B-Humane Awards honour animal lovers who have gone ‘above and beyond’

By KIM ARANHA

DR KWESI SMITH (2022)

Dr Kwesi Smith was born 1974 in West End Grand Bahama, “The Home of Hospitality”.

His veterinary journey started in 1986 at the Central Animal Hospital. He got his bachelor’s degree at Tuskegee, Alabama, and his DVM from UWI Mt Hope campus and started practicing as a vet in 2007.

Kwesi is as deliciated as any rescuer could hope for; always willing to save and rehabilitate, always willing to try and save one more deserving dog, and always going that extra mile.

Twelve years ago, Kwasi became the owner and principal vet at Marathon Veterinary Clinic.

FINA JOHNSON (2022)

A few years ago, Fina moved back to her childhood home on the island of Great Exuma. Very quickly she saw that the culture was just not dog-friendly, with so many dogs begging for help. She has created Fina’s Fosters and works tirelessly getting pups from the dump and other locations. They all need medical care and heartworm treatment. With only a part-time animal hospital at the moment, she does all she can. She takes the dogs to be spayed/neutered, dewormed, debugged, bathed, microchipped and vaccinated. Once they are healthy, Fina’s Fosters finds them homes. She fosters as many as she can while taking care of her own dogs. She currently has 11 adult dogs and three puppies being bottle fed.

STEPHANIE HICKMAN (2022)

Stephanie moved to Nassau in 2018 with her husband Pete and their dog. Almost immediately, in May of that year, she started fostering for the shelter. The Hickmans have fostered some 200 animals since living in the Bahamas (mainly pups) with an emphasis on fostering special needs dogs/ pups with medical conditions who need a bit more TLC.

As of 2019, she has volunteered at the shelter and got directly involved with the animals, taking on the logistics and paperwork for airlifts. Assisting in prepping and processing animals for the airlifts. She has set up new computer systems and shelter programmes. Her social media skills have helped hugely in raising money online.

Stephanie also volunteers for Baark! and travelled to Abaco to help the dogs who were displaced by Hurricane Dorian.

MELISSA MAURA (2021)

Internationally acclaimed “artiste extraordinaire’ and great animal lover, Melissa (daughter of Mike Maura of Chalks) was about 12 when she started to help out at the BHS. An accomplished horsewoman, Melissa swimming with horses in the sea was a familiar sight for many years. She was heavily involved in the rescue of the racehorses many years ago. As a child she would see injured birds left which nobody was able to care for them, so she learned all she could and 50 years later is still rehabbing the bird community, with enormous success and dedication. Melissa also saves and rehabs raccoons who she calls the most misunderstood of all animals in the Bahamas.

Aiden Meister

Aidan Meister, 11, has had a life-long passion for dogs, particularly the potcake. He was completely surprised by this award:

“Why would they award me for just doing something I really want to do to help?”

He is especially passionate about the potcake dog. In 2022, in grade 5 at St Andrew’s International School, Aidan chose the topic Dog Abuse for his exhibition project.

In 2019, he and his family adopted two Abaco potcakes (Bella and Beau). Later that year, yet another potcake, Jazz, joined the family.

He attended the University of the Bahamas’

Law society’s online panel discussion, All Bark No Bite, about the laws and practical issues surrounding control of dogs.

Along with classmates, he campaigned to raise funds for the Tito’s Paws in the Air campaign. They raised $1,510, which helped reach the $10,000 goal that Tito’s Vodka matched.

He also wrote, produced and edited a 30-second PSA: “Give Dogs Homes”, encouraging listeners to help the BHS by adopting dogs, spay and neutering, fostering them and by volunteering. The message resonated. The PSA is currently played on two radio stations and used by the BHS.

Lorna Woolley

Hailing from Brazil, Lorna and her family moved here nine years ago and have made the Bahamas their home. She is responsible for many rescues and has a potcake named Wally. Formally a Montessori teacher, and an ‘English as a foreign language’ teacher and translator, she sas rescued and homed close to 35 pets at different stages of her life. Lorna is passionate about animals. She was given Bobby, her first dog, when she was five.

Her kindness, caring and assistance made the BHS able to keep the shelter together and fully staffed during COVID; she’s a true angel.

TERRI-LYN RHYNO (2021)

Terri-Lynn is from the South Paw conservation in Nova Scotia and has been involved with four main airlifts and many little ones (12 animals at a time) and she still continues to take animals from us.

She been down to the Bahamas several times in order to help identify and arrange animals to go to Canada for a second chance.

This dedicated lady has been responsible for over 1000 Bahamian animals finding new lives; she’s a great and good friend of the BHS.

Crystal Lowe

(2021)

Crystal is a Bahamian, daughter of David Lowe and Estella Curry-Lowe, who now lives in Freeport.

She was born on Green Turtle Cay, Abaco, and moved to Treasure Cay at the age of three.

Schooled in Treasure Cay up to grade 9, Crystal went to the US for high school and college.

Now living in Freeport, she manages a retail/wholesale, restaurant/chemical supply store, Janitorial Cleaning Contracts, Import & Export Co & Trucking.

She and her partner, Edward Whan, presently have 47 dogs, and have been feeding animals for many years. At the moment they feed about 150 dogs and 50 cats per night. Last year, she rescued and adopted out 41 pups to the US, connected with a few small but legal rescue agencies

WILDFLOWERS (2022)

In 2002, the Appleyards created a company named Creative Designs, which grew in to Wildflowers. They enjoyed quiet popularity until their son, Alexander Appleyard, returned from college and revolutionised the company. For the past decade, Wildflowers has been famous for very lavish and remarkable designs, decorating for opulent weddings and events all through the Bahamas.

This successful family business headed by Natalie, Tony and Alexander Appleyard is hugely generous to the BHS. Tony Appleyard is a former board member and a good friend to us always.

MODERNISTIC (2021)

Modernistic Garden and Pet Supply was established in 1961 by Benjamin Roberts. In 2003, the business was bought by James Thompson and his family. It has continued to grow over the years. Most recently, in 2019, the flagship store relocated to a newly renovated 5,000-square foot storefront in the Palmdale Shopping Plaza on Madeira Street. Modernistic and the family who own and run it never forget the animals in need in the Bahamas and their kindness to the BHS is outstanding. The company is currently managed by Anthony Thompson and his wife Patou Thompson.