Buying Junk Leads to Charitable Treasure

In the 1970s, when a shelter for animals was first getting started in Summerville, Judith Baird would help collect blankets and unfold newspapers for bedding. And later, after the Frances R. Willis SPCA was established, she would attend every one of the facility’s yard sales and auctions.

“Judy would always buy some item she didn’t need and would overpay, just to make a contribution,” said Merle Handelsman, a SPCA volunteer. “I know she went home with lots of $250 pieces of junk.”

Before she passed away in 1997, Ms. Baird arranged to permanently continue her generosity to organizations caring for abandoned pets. Through her will, she added substantially to the Judith A. Baird Endowment, a fund she created in 1988 to benefit the Frances R. Willis SPCA, which serves Dorchester County, and the John Ancrum SPCA in North Charleston, which serves Charleston County. The two organizations receive distributions from the endowment’s income each year.

Since the fund was established in1998 grants totaling more than $421,000 have been given to the Frances Willis SPCA and John Ancrum SPCA for the care and protection of animals.