In 1974, Sony Schotland joined with Barbara Hotchkiss Posener and Dorothy Wahl to change the lives of homeless and abandoned animals in the Hamptons. They founded ARF, the Animal Rescue Fund of the Hamptons.
At that time, summer residents regularly abandoned their pets at the end of the season. In 1975, at the end of Labor Day Weekend, the Town of East Hampton collected 29 abandoned dogs in a single day.
Back then, ARF’s volunteers would rescue these animals from local pounds where they faced euthanasia if unclaimed after 5 days. They boarded them locally, also paying for their medical care, until adopters could be found. In 1985, ARF opened its shelter in Wainscott – our home today.
Sony served on ARF’s Board of Directors for a span of over 30 years, and her vision for her community has, over the last 50 years, saved tens of thousands of animals who brought immeasurable joy, love, and comfort to the families that adopted them.
All of us at ARF – the Board of Directors, Staff, and Volunteers – are proud to continue the work that Sony began.
Photo: Sony with her dogs Bisous, Billy and Bobby.