Founders of FHS
“Nothing good comes easy.” “It takes a village.” “All things are possible if we believe.”
Motivational quotes that I imagine the people who founded and built our shelter 40 years ago said to
each other. Many of these devoted Palm Coast…..I’ll call them Pioneers have passed away. Their work however lives
on. It lives on in the adoptions, reunions of lost pets, veterinary services and more that FHS currently
provides. I hope they would be proud of the shelter today.
Who were the original “Pioneers”? I started in animal welfare in Daytona in 1985 so I wasn’t here to see
it myself. From what I understand though there were three primary founders. Hanneke Frederik and
married couple Ken and Marie Dawson. Marie did all the desk work and Ken was hands on, physical
labor. The hard-working couple were well liked. Ken especially was a softee for the animals.
The face of the humane society was Hanneke. Hanneke’s passion for helping others went all the way
back to her childhood. She grew up in Amsterdam. Old photos show her with her black German
Shepherd and riding horses with her father.
As a teenager she saw WW2 as a hospital worker. She helped her family with the underground activities
which involved hiding people of Jewish descent from the Nazis. Equally important were her efforts to
get “downed” allied aircraft pilots back to their respective countries. She experienced hunger and
witnessed murders of friends by the Germans who occupied the country, so Hanneka was tough, strong
and knew how to fight for what was right.
After the war she met and married Dr. Willem S. Frederik.D.,Ph.D. They had two children. They moved
to Palm Coast in 1976 where Hanneka would use the tenacity she learned in her younger years to set to
motion the founding of FHS.
Her partner in her work soon became one of the earliest rescue dogs in FHS history. “Polly”, an
oversized sheepdog with an attitude was featured with Hanneka in many a publication. They are
featured in the “Images of America” book that highlights Palm Coast.
Hanneka’s daughter, also named Henneka, will be offering her support at FHS’s anniversary gala Sunday,
October 2 nd where she and other artists from the Colored Pencil Society will be featuring their amazing
work for sale. Proceeds will help Flagler County’s homeless animals. For more info and tickets for the
anniversary celebration go to www.flaglerhumanesociety.org
Amy Wade-Carotenuto is the Executive Director at Flagler Humane Society and can be reached at acarotenuto@flaglerhumanesociety.org. Flagler Humane Society is a 501(c)(3) not-for- profit organization founded in 1980. For more information go to www.flaglerhumanesociety.org