By Thomas Warren III, Editor-in-Chief

I was disappointed this week to see a post from a man who I admire informing the Amarillo community that he will soon be walking away from his outlet of service that has helped so many in Amarillo and saved countless animal lives in our community.

On Monday, William C. Kearns, founder of KARTS - Kearns Animal Rescue Transportation Service, announced on Facebook that he will soon be stepping away from animal rescue after many years of service locally. Kearns mentioned that over the past few years, the emotional weight of losing shelter pets he cared about became an increasingly large burden as a local rescue leader, citing this as part of his reason for leaving rescue.

Kearns has undoubtedly been one of the most important local voices in our community for animal rescue and encouraging people to become more involved with animal rescue. He has also been at the forefront of the push to reform our local animal welfare system to place a greater emphasis on no-kill, or adopting a policy of only utilizing euthanasia at the local animal shelter when absolutely necessary, as opposed to a liberal approach to euthanizing animals that come through the shelter.

Even as he steps away, Kearns continues to be an advocate for this point of view and continues to make very good points about this position. Just consider what he said in his Facebook post on Monday about this position.

“A border collie I absolutely adored named Lexi (she was exactly like my Anna) was killed even though I asked all levels of rescue and even the city to help her,” Kearns wrote. “She finally had rescue interest, but it was an hour too late. Just another innocent soul for the landfill west of town, a landfill full of ghosts most with no names. Only a city code and yellow ID tag to even know they existed.”

Kearns continues to make good points about why the current way of doing business at Animal Management & Welfare needs to be reformed and why animal rescues should be at the forefront of the changes in Amarillo.

I have long admired what William Kearns and his organization have accomplished in Amarillo and how much he has given back to Amarillo. Kearns has provided a service to Amarillo that he didn’t have to provide and that he was not obligated to do, but he chose to become an animal rescue leader in Amarillo because it was the right thing to do for our community.

There are few people who selflessly give back to this community without an eye on profit, gain, or status, but William Kearns is one of those people. And Amarilloans should be eternally grateful for everything he has done for this city.

I don’t know what the future of animal rescue looks like for Amarillo without Kearns’ active involvement, but I can tell you this: he will leave big shoes to fill. And it’s a real shame to see KARTS walk away.

I know that politicians love to give out meaningless awards and recognitions whenever they get the chance to get their name in the spotlight. Just consider that Tuesday was Paul McCartney Day in Fort Worth under a declaration signed by the mayor. However, these awards are still sometimes given to people who are very deserving who have made their communities a better place to live. And I can think of no person more deserving than Williams Kearns to be honored for their work in Amarillo.

It is my true belief that William Kearns should be awarded a Key to the City for his work in saving animals in our community and being at the forefront of reforming our broken animal management system. Kearns should be praised for his work, and deserves recognition at the highest levels. That’s why he deserves a Key to the City and formal recognition from our community’s leaders for his work.

If Mayor Nelson is reading this article, I hope she will give real consideration to offering a formal show of thanks to Kearns for his work. And other officials could join too, such as State Reps. Four Price and John Smithee, by possibly offering resolutions in recognition of Kearns and KARTS when the Texas Legislature reconvenes next year.

Hero is not a term that should be used loosely, but William Kearns is an Amarillo hero and a true leader for the changes our community needs. That’s why he deserves our thanks and our gratitude for his work.

Thank you, William Kearns and KARTS, for your work in making our city a better place. Your work will not be forgotten.