Theresa Martin was shopping in the Paws Inn thrift store about five years ago. Next thing she knows, she’s running the place.
Martin, 66, is president of the committee for Paws Inn Inc., which is the driving force to build a no-kill animal shelter in Searcy. The nonprofit thrift store opened in its new location two weeks ago at 3754 Arkansas 367 on the same property where a no-kill animal shelter will eventually be built.
“A friend of mine was there, and I was shopping at the store,” Martin said. “She said, ‘Oh Theresa, can you sit here and watch this for a minute? … I’m going to a doctor appointment.’ I said, ‘Sure, I will help you out.’ That was five years ago. I haven’t left since.”
Paws Inn got its start 15 years ago, starting out in a woman’s house and selling clothing for 25 cents, Martin said.
“One of the original committee members worked at the Humane Society of Searcy,” Martin said. “She knew all the ins and outs. That was a good start there, so we knew what we needed.
“She had to euthanize a lot of animals. It just breaks your heart when you have to do something like that. With no no-kill shelters around, they wanted to build one.”
Martin said Paws Inn inc. has raised about $190,000 of the needed $350,000 to build the shelter on the 7 1/2 acre plot where the new store is located.
“As soon as we get enough money to build the shelter, we’ll start,” Martin said. “We’re cleaning up the property. We’re doing little things all the time, trying to get things ready for when we do have the money to build it.”
Martin said the committee has a plan for the shelter, which will be a metal building.
“I’m not sure if we’ll use mortar or not, but it will be a good structure,” she said. “We want a surgical ward in there. We’ll have a veterinarian come in and help. We have it planned out. It’s already laid out the way we want it. Of course, I know that within a week of when we build it and it’s open, it’s going to be full.”
Martin said she gets telephone calls from people all the time, asking if the shelter is open yet.
“It’s a sad situation that people do not spay or neuter their animals,” she said. “Those poor animals didn’t do anything wrong.”
Longtime board member Betty Harris said she’s been involved since almost the start of the project.
“This is very important to me,” she said. “We’ve worked on this for so long. We had to move to several different places. Where we were before, we were paying over $800 a month in rent. Not having to pay that now, all the money is going into building the shelter.”
The thrift-store inventory includes clothing, a men’s department, some furniture and toys for children, Harris said.
“Several years ago, I heard about the place,” she said. “I went there to shop. I just became interested, stuck around and worked and volunteered, helping them. I’ve been there ever since. I love animals. I think every dog and cat should have a good home and be taken care of.
“I just have a soft spot for animals.”
Martin said the 7 1/2-acre plot has plenty of room for the shelter, the store, a pet cemetery and running trails.
“The need for this is so strong,” said Martin, who is retired from the Air Force, where she served for 32 years. She was a master sergeant when she retired.
“We’ll start with dogs and cats,” she said. “I have talked to the Humane Society. They get pot-bellied pigs every once in a while. We’ll have a place where we can put something like that if we need to.”
The Paws Inn thrift store is open from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Thursday through Saturday.
For more information about Paws Inn, visit the organization’s Facebook page at www.facebook.com/pawsinnhaven or call (501) 322-5984.
Staff writer Mark Buffalo can be reached at (501) 399-3676 or mbuffalo@arkansasonline.com.