Recognizing a long-time volunteer

At EHS, our volunteers are a tight-knit and dedicated community. So it is with sadness that we announce the passing of long-time volunteer Doug Evans, who acted as our Facilities Manager, but wore many other hats as well. 

Doug was perhaps the original Facilities Manager for EHS and only handed off this role last year, to focus on his health. He, and all the friends he brought to the table, were responsible for countless improvements to our 67 Six Point Road location. It would be hard to find a spot in our shelter that was not touched by Doug and his team. 

He played a major role in the rebuild of our dog area in 2019, designing and building the partition between the prep area and the kennels. After that, he turned his attention to making the cat kennels more secure (and taller), and at the same time, providing storage above the kennels. He upgraded our heating and air conditioning equipment. He’s also responsible for the washer and dryer and dishwasher we use each and every day. 

While no job was too small for Doug, he also made big impacts with big jobs. He always found ways to get important work done, usually at a reasonable price. 

Doug was particularly focused on volunteer safety. He created our first fire plan and made sure it was understood and tested. He arranged for the installation of emergency lighting, an emergency contact phone in the shelter, peepholes and intercoms.

Doug was who you went to to get something done and we want to recognize the impact he made on EHS. More than anything, Doug loved to meet the dogs and cats in our care and loved being able to leverage his unique skill set to help make their lives better. 

He passed away on June 3 following a battle with cancer. In true Doug fashion, his family has requested donations be made to EHS in his memory, as well as Princess Margaret Hospital and Humber River Regional Hospital Cancer Care Unit.