Third Horry Humane Society board member resigns

An executive member of the Horry County Humane Society’s board of directors, board Secretary Margaret Evans, resigned form the board Tuesday, the third member to quit since the county animal shelter discovered a deadly viral outbreak in the facility in December.

Evans sent board president Kate Philips a letter Tuesday announcing her resignation stating, “I wish to spend more hands on time helping animals.”

Evans, a Conway attorney, said she plans to spend time volunteering with the South Carolina Greyhound Adoption Program, a rescue group for ex-Greyhound racers.

The board voted Wednesday to appoint Carol Bourne-Hunt to the HCHS board after Hunt was voted off the Grand Strand Humane Society’s board days ago.

Hunt told News13 she spend 13 years as a member of the GSHS board, but lost a re-election bid in January after the Myrtle Beach animal shelter staff campaigned for another candidate.

Philips wanted to delay the vote to appoint Hunt to the HCHS board at Wednesday night’s meeting, but instead later allowed the vote to proceed.

On Jan. 8, interim HCHS shelter director and former HCHS board member, Andree Frohmann resigned from the board and the HCHS shelter the day the shelter re-opened to the public.

Days before News13 broke the news of the deadly viral outbreak at the county’s animal shelter, board member Lisa Cleary, who is married to state senator Ray Cleary, resigned from the board.

Cleary said her primary role on the board was to raise money for the animal shelter, but said her resignation had nothing to do with the distemper crisis and denied having any knowledge of the outbreak before resigning.

But, the HCHS board announced an email went out to all board members on Dec. 5 notifying all members of the distemper problem at the shelter; the same day Cleary told News13 she resigned.

The shelter closed Dec. 8 after a deadly Canine Distemper Virus outbreak became public through a News13 report that showed shelter administration knew the virus was in the shelter as early as Nov. 3, with definite confirmation on Nov. 24.

The report showed former shelter executive director Renee Macklen knew about the virus because a Clemson University Laboratory in Columbia sent the shelter a confirmation notice on Nov. 24.

Between Nov. 24 and Dec. 8, shelter records showed 36 dogs were adopted to families and were later returned to the shelter and euthanized with distemper symptoms, but several more were euthanized by private veterinarians and at least one other pet was confirmed to have the deadly, incurable distemper virus.

The HCHS board fired Macklen at a special meeting on Dec. 17 citing her handling of the outbreak and what some shelter workers called a cover up.

Macklen was the HCHS treasurer before stepping down in January 2008 to become the shelter’s interim director, before the board later hired her as the shelter’s executive director.

Former HCHS shelter director George Redmond resigned form the shelter in January 2008 allowing Macklen to step in; Redmond later resigned from the board in 2008.

Current president Kate Philips was elected president of the HCHS board in January 2008.

Three other former HCHS board members resigned form the organization in 2008; former treasurer Chris Carter, Meredith Hart, and Adrianne Geise.

Former shelter executive director Cindy Ott was fired in 2007, but the board never gave reason for the termination.

Some members of Horry County council cited the seemingly high turnover at the agency’s shelter and board as reason to take a closer look into the shelter’s management and finances.

The county’s Public Safety Committee voted on Jan. 14 to conduct an investigation into the shelter’s finances.

The HCHS received $535, 613 in county tax dollars to run the shelter in a contract with Horry County.

There are currently 8 members on the HCHS board with seven seats unfilled.

Current Horry County Humane Society Board of Directors and contact information:
Kate Philips, President email: kp@sc.rr.com
Suzer Sachs, Vice President email: suzer@sc.rr.com
Daren Watson, Treasurer email: dfwatson@sc.coast.net
Muhammad Bajwa, DVM email: grandstrandvet@gmail.com
Kim Hurley
Sandi Brown
Jonea Gene Boyson
Carol Bourne-Hunt (appointed Jan. 21, 2009)