Animal shelter opening in memory of Lexington woman

LEXINGTON, Tenn. — Five years in the making, an animal shelter in Lexington is set to open Monday.

“We finally got it done,” Doris Johnson said.

Johnson is the administrator behind the Frances Hensley Animal Shelter.

Frances Halbrook Hensley died in 2011 after a battle with stomach cancer. “She left her estate to build this complex,” Johnson said.

Johnson was named the executor of Hensley’s estate. She said part of her responsibility included making sure an animal shelter was built for the community.

“Her dream was to have a place for abandoned dogs and cats,” Johnson said.

Staff said this is the first animal shelter to be built for Lexington. “We have room for 12 cats and 22 kennels for dogs. I can take probably about 10 puppies to start,” shelter director Robin Snyder said.

The shelter will operate under limited intake at first. Snyder said the goal is to double those numbers within the next six months.

Snyder said she didn’t know Hensley before she passed away but believes the two women would be friends. “My No. 1 goal is to make her proud and secondly to help these babies that are in this community,” she said.

While Johnson managed the plans during building, she said she doesn’t want any credit for the project. “She’s the one that done it,” Johnson said while pointing to the portrait of Hensley hanging in the lobby of the shelter.

Adoption fees for both men and women can be as much as $65. The shelter will operate from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.

For more information on volunteering, contact the shelter at 731-249-9443.