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Years after hosting Cheaters<\/em>, Tommy Habeeb is now the creator and host of\u00a0To the Rescue<\/em>, a weekly television series spotlighting shelter workers and animal rescues<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n Habeeb says it’s a passion he came to by way of the late Betty White<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n “I remember vividly, the first call I got from Betty,” he says<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n While he might be best known for his stint as the host of Cheaters,<\/em> Tommy Habeeb is now focused on televising animal rescue stories \u2014 and it’s a passion he came to by way of the late Betty White<\/a>.<\/p>\n Speaking to PEOPLE in an exclusive interview, Habeeb, 67, recounted how he once participated in an ASPCA telethon alongside White that sparked both a friendship, and a passion for a`nimal rescues.<\/p>\n “Betty got me into rescue,” Habeeb says. “She first introduced me to it and it was pretty special.”<\/p>\n After the two filmed the telethon, Habeeb received a surprising phone call from the Golden Girls<\/em> actress.<\/p>\n “I remember vividly, the first call I got from Betty,” he says. “[She said] ‘OK, I’m coming to get you.’ And we went over to to this shelter, and then she took me to a zoo, and, and we worked with these animals, which was interesting, but, you know, she believed so much in animal care and love and, it was infectious.”<\/p>\n Habeeb continues: “And when Betty White speaks, we listen, right?”<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a> to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.\u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n