Published: August 20, 2008 05:38 pm            

Readers' Forum: Aug. 22, 2008

Shelter support warms the heart

No matter what our less-than-astute president may say, we are in a serious recession, especially locally. These dire economic straits have been hard on everyone, but especially on companion animals and those who try to rescue and shelter them.

Consider the foreclosure crisis, where people are simply moving out of their homes and leaving their pets behind. Or the recent flooding, where courageous local rescuers and worthwhile charities saved and assisted many people, but violated federal law (“Pets Evacuation and Transport Standards Act of 2006”, passed after the Katrina debacle) by refusing to evacuate and shelter their pets — leaving them to die or to be rescued and sheltered by people like us.

All shelters, including ours, have been overburdened by these circumstances and underfunded because of the diversion of charitable contributions and grants to human-only needs. However, some wonderful people and corporations have seen us through this and allowed us to finally see light at the end of a tunnel which we were beginning to fear had no end; and they are the ones to whom we wish to express our heartfelt gratitude.

Duke Energy Foundation, Petco Foundation, and Petfinder.com Foundation provided us with cash grants which literally kept the lights on and the most crucial bills paid. Pat Cooke and Heritage Animal Hospital (where we always get terrific consideration and superb care for our cats) continued to provide that care without payment until we could raise enough money to reimburse them.

Baesler’s Market (especially Bob and Mike) gave us gift certificates and reduced prices on shelter supplies that allowed our cats, and us, to eat. Administrative employees of the Vigo County School Corp. took up a collection on our behalf. Pet Food Center, and the local Petco store, have continued to be supportive by offering us discounted prices on cat food and litter as well as friendship and moral support.

Individual animal lovers and supporters of ours, including wonderful neighbors and friends too numerous to mention (and most of them wouldn’t want to be recognized in that way; that’s how truly selfless they are) have given us everything from words of encouragement to bags of cat food to financial contributions to a short-term loan to a donation of a great deal of time to keep our yard mowed at a time when we have been too ill to do so and could not afford to hire it done.

And last, but not least, our dedicated volunteers through the Y.E.S. Program keep us inspired and our cats happy through all of this.

This kind of help truly touches our hearts, and makes us proud to be citizens of this community. We still have a long way to go to reach the level of solvency which will allow us to rescue and shelter abandoned and abused cats well into the future, but when we contemplate the blessings these myriad supporters have bestowed upon us, we feel positively wealthy.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!

— Lauren and John McBride

Directors

Ouabache Valley Felines & Friends, Inc.



Thankful for an honest person

I would like to give a big thank you to the honest person who found my check in the parking lot at Baesler’s and turned it in.

It’s great to know we do still have some honest people around.

It would have been a pleasure to thank you in person, for you don’t know how happy and blessed you made me.

Again, thank you.

— Lura Shreve

Farmersburg

        

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