By Scott D. Johnston
Crazy Stan the Animal Man and his wife, Beautiful Sal, were in costume and in character at North Beach PAWS Saturday, where the latest leg of their coastal critter quest had them appearing on behalf of a membership drive for the local nonprofit animal shelter.
Stan wore a custom-made Dalmatian face mask, while Sal sported an orange Big Cat face. They chatted and joked, posed for pictures and pleaded with people to part with $20 for a year’s membership in PAWS. Those who did went home with a Crazy Stan T-shirt, which Stan and Sal donated.
The couple from the Gig Harbor area are actually Bob and Nancy Fay. Two years after retiring from a 34-year career as a Boeing engineer, Bob was looking for a charity activity he could embrace.
It would have to be something pretty unusual and interesting, because Fay is anything but your stereotypical electrical engineer. After finding out the hard way his degree in fine arts wasn’t opening viable career doors, he turned to electronic technology, eventually earning BS and MBA degrees while working for the aerospace giant. The right brain/left brain thing was never an issue for him. “You have to be very creative to come up with unique engineering solutions, and very logical to work out the math,” he said.
Both sides of his mind set to work in March this year, when Nancy suggested he consider some sort of animal-related charity work.
According to his Facebook page, he walked across the state last year. How about a walk across the state for animals? “I could walk from shelter to shelter and… I could wear goofy pet masks all along the way.”
Fast-forward to Saturday, and Crazy Stan is 215 miles down and 95 to go in his quest to help 10 animal shelters in Sequim, Port Angeles, Forks, Ocean Shores, Aberdeen, Cosmopolis, Raymond and Long Beach. It was actually his second trip in as many weeks to NB PAWS, as he was part of their entry in the Flag Day Parade June 10 in Ocean Shores.
He usually walks alone, wearing one of the masks, for six hours or so, with Nancy meeting him at pre-planned points. Along the way, he has had eight blisters, three bear sightings, and eight friendly chats with local law enforcement. “They’ve all been very cordial and helpful,” he said, “They even started to call ahead” to tell police in the next town that Crazy Stan was headed their way.
The motivation for the Fays is simple: “We love animals,” he said, noting that they have two rescue/feral cats at their home on Fox Island. “We really admire the volunteer efforts of these rescue facilities.”
“We know the shelters in the Puget Sound basin have grants and huge donor bases. And we know the shelters out here need help.”
Donations can be made online at www.gofundme.com/crazystantheanimalman.
NB PAWS president and founder Lorna Valdez was thrilled. “We’re just so appreciative,” she said. “It’s a labor of love for them to put these days of their lives into supporting these animal shelters. We’re very honored that they’ve selected us to be included.”
Crazy Stan and Beautiful Sal will return to the Harbor for the July 4th Splash in Aberdeen. That’s after he competes a little side trip for the shelter cause: next week, he plans to climb Mt. Hood in Oregon.
