In May, during Leave a Legacy Month, we’re reflecting on the lasting imprint we can leave on our community to create a better world where animals thrive, free from cruelty. By including the Humane Society of Oakville, Milton & Halton (HSOMH), in their Wills, supporters Brian and Nancy Villemaire, have generously extended their commitment and impact well into the future.
The Villemaires have a longstanding history of supporting HSOMH as donors, adopters of beloved pets, and by volunteering as cat socializers. Brian and Nancy shared their intention to include HSOMH in their Wills, and the changes they hope to make for animals in the future.
“We consider ourselves fortunate to have HSOMH in our community. They serve a large geographical area and provide excellent care for companion animals as well as all forms of wildlife. As near life-long Oakville residents, we wanted to leave a good portion of our estate assets locally to HSOMH due to our residency and love for all creatures,” said Brian and Nancy.
“It’s important to us that we do as those before us have done by giving back to the community we have lived in for so long. We hope our gift to HSOMH will enable their mission of care and compassion to continue for the benefit of those who can’t speak for themselves,” they added.
Part of the HSOMH family
As young children, Brian and Nancy felt “blessed to be raised by animal-loving tree huggers.”
As a young married couple, in 1972, the Villemaires bought their first house in Oakville and adopted ‘Timmy’, a six-year-old rescue from HSOMH.
“All our ‘fur family’ over the years have been rescues. While we admire the physical attributes of many purebred animals, we could never do anything but rescue rescues. There is no greater reward than looking into their eyes and deep into their souls to see the joy they derive from living out their lives in safety and comfort. They ask only for food, water and love and give of themselves unconditionally.”
HSOMH is committed to the development of a new, purpose-built facility and are working towards finding a new location that will serve the needs of animals in our care and the growing demands of our community.
As regular volunteers, Brian and Nancy experience first-hand the limitations of HSOMH’s facility for staff and animals and the opportunity for capital investment.
“HSOMH has many areas which require improvement, yet they lack the funding. One urgent area of need is a new building, as the current premises are old and counterproductive for its staff. This, however, is a major capital campaign, needing considerable resources to undertake,” they said.
“We would like to think that, after we are gone, we will have played a small part in the improvements wrought at HSOMH and, in turn, a small part in helping all God’s creatures find refuge and care in our community.”
If you have included HSOMH in your Will or would like more information, please email legacy@hsomh.ca .
For more information, visit our legacy and planned gifts page.
