THE HUMANE Society of Lincoln County plays a vital role in strengthening the community while giving animals in need a second chance. Through fostering, adoptions, and community outreach, the organization works tirelessly to ensure that every animal experiences love, safety, and care. Leslie Price, the humane society’s president, is at the heart of this mission. Her extraordinary passion for animals drives the group’s initiatives and inspires the community.
“For many people, it’s easy to turn a blind eye,” Price explained. “Out of sight, out of mind may feel comfortable, but it doesn’t work — not when we’re talking about living, breathing creatures who feel pain, joy, and fear just like we do.”
Under her guidance, the humane society combines compassion with a hands-on approach, ensuring that animals receive the medical attention, training, and emotional care they need while helping families find the perfect match.
The humane society’s work is entirely foster-based, relying on dedicated volunteers to care for animals in need — volunteers like Hannah Faulkner, the society’s former president, who worked tirelessly to keep its doors open.
Price recalled her very first foster experience — a frightened kitten abandoned on her grandmother’s property. “Watching him transform from timid and scared to happy and playful was truly life-changing,” she reflected. “It opened my eyes to the profound impact we can have on the animals around us.”
This personal experience informs how the humane society supports its foster families. Each animal brought into a home receives individualized care tailored to their physical, emotional, and behavioral needs. Price described fostering as “saving lives in layers.” She explained, “When one animal leaves for a loving home, another comes in need of love, safety, and comfort.”
Fostering creates deep bonds, but it also comes with bittersweet moments.
“These animals become part of your heart, and sometimes the goodbye comes with tears streaming down your cheeks,” Price said. “But those tears aren’t just sadness — they’re joy, too. In that moment, you witness something incredible: an animal meeting their person, and a person meeting their animal. That bond makes every hard goodbye worth it.”
By welcoming animals into foster homes and connecting them with loving families, the humane society strengthens the entire community, encouraging compassion, empathy, and active participation in animal welfare. As the president, Price attends every adoption event and sees this impact firsthand. “It’s an emotional experience to witness an animal find its match,” she said. “That moment represents the heart of what we do, saving lives and creating joy.”
No two adoptions are the same. Each animal has its own needs, and the society works closely with foster families to ensure successful placements. Some families cannot commit to permanent pets but give their all to foster animals, providing love, structure, and socialization. The humane society supports them every step of the way, creating an ecosystem of care that benefits both humans and animals.
The society also focuses on long-term community impact. In memory of one of its fosters, they will soon open a community pet food pantry to help families keep their pets during challenging times.
“It’s just one more way we hope to keep families and pets together,” Price said. These initiatives demonstrate the humane society’s broader mission: creating a community where every animal knows safety, love, and kindness.
Looking ahead, the humane society has ambitious goals. “Right now, we do all we can with the space and fosters we have,” Price explained, “but our dream is to grow beyond our current location and eventually purchase land for a facility — a place where we could house emergency cases, even temporarily, so no one ever has to hear the word ‘no.’” From emergency intake to long-term care, the organization strives to meet the needs of every animal in the county.
Education and advocacy are core values of the humane society’s work. Price and her team encourage spay and neuter programs, responsible pet ownership, and community involvement. By raising awareness and providing resources, the society reduces neglect and abuse and creates a culture where compassion is the norm, not the exception.
Price and the humane society’s board members’ leadership reflects both their personal dedication and the collective spirit of the humane society. Her commitment to fostering, rescuing, and advocating for animals exemplifies how one person can make a measurable difference. Through her work with the society, she has strengthened the bonds between animals and people while inspiring others to join the mission.
The Humane Society of Lincoln County is a powerful reminder of how a dedicated organization can transform lives. By following the humane society’s example, residents can spread awareness throughout the community, one foster home, one adoption, and one donation at a time. You can make a real difference in the lives of these animals by donating or volunteering with the local humane society. Currently, the society receives no funding from the city or county, making community support essential to continue its lifesaving work.
Leslie Price’s dedication to animals and the humane society’s work highlight the importance of animal advocacy and community involvement. As a foster, advocate, and president, Price shows that saving lives means giving every animal the care and love they deserve while helping to foster a community grounded in compassion. The community has the opportunity to get involved through volunteering, fostering, or donating, because every contribution, no matter the size, makes a meaningful difference for animals in need. GN
