PETA Celebrates 3 Decades of Turning the Tide for Animals in Norfolk, its Home Base
For Immediate Release:
June 26, 2026
Contact:
Andrew Grant 202-483-7382
PETA’s headquarters in Norfolk is the Sam Simon Center, named after the creator of the TV show “The Simpsons,” who inaugurated the building. Other famous supporters who have visited have been rock star Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders, who barbecued vegan hot dogs in PETA’s community dog park; country singer Emmylou Harris, who helped PETA staff build doghouses; actor Kevin Nealon, who came to record a pro-chicken spot; and actor Rue McLanahan, who joined then-Mayor Fraim in celebrating PETA’s 15,000th spay/neuter surgery. But it’s the PETA staff and their families who call Hampton Roads home.
What has PETA accomplished locally over these 30 years? A facility that bred beagles to be experimented on was investigated and later forced to shut down, releasing more than 4,000 dogs to be adopted into loving homes; dozens of dogs and cats were rescued following hurricanes in Texas, Louisiana, and Puerto Rico; pelicans stuck in hurricane-force winds were rescued off the Brambleton Bridge; legislation banning the continuous chaining of dogs in extreme weather was passed in Virginia; when Hurricane Katrina hit, PETA brought dogs up from the floods and when the BP oil spill left cats homeless, PETA brought them here for adoption too; and more than 250,000 dogs and cats have received free or low-cost spay and neuter surgeries—these are just some highlights of PETA’s first 30 years in Norfolk. Photos are here.
To celebrate its 30th anniversary on Tuesday, June 30th, the world’s largest animal rights organization is teaming up with local radio station 97.3 The Eagle to give away 30 gift bags filled with goodies for two- and four-legged residents—because it is PETA, after all—and clients scheduled with PETA’s mobile spay/neuter clinics will receive a surprise 30% discount.
“For 30 years, Norfolk has been PETA’s anchor as we’ve helped people connect to animals in every way we know how,” says PETA Founder Ingrid Newkirk. “PETA is grateful to the Hampton Roads community for their support, and we look forward to decades more of progress for all animals.”
From year-round community access to the Bea Arthur Dog Park on the River, to vegan hot dog giveaways to adoption events in the summer and Santa Paws toy drives for “backyard dogs” in the winter, participating in the Grand Illuminations Parade, organizing supply drives for the military, working with local restaurants, earning the Elizabeth River Project award for environmental stewardship, and much more, PETA and its Bea Arthur Dog Park have become an integral part of the Hampton Roads community.
PETA’s Sam Simon Center has also been the launchpad for many unique achievements since it opened its doors in 1996, including:
- PETA’s ’round-the-clock disaster-response teams have rescued hundreds of animals from floods and other disasters across the region
- PETA’s legislative campaigns have secured critical protections for animals, including prohibitions on premature separation of captive wild baby mammals and a ban on bullhooks—sharp, steel-tipped weapons used to hurt and intimidate elephants who are forced to perform in circuses
- PETA fieldworkers have partnered with local law enforcement to successfully prosecute starvation and other cruelty cases
- PETA fieldworkers have delivered more than 8,500 custom-built doghouses and straw bedding to dogs in need who are tethered and/or penned outside 24/7
As PETA looks ahead to the next 30 years in Hampton Roads, it plans to continue working for animals on every front—from schoolrooms to courtrooms, from chained dogs in local backyards to beagles in breeding mills, and from today’s animal advocates to the next generation.
PETA—whose motto reads, in part, that “animals are not ours to abuse in any way”—points out that Every Animal Is Someone and offers free Empathy Kits for people who need a lesson in kindness. For more information, please visit PETA.org or follow PETA on X, Facebook, or Instagram.
