Bonny Shah, 58, died on July 28, 2004, in Dallas, after a long battle with leukemia. She married electrical engineer Ratilal Shah, a jain from Gujarat, India, in 1968. Unable to find work as a teacher, she started a business called Maharani, importing hand-crafted dog collars and other gift items from India, "but instead of selling the collars, she used them to bring rescued dogs home," Rati Shah told ANIMAL PEOPLE. He joined Maharani in 1975, three years after the birth of their son Noah. The firm found a niche supplying animal-theme items to zoo gift shops.

As it grew, the Shahs hired ever increasing numbers of Indian artisans. They built a school in India that was among the first to teach computer skills as part of the curriculum, a human birth control clinic that performs 200 sterilizations per year, and a general purpose clinic serving 30 villages that treats 18,000 patients per year without charge. In exchange for donating 20 computers to the school the Shahs built, Bonny Shah won a pledge that the school will look after several dogs she rescued throughout their lives. At the Shahs' home in Bartonville, Texas, they founded the Ahimsa of Texas sanctuary, managed by Bonny's parents, Lou and Evelyn Karstadt, who continue in her memory.

"Bonny loved donkeys. She wanted to do more for donkeys," Rati Shah continued, "so in India we created the Dharma Donkey Sanctuary," now supervised by Visakha SPCA founder Pradeep Kumar Nath. "With the help of the Blue Cross of India," Rati Shah said, "we treat 2,500 donkeys there at donkey camps held every six months." Bonny Shah also sponsored humane education and feral cat rescue work by Kat Chaplin, the Dallas based "Neuteress of the Night." Chaplin introduced the Shahs to ANIMAL PEOPLE in January 1998. During the next six years Bonny Shah contributed profiles of the Bishnoi people of the Rajasthan desert, whose Jain-like faith emphasizes kindness towards animals; the Donkey Sanctuary, in England; and the Wildlife SOS and Friendicoes sanctuaries in India. She also contributed photos, including a portfolio from the Galapagos Islands, and helped with investigations in India, Mexico, and Costa Rica.

One of her last calls was to ANIMAL PEOPLE. "She said her concerns now were for the animals, especially her beloved donkeys, and for vegetarian children," ANIMAL PEOPLE Kim Barlett wrote to mutual friends before flying to Texas, with son Wolf Clifton, for a last visit. "She said that Rati and Noah had set up a trust to care for their animals and humane projects. She asked how we were and wanted me to tell her about our animals," all of whom she knew personally. "I thought of all the ways in which Bonny decorated our walls with beautiful things from India and hangings from Ecuador. Much like the donkeys with whom she most closely identified, Bonny loved to laugh and she laughed loud. She loved food and comfort .She could kick her heels high in play. But also like a donkey, she could endure all manner of physical suffering. She would work until she literally dropped. During all the time we knew Bonny, she fought leukemia. She had ups and downs, but even in her downs she did more to bring happiness and comfort to others than most healthy people ever consider doing. Bonny didn't want to talk about doing things, she wanted to do things, and would always step in where she was needed."