MISSION VIEJO : Ex-Mayor Cody Lets Her Politics Go to Dogs

When she was elected to the City Council in 1990, Sharon Cody had a five-year plan: She would persuade the city to build and operate an animal shelter, organize a large group of volunteers to staff it, then retire from politics.

She carried out her plan to the letter. The former mayor, who did not seek reelection when her term ended in November, now spends much of her time at the new shelter helping to find homes for abandoned and stray pets.

There are times when she misses politics, Cody admits. “But there’s nothing more exciting than seeing kids walking out the door with a new puppy,” she said. Not only are the strays getting a new life, she said, “they’re making people happy.”

Her latest project is organizing the Dedicated Animal Welfare Group--known as DAWG--to support the shelter, which is expanding Saturday to serve Laguna Niguel in addition to Mission Viejo.

Cody, 48, recruits new DAWG volunteers, plans bake sales and volunteers two days a week at the Mission Viejo shelter.

“I show up at the shelter, take a kitty to the petting room for a while, then I’ll visit my favorite little dog,” Cody said. “This is my idea of fun.”

Diane Argile, a DAWG organizer who lives in Laguna Niguel, never knew Cody as mayor of Mission Viejo. But like Cody, she is dedicated to rescuing stray animals.

“I have no sense of her as a politician,” Argile said. But “she’s a powerhouse of knowledge and a friend with the same cause: making sure no healthy animal ever loses its life.”

“As an organizer, she’s very capable,” Argile said. “She knows how to do everything, but she doesn’t try to do it herself. She’s not into any control trips.”

One of the rewards for Cody is working with like-minded people such as Argile.

“When we adopt out a pet, all us volunteers will run to the door and watch them leave,” Cody said. “We see the kids happy and the dog with his head out the window and ears flapping. It makes us happy.”