Heartland Celebrates Reopening After Devastating Flood In Wheeling

WHEELING, IL — For the past seven months, Heartland Animal Shelter has been forced to work out of temporary locations after a devastating flood caused major damage at its 586 Palwaukee Drive location. Earlier this month, Heartland reopened with a renovated space at its Wheeling shelter.

The community is invited to a grand reopening from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday. It will feature:

• Ribbon-cutting ceremony
• Tours of the newly renovated space
• Opportunities to meet adoptable pets
• Hot chocolate bar

On June 26, 2024, a pipe burst under the building, flooding the shelter with more than 2.5 feet of water. According to Heartland Animal Shelter, that morning, Antun "Tony" Maticic, who works for Waste Management, was greeting the cats sitting in the windows at the shelter like he does every day when completing his trash collection rounds. On this day, though, he noticed more animals than usual staring out at him.

RELATED: Wheeling Shelter Says Sanitation Worker Saved 101 Animals During Flood

When Maticic looked inside, he saw the two feet of water inside the shelter and more pouring into the parking lot. He immediately called 911, alerting the Wheeling police and fire departments.

"If he had come an hour later, we could have lost many animals. Some of the cats had climbed up in their cages to stay above the water, and some of the small dogs were already in danger of drowning," Heartland Executive Director Jenny Schlueter said. "Tony really is our angel."

Following the flood, Heartland was forced to relocate to a temporary facility at the Chicago Executive Airport, donated by Signature Aviation.

The "Heartland Hangar" served as home before the shelter transitioned to a location in Lynn Plaza, Wheeling, and finally, back to its Wheeling shelter in early January. Heartland reopened to the public interested in meeting and adopting animals on Feb. 6.

Amazingly, the shelter rescued more pets in 2024 than the previous year. By the end of the year, Heartland had saved 1195 dogs and cats, and 1072 animals had found their forever homes.

"The numbers show what we can accomplish when we work together in the face of tragedy," Schlueter said. "We are incredibly grateful for the outpouring of support from the community, which made this renovation and our continued lifesaving work possible."

Attendees can see the improvements made possible by community donations and learn more about Heartland's ongoing mission.

Heartland Animal Shelter is a non-profit dedicated to rescuing, sheltering, and finding forever homes for abandoned animals. They provide medical care, behavioral training, and a loving environment for animals in need.