Holly Reynolds, founder of long-running Baton Rouge animal shelter, dies at 103

BATON ROUGE – Holly Reynolds, responsible for creating an animal shelter that has saved countless animals in the capital area over the past four decades, has passed away at the age of 103.

The Capital Area Animal Welfare Society announced the death of its founder Tuesday.

Reynolds started her first rescue organization in Covington in 1953 and moved in 1977 to Baton Rouge, where she would found CAAWS a couple years later. She even attended the first-ever Humane Society of the United States held in Michigan back in 1955, according to the shelter.

The organization said Reynolds continued to support its efforts all the way up until her death. 

“With her extensive devotion and compassion for animal welfare and the founding of CAAWS, Reynolds is considered the mother of the modern humane movement in Louisiana,” the shelter’s website said. “CAAWS remains a living testament to her dedication and is the oldest local humane organization, as well as the only no-kill shelter in Baton Rouge.”

She was honored for her work during last year’s legislative session at the Louisiana State Capitol. 

Read more on her life and her work saving animals here.