St. Francis Animal Shelter at Risk: Update

November 2, 2006

Cats’ Future Uncertain

By Kelli Ohrtman, Best Friends Network

Despite numerous efforts to bolster support from the community it serves, St. Francis Animal Shelter is even closer to shutting down. Charlene Rodriguez said if that happens, the future is grim not only for homeless cats in the area, but also for the shelter’s current residents. She said, “Bottom line—if we lose our location and don’t have a new place, the state will take them.” Without a foster network in place and not enough money to pay back rent and vet bills, the no-kill shelter could be forced to surrender their cats to the city animal control.

After working so hard to get the cats off the streets, that is the last thing anyone wants to have happen. Unfortunately, Charlene says that at the local animal control, “cats are often put down the day they come in.” That is part of the reason it is so important for St. Francis to stay in operation. Without them, there is no safe place for cats to go without facing the risk of euthanasia.

St. Francis still needs funding more than anything else to stay open. They appreciate donations in any amount, as well as any support from cat lovers in the area. For ways to help, see end of article.

Struggling Cat Shelter Needs Support

Charlene Rodriguez began the way a lot of animal rescuers do; she started feeding a cat that lurked around her patio. Soon, a few cats started to show up regularly. So she put out more food—someone had to feed them, and the cats just kept coming. When the number of cats she regularly fed from her patio reached 19, she decided to do something about it.

Charlene secured a facility in Rock Hill, South Carolina, named it St. Francis Animal Rescue Center, and currently takes care of 83 cats. Her shelter is the only strict no-kill facility in the community, and has big goals to educate, educate, educate. With the help of one assistant and occasional volunteers, she has made a big difference for her community’s cats. But now she needs a boost of support to continue the work.

Pushed Out

To date, Charlene has funded St. Francis Animal Rescue Center almost completely on her own while she waits for official 501c3 nonprofit status. After funneling thousands into startup costs, she’s run out of resources. “We’re in a crisis situation,” she says. A situation made more desperate by the fact that the shelter’s landlord has new plans for their current facility and gave them until January to relocate.

To add fuel to the fire, instead of waiting until the shelter was vacant, the owner began renovating right around them. Charlene said her landlord is “already tearing out carpet and baseboards. We had to move everything, and the center in not in presentable condition.” The ladders, paint buckets and torn up flooring made the shelter temporarily inaccessible to the public. That hurts adoption rates.

Media Backfire

“We are truly trying,” Charlene said. She organized a yard sale, silent auction and a cat sponsorship program, but none have brought in enough money to make a dent in the shelter’s operating costs. She estimates that it will cost $5000 to stay afloat until the end of the year.

Charlene had high hopes when a local newspaper and television station picked up St. Francis’ story, reaching thousands of local residents. Instead of the financial and volunteer support she’d hoped for, Charlene said, “we got hundreds of calls from people who wanted to give up their cats.”

Special Cases

In June, St. Francis suffered yet another financial blow, but it was an expense that saved one special cat’s life. A little gray cat named Aziz was in mysterious, failing health and eventually began having violent seizures. Veterinarians determined that the 10 week-old kitten had a liver shunt. Surgery was his only hope.

Deciding to give Aziz every chance he deserved, they opted for surgery over euthanasia. Now Aziz is back at the shelter, though he has to make frequent trips back to the vet, and may have gone blind from the toxins that ravaged his little body before surgery. Charlene said that although he now healthy for the most part, Aziz is “always going to be a special needs kitty.”

Looking Ahead

82 other special cats count on Charlene and her assistant to show up every day to feed, scoop litterboxes and give a little love. Despite the shelter’s current struggles, Charlene wishes they could help even more cats. “I will do anything to help an animal, but you just can’t take them all,” she said. It’s important to avoid overcrowding, which stresses cats and can lead to damaging social and health problems.

If St. Francis can stay viable until the New Year, Charlene is confident that things will start looking up. Once the shelter attains nonprofit status, she’ll have the means to hire staff and move ahead. Charlene said, “I’m extremely committed to this and will be here for the long haul. When you’re dealing with living things you can’t just stop.”

What St. Francis needs most desperately is funding to get the cats through the rest of the year and safely moved to their new shelter location by January.

Email: stfrancisanimalrescue@yahoo.com

Paypal account: stfrancisanimalrescue

Donations can be mailed to:
St. Francis Animal Rescue Center
P.O. Box 4044
Rock Hill SC, 29732

To volunteer at the shelter or adopt a cat, please call:
Director Charlene Rodriguez at (803) 554-0705
Assistant Samantha Rose (803) 230 7286

St. Francis can also use donations of supplies. They need:
Paper towels
Plastic bags
Cat food
Unscented cat litter
Trash compacter bags (cat pan liners)
Garbage bags
Scratching posts
Climbing trees
Pillows
Pet beds