Looking over the salmon-colored forms, Connie Hertz reads over comments from people who have recently adopted pets from the Humane Society of Huron Valley.

“This one, the kitty ate the older cat’s food,” she says. “They may need to feed the cats at different times.”

Hertz speaks with the authority that experience brings - she has been a dedicated volunteer at the Humane Society's Washtenaw County animal shelter for 36 years. While that may be impressive enough, she also just celebrated her 90th birthday at the end of July.

Connie Hertz looks over adoption follow-up forms at the Humane Society of Huron Valley. Hertz has been volunteering for the HSHV for 36 years and just celebrated her 90th birthday in July.

Ann Dwyer for AnnArbor.com

“I’ve always loved life and doing things. And I’ve always been a person who liked to keep busy,” Hertz said. It is this zeal that has kept her volunteering for the Humane Society of Huron Valley, but it was her love for animals and the importance of the bond between humans and animals that first led her to volunteering there.

Hertz initially started as an adoption counselor, telling people about the various animals at the shelter and making follow-up calls after adoptions. But seeing a need, she decided to focus on making follow-up calls exclusively.

The follow-up calls are made one week and also one month after the adoptions are made. They give the adopter the chance to voice any concerns and ask questions. Volunteers like Hertz can then let them know where they can turn and whom they should talk to.

“I think it means a lot to [the adopters] to know the Humane Society is not just interested in adopting out an animal and that’s it,” she said. “We’re interested in these people succeeding with this adoption. And if they have problems, it’s good for them to know just which way they can turn.”

One of Hertz’s strengths is her knowledge of the adoption process, said Kelly Schwartz, director of Volunteer Programs at the HSHV. But more than that, she is truly interested in people and their pets.

“She’s just sweet as can be. She’s so interested in the stories people tell,” Schwartz said.

Hertz has her own interesting story to tell. Even though she grew up in a time when women were not valued in the workforce, much less the sciences, she would not let that deter her. Combining her love of animals and the sciences, she went to the University of Illinois to study zoology.

“When I got out of Illinois, of course, I realized there were no jobs they would give to women in the kind of work that I wanted to do in zoology,” she said.

Putting her skills and smarts to use, she joined the Navy during World War II and worked in a clinical laboratory and taught basic chemistry to the medical corpsmen.

Hertz then used the G.I. Bill to obtain her Master’s in microbiology from the University of Michigan. After working jobs that included working with the Atomic Energy Commission at the U-M, she ended her career as head of the microbiology department at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Hospital in Ann Arbor.

She retired in 1983, but she has not stopped working. “Retiring, I just felt like I didn’t want to sit home. I wanted to do things where I would be useful,” she said.

Along with volunteering at the HSHV, Hertz also volunteers with Washtenaw Literacy as a tutor. She enjoys Shakespeare, ballet and music and tries to get out to see shows when she can.

“There’s nothing like getting out and being with people. It’s very important,” she said.