The SPCA Hall of Fame  2021

SPCA is extremely fortunate to have the support of many dedicated animal lovers who give selflessly to help the animals which come into our care.

This year, five recipients are being honoured in the SPCA Hall of Fame for their outstanding contribution; Felicity Bowden, Karen Brown, Wilma Mayn, Mia Steele, and Dame Patsy Reddy

31 years as a volunteer

Felicity has been a volunteer in a number of areas around the village: from the cattery to the rabbitry, and the isolation ward for sick animals. She has also helped to run a very beneficial rabbit foster program when she worked at Unitec, taking multiple rabbits at a time to help ease pressure at Auckland’s Māngere Centre as well as educating her students on rabbit care. Even after retiring from Unitec, Felicity continues to come in for regular volunteer shifts after 30+ years of commitment. As well as these ways she has helped animals through SPCA over the years, she has given several their forever home, having adopted a few rescue cats and rabbits. Her deep passion for and care of animals is clear, and will continue to be felt for years to come, as she has generously left a legacy gift to SPCA in her will too. Countless animals have been, and continue to be, looked after thanks to Felicity's kindness, generosity and dedication.

33 years as a volunteer

Karen’s presence in SPCA Māngere Centre has been constant over the past 33 years, as she tirelessly volunteers her time. She is currently a roster supervisor, providing a familiar face and friendly guidance to new volunteers, and every shift she brings in morning tea for her fellow volunteers – it’s just one of the ways she supports the teams at SPCA Auckland! One of her responsibilities as a roster supervisor is to let staff know who will be in for their monthly shift, and her roster consistently has one of the best attendance rates. Karen has trained in almost every area around the village, so she really is a jack of all trades! She never fails to help out wherever needed, and will always get stuck into the not-so-fun jobs others don’t want to do, such as laundry to clean all the towels and blankets used by SPCA rescue animals. She is an invaluable, unwavering asset to SPCA’s volunteer team and her contribution to the organisation is profoundly appreciated by the team.

30 years as a volunteer

Wilma is a treasured volunteer who has been helping out in the hospital area at SPCA Auckland for over three decades. In addition to her support in this area, she helps in our busy laundry and store-room to keep these potentially-crazy places tidy, functional and running smoothly. Over the years, she has also contributed to numerous SPCA Street Appeals too, helping raise money for the animals who need it most. Since retiring from her job, Wilma has even taken on extra regular shifts to help the Centre out. She is often helping others in her local community with stray cats, and works with us to help trap, neuter, and release (TNR) cats in her area too. In addition to all of this support. Wilma has also made the generous decision to become a legacy donor, meaning her care for animals will continue to be felt for years to come.

Supporting SPCA since she was 8 years old

Mia started coming into SPCA’s Dunedin Centre when she was just 8, and her family describe her as always being very empathetic, meaning animals were always on her mind. In 2013, she started to think about how she could help more, but remotely given the great distance she lived from the Centre. Mia tirelessly raised money for SPCA by selling merchandise, running raffles and bake sales, setting up market stalls, organising mufti days at her school, and setting up collections in local shops. Her success inspired her to keep going, and amongst countless efforts, Mia even organised a hugely successful auction night, getting Sir John Key and the Highlanders rugby team to sign goods, plus sourcing loads of valuable goods donated from suppliers she approached. Thanks to Mia’s enthusiasm and initiative, this event alone raised $14,000 for the animals! To date, Mia’s amazing support has raised in excess of $30,000 for SPCA in Otago, and soon she hopes to be able to join the onsite volunteer team in Dunedin, helping out in the kennels to care for rescue dogs.

SPCA Patron for 5 years

Having served as Governor General of New Zealand between 2016-2021, Dame Patsy Reddy also held the title of SPCA’s Patron throughout this time. Her support extends beyond these five years though, with Dame Patsy having become an SPCA donor all the way back in 2013, and joining our Giving Hearts programme in 2019. In her time as Patron, she contributed to many of SPCAs successes and left a lasting impact. Amongst her contributions was officially opening SPCA’s second centre in Auckland, the Hobsonville Centre, hosting two Giving Hearts events at Government House in Auckland and Wellington, donating 20% of her salary over a six-month period to charities – including SPCA – affected by the pandemic in 2020, and supporting numerous cupcake days by baking 200+ cupcakes in an amazing fundraising effort for SPCA. Dame Patsy is a dedicated supporter of animal welfare in New Zealand and her support of SPCA’s advocacy, education programmes, prosecutions and animal rescue work is invaluable.