Michigan Animal News Investigations, Issues, Information about Michigan Animals
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Wanda Nash, Founder of Attorneys for Animals, 1943-2008
From Scott Harris, Michigan Federation of Humane Societies and Animal Advocates
It is with tremendous sadness that I share with you the passing of a dear friend and long time animal advocate, Wanda Nash. I have had the pleasure of working with and learning from Wanda since making her acquaintance some twenty years earlier. If ever there was an individual who effectively united the passion to help, the focus to effectively advocate, and a sincere unparalleled compassion towards all living creatures, it would be Wanda. Amongst her other amazing and essential accomplishments, Wand served multiple terms as the Michigan Federation of Humane Societies ad Animal Advocates president and secretary.
It is with tremendous sadness that I share with you the passing of a dear friend and long time animal advocate, Wanda Nash. I have had the pleasure of working with and learning from Wanda since making her acquaintance some twenty years earlier. If ever there was an individual who effectively united the passion to help, the focus to effectively advocate, and a sincere unparalleled compassion towards all living creatures, it would be Wanda. Amongst her other amazing and essential accomplishments, Wand served multiple terms as the Michigan Federation of Humane Societies ad Animal Advocates president and secretary.
I miss her dearly but am eternally grateful for having met Wanda.
The Memorial Services are set for 11AM on Saturday, May 17 at Trinity Church, Marshall. Visitation with the family will be after the service, about 12:30p - 2:30p in the parish hall of the church.
The following biography was provided by Wanda’s close friend Bee Friedlander:
Wanda Nash 1943 - 2008
It is with profound sadness that we mark the death of Wanda early in the morning of May 8. 
She was the first Chair of the Animals and Society Institute and most recently was our Honorary Board Chair. Wanda was the natural choice to head our newly formed organization, having served on the boards of the two component organizations, the Institute for Animals and Society and the Society and Animals Forum.
She was the first Chair of the Animals and Society Institute and most recently was our Honorary Board Chair. Wanda was the natural choice to head our newly formed organization, having served on the boards of the two component organizations, the Institute for Animals and Society and the Society and Animals Forum.A truly compassionate person and passionate in her devotion to the animals, Wanda accomplished much and influenced many in her life. In the early 1970s when her children were young, she began volunteering at the local animal shelter. The cause of helping animals grew to encompass her life. In the mid 1980s, before it was common, she attended law school for the sole purpose of using her legal knowledge in advancing the cause of animals.
She was an exceptional leader and possessed an unassailable vision of what was possible when committed people join together for a cause they strongly believe in: making our world a better place for animals. In 1990, she put out a call for Michigan attorneys interested in animal law. From that, the nonprofit organization Attorneys for Animals was born. She was its first president. Under Wanda's leadership, the Animal Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan was formed in 1995, the first such statewide organization in the country. Wanda was its first Chair.
In 2006, the Section created the Wanda A. Nash Award, which is given annually to recognize the Michigan law student who has contributed most to animal law. It is a fitting tribute indeed to Wanda. She was always concerned that new, energetic, and talented people join the ranks of those already committed to transforming the way animals are treated in our world. In my final visit with her last month, I noticed a sense of urgency on her part that others continue her work, as well as some frustration and sadness that she would not be part of the effort that had become her life's work.
Wanda was not only a true and dear friend, but also a transformational figure in my life. From the first time I read her notice in the Michigan Bar Journal that "all attorneys interested in animal law contact Wanda Nash," she showed me by example how much a single, committed person can accomplish.
It is somehow fitting that Wanda left us during Be Kind to Animals Week. Our sympathies are with her husband Jim, their three children and 7 grandchildren, and with Wanda's mother and siblings. She also leaves behind Rolf and SilverBelle, her beloved dog and cat, the last of many companions who shared their lives with her.
~ Bee Friedlander