Bide A Wee closes Wantagh shelter

From ANIMAL PEOPLE, April 2009:
WANTAGH, New York–The 94-year-old Bide A Wee Adoption
Center in Wantagh was closed for financial reasons on March 8, 2009.
Founded in 1903 by Flora Kibbe of Manhattan, Bide A Wee continues to
operate shelters at the original site in Manhattan and in Westhampton.
Thirty-six of the 135 Bide A Wee staff were laid off, Bide A
Wee chief executive Nancy Taylor told Christina Hernandez of Long
Island Newsday. Taylor said donations had dropped 30% since October
2008, while Bide A Wee lost $2 million in investments. Bide A Wee
had revenue of about $8 million per year in recent years, with
nearly $14 million in financial reserves.
Bide A Wee was the second of the oldest and wealthiest humane
societies in the U.S. to announce shelter closures in early 2009.
The Massachusetts SPCA announced earlier that it will close shelters
in Springfield, Martha’s Vineyard, and Brockton on March 31, May
1, and September 30, respectively.