It began with a toolbox ...
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In 1948, after returning from service in World War II, Carl and Ann Anderson settled into their new home at 10025 Kraut Road. Carl transitioned into his post-military career in landscape design, and ran a small nursery from the property.
One day, a neighbor knocked on the door and requested Carl's assistance with burying his dog, Fred, who had recently passed. The neighbor had purchased a brand new toolbox in which his companion would be laid to rest. "I bought this toolbox because I couldn't stand the idea of throwing dirt in my dog's face," the neighbor told Carl. It reminded Carl of an article he read in a nurserymen's magazine about a pet cemetery, and an idea for a place for all pet owners to lay their companions to rest in quiet dignity was born. |
Anderson's Pet Valhalla |
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The first pet was laid to rest on the Pet Valhalla grounds in January of 1972. In the years that followed, Carl and his son, Gary, provided hundreds of pet owners with a peaceful location to remember the devotion of their own animal companions.
After Carl's passing in March of 1978, Gary and his wife, Kathy, moved into the property's residence to continue Carl's mission. A crematorium was added to the property in the summer of 1989 to meet the requests of pet owners and veterinarians in the Racine area to have their pets cremated locally. |
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A Third Generation
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With Gary's retirement in July of 2018, Pet Valhalla entered its third generation of serving pets, and the people who love them. Gary's son, Scot, his wife, Sara, their golden retriever, Jordy, son, Arthur, and newborn, Matthew, look forward to continuing Carl's vision...
...a vision that started with a loving pet owner and his toolbox. |