On a recent June day, Jeff Bennett flew his four-seat plane from the mangrove-dotted Florida Keys, past some angry thunder clouds to the fertile hills of Greenville, Ala. His mission: to save 23 dogs destined for death row.
Bennett, a 53-year-old retired businessman, donates his time, fuel and plane to Pilots N Paws, a South Carolina-based charity that enlists small plane pilots to transport animals from overcrowded shelters that have high euthanasia rates to foster homes, rescue groups and less-crowded shelters that don’t kill the animals.
Bennett’s been airlifting animals for more than 3 years. Bennett is a dog lover; he has four of his own, including one that he adopted after a flight.
He’s carried mostly dogs, some cats, the occasional snake and once, a potbellied pig — earning his small Cirrus aircraft the nickname “All Species Airways” around the Pilots N Paws community.
But this month was special. On the Greenville trip, Bennett picked up his 1,000th animal.
“This is a mile marker,” said Bennett, who had a pointy party hat decorated with pirates picked out for the special canine.
It’s a number few of Pilots N Paws’ 2,800 volunteer pilots reach, said Deborah Boies, the group’s president and co-founder.
TAMARA LUSH, Associated Press
Caption: In this photo taken Friday, June 15, 2012, Jeff Bennett, of Big Pine Key, Fla., a volunteer pilot for the non-profit charity Pilots N Paws, holds his 1,000th rescued animal near his airplane in Greenville, Ala. (AP Photo/Tamara Lush)
