A Friends of the Salina Animal Shelter fundraising event took an emotional turn Thursday night with an unexpected, major donation. As supporters looked on in stunned silence, and then erupted in a standing ovation, the Petco Foundation made a $175,000 grant donation to the the Salina Animal Shelter.

Petco District Leader Jeff Lang traveled from Kansas City to donate the check to Animal Services Manager Vanessa Cowie.

Lang told KSAL News that he credits Cowie, and the hard work of her staff, for the donation.

Cowie tells KSAL News this is a “life saving amount of money.”

Lang says that the $175,000 donation is one of the largest the Petco Foundation makes. He adds that the foundation does not seek publicity, but rather very quietly and selectively awards grants like these. “They do what’s best for the pet, and being able to do this at 175K is a big deal to the foundation and a very big deal to this community,” he said.

The Salina Animal Shelter is a nonprofit organization, and a division of Salina’s Parks and Recreation Department. The organization provides animal control, adoption services and wildlife management. The shelter is a no-kill shelter, meaning that over 90 percent of the animals it receives are saved.

Lang added that because of the work Cowie and her staff continue to do, this might not be the last grant for the shelter from the Petco Foundation. With their continued work here”I personally don’t believe that this will be the last time the foundation asks me to come back,” he concluded.