Even when she was working for an environmental consulting firm, Kelly Carey always had the vision of being affiliated with animal welfare in the back of her mind.
Born in Bass Lake, Carey studied restoration ecology at Michigan State University before continuing her studies at Purdue University with a focus in biology. She currently lives in Valparaiso with her husband, Jay.
“For the longest time I was doing restoration ecology in Gary,” Carey said. “I still would go back to the shelter and then I started working at a local shelter where I had dairy pet families coming in who needed assistance and resources.”
However, Carey said that she had a hard time being able to help these pet families. At the time, she was already managing a nonprofit called Silverstray Social that allowed her to contribute for the little things, such as delivering food and providing additional resources.
As for both the nonprofit and the program, Carey attributes much of the success story to a special dog named Layla.
Layla was a senior dog at the Porter County Animal Shelter for three years Carey continuously made a push to market her on social media. Eventually, Layla’s story was picked up by BarkBox and caught the attention of a couple in Maryland who decided to adopt her. Today, Carey recognizes the couple as two of the most important people in her life.
“The main reason as to why it all started is because of Layla,” Carey said. “If it wasn’t for her, this wouldn't be happening. It’s also so surreal how two people can go from complete strangers one day to two of the biggest figures in my life.”
Not only did Layla create a spark in Carey’s future for the nonprofit, but it also opened her eyes to three issues that she believes each shelter should be working to address.
“The microchip and vaccines are important to reduce and prevent disease before returning animals back to their homes,” Carey said. “The spay and neuter reduce unwanted litters while making sure facilities keep the animals away from that. As for the trap-neuter-return (TNR), this is an important issue during mating season for kittens. Everybody always comes in with kittens they found in unfamiliar places such as a shed or in their garage.”
Fast forward to when she left the shelter, Carey has since developed a new program called Silver Lining Gary.
“The nonprofit has been going for the last five years, but we started up the program in March,” Carey said. “We have a free vaccine and microchip clinic every month and we service more than 200 families with services.”
The program recently held a mass spay day, which offered the opportunity for 30 pets to get spayed and neutered. According to Carey, the primary objective behind the program is to prevent disease while creating a healthier community and a culture of caring.
Helping out people and pets in need has always sparked the feeling of enjoyment in Carey. Her work with Silverstray Social and Silver Lining Gary has helped her become more focused on assisting others in the community.
In the next several years, Carey would like to see continued progress in helping out all the pets in Gary. However, she is always motivated to help the pets that need assistance and embraces any challenge of the sort.