Those who raise cash for charities might consider their craft underappreciated, but in Lincoln, England a fundraiser who received plenty of strokes while alive is being memorialized with a bronze statue. The statue will honor Snips the dog, who helped raise thousands of pounds for a variety of charities during the 1950s when owner Henry Tyler charged a penny to pet him.
The statue will be placed in Lincoln’s Cornhill Market, where Tyler and Snips did their fundraising. The installation will include a tap-to-donate mechanism, which will allow current-day visitors to make donations in Snips’ honor, according to a BBC news story.
Snips was honored by the Lincoln city council as well as other organizations during his life. Snips had previously been recognized in 2018 with a plaque in Cornhill Market which reads:
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Snips the Dog 1946-1961
When nobody bought his Sealyham Terrier pup, enterprising market trader, Henry Tyler, charged people a penny to stroke the dog.
‘Snips’ subsequently raise over £5000 for charity and paid for an annual party for local pensioners.
His collar and medals now rest in Lincoln’s civic insignia.
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A (very) loose valuation of the English pound in the 1950s, without considering annual changes in the pounds-to-dollars rate, would be roughly $165,000 U.S. dollars in 2024, if the pound’s value in 1955 is taken as a baseline.
“We’ve worked hard to revitalize the Cornhill Quarter and fit the city’s evolving needs, but we’ve also been incredibly mindful to preserve and restore local history,” Lincolnshire Co-op Property Engagement Manager Ben James said in a statement released by the City of Lincoln Council.
“The installation of this statue is another fantastic opportunity to do that, and a project that we are really proud to be part of, especially as it will support local good causes,” James continued.
The statue, which is part of a Cornhill Market revamping, is expected to be installed by spring of this year.
