A Miracle Happened Today ...
A woman named Lauren* from Paterson, NJ called Shelter Showcase seeking help for her 9 year old cat. Due to a neck injury, I wasn’t able to return her call immediately. I called her the following Monday, August 27, and during that call, Lauren shared her story.
Lauren is several months pregnant, with a husband suffering from a brain tumor. Although he was always a good man, his personality and demeanor changed recently due to the tumor. He starts radiation in less than a week, but the doctors expect things to get worse before they get better.
Their home is no longer a safe place for the cat. The cat is confined to a single room in the house to keep him out of the husband’s way, but this is not enough to protect the cat. The husband has given Lauren a clear deadline of the following morning – less than 16 hours from the time of our phone call - to get rid of the cat.
I could hear the sincerity in Lauren’s voice, and her plea for help. She was holding back tears, but finally laughed for a moment when a cricket in my home interrupted our phone call. Once the cricket was safely “re-homed” outdoors, we continued our talk to help me figure out the next step.
Lauren admitted that she had started fearing for her own safely, and her daughter's, and may need to move in with family soon until her husband recovers. She didn’t leave the cat alone with the husband all day because she feared what he might do to the cat. She needed help – and she didn’t know where to turn.
Lauren understood the cat had little chance at the Paterson shelter, which does not have a good reputation for animal care or adoption. She couldn’t find anyone to help, including friends or family, and she even looked into the option of euthanizing the cat at the hands of a skilled veterinarian, rather than putting the cat through the stress and fear of the shelter, to only be “put down” by someone who may be unskilled. However, she couldn’t even afford this option. She was desperate to find some loving option for her cat.
I wished I had called Lauren sooner, because that would have given us more time to try to find some place for the cat to go. I promised that I would send emails and make phone calls immediately, to see what help I could find. I took her phone number and promised to call if there was any good news.
Sometimes the trick to making a difference is teamwork. Although Shelter Showcase didn’t have a foster home, we did have funds to help this cat, thanks to your donations! And that made all the difference ….
I sent a plea through rescue networks asking for help for the cat, offering a $300.00 sponsorship from Shelter Showcase to any rescue group who could help the cat. There wasn’t much time, and it was possible that even if help was available, it may simply not come in time.
The next morning, Lauren called me but I didn’t get to the phone quickly enough, and I didn’t have any good news for her anyway. I later learned there was a terrible scene in her home that morning, with the husband insisting on taking the cat to the shelter right away himself. The mother-in-the-law was called, and the husband was brought to the doctor to try to calm the episode. Lauren was frantic.
Soon after, I received another phone call from an “angel” on earth known as Annette from Animal Lifeline Project (
http://www.halrescue.org/) . The Shelter Showcase phone number was forwarded to my cell phone, which was on vibrate, so I almost missed the call! But thankfully, I didn’t. I picked up the phone, and Annette announced the magic words that she could help the cat. She heard about the situation from a mutual friend, Patty McKee, who is another cat “angel.”
I called Lauren again and again, but I couldn’t reach her. I wondered if I was too late. I tried calling the Paterson Animal Shelter and left a message.
An hour later Lauren called back. She was distraught and didn’t even realize the good news the first time I told her. When I repeated that I found help for the cat, she was simply grateful. She was willing to drive anywhere to bring her cat to safety. We set up the details with Annette regarding where Lauren would meet her in an hour or so.
Lauren and I spoke for a few more minutes. I asked her how old her daughter was, and she told me fourteen. I knew this was a great deal of stress and sorrow for a 14 year old to witness. I was so thankful to Annette and Homeless Animal Lifeline for being able to help and make a difference in these lives.
Lauren and I were just about to get off the phone, when she asked me to hold on for a moment. A moment later, another voice came on the line and the voice said “I’m the daughter”. I wish you all could have heard this 14 year old's voice on the phone saying thank you. We spoke briefly and I reminded her that she is not alone; people care and her cat would be safe now.
If Annette hadn't already earned her angel wings, she did today.
Endless thanks to Annette from Homeless Animal Lifeline for providing safety and rescue to this cat and a miracle to these people in need.
And thank you to everyone who supports these efforts – these miracles – that happen every day thanks to good people.
And when people ask you, "Why do you help animals instead of people?" please remember ... you are helping people every day through your help to the
animals.
Thank you to all the angels in the form of donors, volunteers, supporters, foster homes and more, for all you do for the animals, and for the people who love them.
The $300.00 sponsorship will already be spent tomorrow when Annette picks up the cat after his neuter and initial vet care. Shelter Showcase wants to send additional funds to Homeless Animal Lifeline to help care for Lauren’s cat and the many other worthwhile projects helping specific animals in need. If you want to donate towards this cause, please donate to Shelter Showcase here:
http://partners.guidestar.org/controller/searchResults.gs?action_donateReport=1&partner=networkforgood&ein=20-0979878 or donate directly to Homeless Animal Lifeline on their website:
http://www.halrescue.org/* The name "Lauren" is an alias for the purpose of privacy and respect
Cat pictured is "Alley" from Homeless Animal Lifeline. This cat's Petfinder listing is located here:
http://search.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=8125291