I remember my first visit to the RAPS cat sanctuary in the spring of 2009. A friend from my martial arts class who had volunteered on a casual basis a couple of years previously told me about this amazing place somewhere in Richmond with 900 cats. Knowing I loved cats and missed having a pet (my landlord at the time didn’t allow animals), he and his wife offered to take me out there during visiting hours some Sunday afternoon. On arrival, I found the sanctuary was indeed an amazing place, as advertised. I met volunteer coordinator Debbie Wolanski and expressed an interest in helping out. Before I knew it, I was starting my first shift helping to feed the cats their dinner and scooping out the largest litter box I’d ever seen (hint: wading pools aren’t just for water!).
Surprisingly (or not), it wasn’t the prospect of endless wet food and kibble or the resulting deposits that kept me coming back week after week, month after month. And, though a very close second, it wasn’t even all the wonderful people I’ve had the pleasure of meeting through our shared love of animals. It was, and is, the cats. Over the course of my weekly evening volunteer shifts and through the research I do to find stories for the Neko Files blog, I’ve come to know so many cats who, their basic needs for food, shelter and medical care met, just really seem to need a friend. Ask any volunteer or member of staff and they’ll probably have a story to tell of some cat who took a particular shine to them and vice versa.
And as if this wasn’t enough, those cat friends can still keep giving even after we walk out the gate and head off down the driveway to go home. So far, I know the good vibes spread by their purrs can reach at least as far as Vancouver Island where my grandmother had to move from her townhouse into a nursing home earlier this year. On a bulletin board above her bed are the few family photos and mementos that there’s room to keep in her room. Among them is an 8 ½ x 11 enlargement of this photo Debbie took earlier this year of me and my cat buddy, Fred. Thinking it might make her smile, my dad made a print from the file I sent him and put it up for her. He was right: it does make her smile. Thanks, dad. Thanks, Fred.
Volunteer and Neko Files blogger, Claire Fossey
