comes to asking for support for her animal welfare projects. Nancy Mulhern, a volunteer with CAAWS, says, “There is an ease, an openness about Holly because she is such a positive person. When Holly needs help for an animal cause, her approach is not ‘Will you help?’ but rather, ‘Of course you’re going to help.’”
Active in politics, Holly knows that working with leadership is the best way to keep the organizations she created flourishing into the future. As she says, “I’m not getting any younger, you know!”
And, of course, Holly’s going to help whenever she comes across an animal or a person in need. “I’ve seen Holly hand out snacks, clothing and pet food to homeless people,” says Mulhern. “She even rescued a litter of pups born on the streets.”
Holly’s cousin, Patricia Clanton, echoes that sentiment. “When very low temperatures are forecast, Holly springs into actions. She picks up the phone and personally asks local weathermen to remind pet owners to look after their pets. And they do!”
With so many accomplishments to her credit, is Holly Reynolds ready to retire? Not in your wildest dreams. In fact, this dynamic lady recently commented, “As I get older and older, I realize that God might have something more for me to do.”
And undoubtedly, in His infinite wisdom, God knows that Holly Frederick Reynolds will get it done!
