We lost a friend Dec. 31, 2021.

In a country so divided, where every conversation can quickly become a controversy, it seems we have found a piece of common ground. Betty White, at the age of 99, left us too soon.

We know White for many things - her humor, her passions, her talents. Her television presence spanned some 60 years. Depending on our age, we remember her for her roles in “Life with Elizabeth,” “Mary Tyler Moore Show,” Golden Girls,” “Hot in Cleveland” and more.

We recall her ability to make us laugh, as a co-host on “Saturday Night Live” and in the well-known television commercial for Snickers and the rom-com “The Proposal,” the latter featuring Ryan Reynolds and Sandra Bullock.

Reynolds shared on social media, “[White] was great at defying expectation. She managed to grow very old and somehow, not old enough.”

White would have celebrated her 100th birthday Jan. 17. As we mourned the death of this legend, groups nationwide joined an effort to celebrate her and her lifelong love of animals.

According to an Associated Press story on White, her 2011 book, “If You Ask Me (And Of Course You Won’t),” explained the start of her love for dogs. During the Great Depression, White’s father made radios to sell for extra money, but not many people had the extra money to buy them. Her father traded the radios for dogs, which the family housed in backyard kennels. White remembered having as many as 15 dogs. Her love of pets remained.

Throughout her lifetime, she was named an honorary forest ranger by the U.S. Forest Service and an honorary zookeeper by the Greater Los Angeles Zoo Association.

Smithsonian Magazine reported White once arrived at the Los Angeles Zoo with a trunk full of empty toilet paper rolls because she knew the zoo staff used them in games with the animals.

The Audubon Society shared on Twitter that, following Hurricane Katrina, White had covered the cost of a plane to evacuate penguins and sea otters.

At one time, White also had a fan club, Bets’ Pets, which used its dues to support animal rescue charities.

Within days of her death, a social media movement asked that $5 donations be made to local rescues and nonprofit groups on her birthday. The #BettyWhiteChallenge went viral Jan. 17.

Here at home, animal rescue organizations felt the love.

Lehigh County Humane Society shared on Facebook the next day that a grand total of $16,000 had been raised “through the generosity of Betty White fans and animal lovers in our community.”

Peaceable Kingdom, Whitehall, reported nearly $3,200 had been donated that day.

“[White] was an inspiration and source of comfort and laughter to many of us throughout her life. Her passion for animals and supporting them, along with the people who love them, continues to make an impact. This is a golden opportunity to honor her legacy,” according to the Facebook post.

Center for Animal Health and Rescue, Easton, shared on social media donations there totaled more than $17,000 on the first day.

The center’s Facebook post read, “[White] loaded up shelters with necessary resources. That’s what we call an epic stage exit.”

Sanctuary at Haafsville, Breinigsville, reported it had raised close to $20,000 on White’s 100th birthday.

“The number of donors we had was astounding,” the group reported on its Facebook page. “We in animal rescue sometimes see the worst in people, but yesterday we saw only the best. What a tribute to a wonderful woman.”

Now that’s something we can all agree on.

Kelly Lutterschmidt

editor

Whitehall-Coplay Press

Northampton Press

Catasauqua Press