by Carol Mowdy Bond | Photos courtesy of Greg White
In 2003, Dr. Greg White and his friend Adrienne headed to Pauls Valley, Oklahoma, to look at adoptable pets. Adrienne’s contact there was a volunteer, Timmie Clark, at Pauls Valley Animal Welfare Society, also known as P.A.W.S.
“I was just kind of in the market for a pet,” White says. “Timmie Clark helped me find a dog I was interested in, but I told her I needed to think about it. Timmie said she didn’t know the dog’s status, and the dog could be on the list to be euthanized the next morning. So I said, ‘No, I will take the dog now.’ ”
White is the director of musical theater at the University of Central Oklahoma. He is also a stage and film actor, a playwright, and a director. So in his casting style, he named the dog Molly, and he called her the Divine Miss M after American actress Bette Midler.
“Molly was a nine-month-old stray, and she was part border collie and part corgi, and she ended up at P.A.W.S.,” says White. “She truly became my companion. She was such a good and loyal companion, and she was my only pet. Molly was a one-guy dog.”
Molly passed away in 2019 at age 18, and that upended White’s personal peace. During spring 2020, he contemplated getting another pet.
Finding a New Companion
“I had considered the possibility of a new pet for quite some time since I lost Miss Molly in September 2019,” says White. “The search took me to multiple destinations and connected me with some truly beautiful humans. But no pet.”
Through a series of events, he ended up making the 90-minute drive from north of Oklahoma City to P.A.W.S., where he previously had found and adopted Molly.
“I went there to see another dog that I had seen on their website,” he says. “But the trip was in vain when I realized that was not the dog for me.”
White was leaving the P.A.W.S. building disappointed and empty-handed. But he told Margie, who was volunteering at the front desk, that he had been there in January 2003. He explained that a volunteer at that time, Timmie Clark, had been the good angel who had connected him with Molly.
Margie said, “Oh, Timmie is here. She’s in the back.”
“I was absolutely floored,” says White. “Here it is, 17 years later, and what are the odds that she’s still here?”
Clark came out and immediately recognized White. She guided him back to the dogs in the shelter.
“Timmie took me backstage, behind the scenes, where I could see the dogs,” says White.
“These are mutts. That’s where I found my next dog. Interestingly enough, the new dog was in the same run where I had first met Molly. I resisted the dog at first because she looked almost identical to Molly. It was too much. She reminded me too much of Molly, and it was unsettling.”
However, White decided to adopt the dog. But there was another glitch. The dog had literally arrived at P.A.W.S. while White was there looking at dogs. So there was a two-week waiting period until he could take her home.
“It was a bit of a lesson in patience and uncertainty,” says White. “But I was able to go back and get her. By that time, she was spayed and vetted and so forth.”
Once again, White reached into his acting tool kit to name his new friend. He named her Harlow, after American actress Jean Harlow (1911–1937).
“Harlow likes to pose like Jean Harlow,” says White. “She is a lover of all people. She has never met a stranger. Harlow is a snuggler, again much like Molly. And she’s an exceptional companion.”
White says when Clark connected him to Molly, it was a moment of divine intervention, and it was the same with Harlow.
Developing a Bond
“You develop a bond with dogs,” he says. “It’s a relationship that no one else is really party to. It’s very personal, especially when you’re single. There’s nothing to replace them. I think in their own right, dogs are angels on earth. Maybe they are a sign to us that they are here to help us wherever we are, at that chapter in our lives.”
With a history of more than two decades, P.A.W.S. believes every creature deserves a second chance. The rescue, which is now a no-kill site, provides animal care, support, and loving homes for animals in need. P.A.W.S. also offers spay and neuter programs, educational outreach, community events, adoption, fostering, and a pet food pantry. Find P.A.W.S. at https://protectadoptlove.com.
