FUND RAISING FOR CATS PROTECTION

Our local vets had their 20th birthday celebrations on August Bank Holiday Monday and invited charities to come along and set up tables in their large car park, to raise some funds.

Barbara and I represented our branch of Cats Protection, it was a hot sunny day and we took the chance to dress up as black and white cats with our ears and tails, they’ve been around a while now and looking a bit tatty but everyone laughed seeing us like that.

We got ready before we set off so we did get some strange looks on the way there, driving along with our ears sticking up lol…

Barbara and Ruth: Bank holiday fund raising for Cats Protection
Poster by Ruth aka Kattaddorra… Bank holiday fund raising for Cats Protection
Two useful tags. Click either to see the articles: Toxic to cats | Dangers to cats

We had tombola prizes, CP goods to sell and some CP freebies such as balloons, bookmarks etc too that Marion gave us to use.

The CP scratch cards proved very popular and two people won £2 each.

Mr Wilson, the vet who owns the practice came to talk to us and was interested that I used to work there for the Mr Wilson who died in 1976.

That Mr Wilson had only two staff, just another vet and their nurse/receptionist/assistant/jack of all trades me lol. This Mr Wilson has sixty staff. How times have changed!

We were next to Doreen and Kathryn, volunteers from Kays Hill so we took each other’s photos, had a go on each other’s tombolas and generally had a good laugh together.

We thoroughly enjoyed our day, quite a few people came, it wasn’t too busy but we were both kept going.

We met some lovely people and there were some different nationalities there. Mr Wilson himself is Australian and has a French vet on staff, a man from Minnesota, USA came to our stall and a gorgeous looking young man who we couldn’t decide if he was French or Italian. Kathryn our vet of the moment treating our Jozef came along and had a go on the tombola.

A man who said he never wins anything on tombolas, didn’t on ours, he was right, but he came back to tell us he had won a pair of socks on another stall, poor man what a prize.

We had posters of Chester along the front of our table and just about everyone had heard of his ordeal and they loved seeing the pictures of how he looks now, so much better! The one of him with George was much admired too.

There were a lot of children, parents were forking out money for our tombola for them and we gave the ones who didn’t win a prize a little bunny as a consolation prize.

Another animal charity was there too: The Ark on the Edge

They had a ‘hook a duck’ which was great fun and attracting a lot of children, it attracted Babz and me too and we won some sweeties lol which we’ll give to the little boy next door.

Their main attraction though was Dylan, a rescue cat from Ark on the Edge, he was on a harness, with his caretaker Chris. Here I must eat humble pie because I’ve never approved of cats on harnesses but this one revelled in it, he was quite happy and mingling with the people there, letting children stroke him.

But this is another story which I will write separately with photos of this most beautiful cat and Chris said she will come to PoC and tell us more about him!

When we came home and counted up the takings we were astonished that we had made £92.11, a wonderful result which Marion was pleased with and we know every penny will be put to good use by her.

Poor Marion hadn’t had a good day having had her hand ripped open by a feral cat with kittens.

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54 thoughts on “FUND RAISING FOR CATS PROTECTION”

  1. What a lovely story you both look fab! I love your outfits and what a fantastic day you must have had meeting all those people and what a fun way to raise so much money you must have been pleased as punch when you counted it all up!! Its just so wonderful that people can come together for the sake of animals 🙂

    Reply
    • Couldn’t believe it Leah, considering it was a slow start we weren’t expecting anything like that amount so were really happy with it, I love fund raising like that, just wish I was still a young lass to do more.

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      • I don’t know about a young lass, you both look young because of the pure joy of it all! Besides you both do so much already I don’t think you would fit much more in if you tried! even if you were younger!

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        • By the time Babz can retire and we have more time, we will be a pair of decrepids lol and we’ll be posting pics of us in our cat costumes on zimmer frames lol

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  2. I’ve got such a lot to catch up on here on PoC.
    What a great result for this and I love the poster it sounds to have been so much fun but I do know what hard work it is as been there done that so I admire you both.
    I can hardly wait to read about Dylan must look at that next.

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    • Thanks Rudolph 🙂 yes we were very lucky with the weather as it was quite dull and drizzly here at the weekend. Mr Wilson said he would have taken us all inside if it had rained but I don’t think we’d have had as many people coming out in that case.
      Our next event for cats will be in Barbara’s Funeral Home, hopefully early October time, so we can look forward to that now and seeing the lovely people who always come and support us whatever we do.

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      • Ruth you seem to have made a very sociable event out of fund raising that not only benefits cats but also people – bringing people together. That is why it looks so positive to me.

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        • Yes fund raising is hard work at times but fun too and doing events for cats ensures we meet not only like minded people who also love cats but we get the chance to tell people who have never had a cat, what they are missing.
          You wouldn’t think we could have fun in a Funeral Home, but since Babz started holding fund raiser Coffee Mornings it’s wonderful that people come in every time, most were wary at first, thinking it would be a sombre and sad place inside. Which it is of course when there are clients in the Chapels of Rest and bereaved loved ones visiting, but as well as raising thousands of £££ over the years for various charities, animals and peoples of all ages, it’s taken the fear out of the place. So as Shildon is a small town, when someone is bereaved they know Barbara already and what a kind and compassionate lady she is and that she will care for and respect their late loved one from the moment they arrive there until their funeral.
          So yes it’s about people too and we get elderly lonely souls who really enjoy the company and a laugh and a go on the raffle and all. New people come along too when they hear about it, the room we use to hold it in gets to bursting point lol
          We are lucky that Babz is allowed to choose her own charities and the Co-operative being a very ethical and animal friendly firm love the animal ones we do.
          Yes it’s all very positive and we have some very good times 🙂

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            • we love the coffee mornings held at the funeral parlour, they are always fun, and even if for no other reason, you need to go for the cheese scones!! lol. barbara and ruth run the coffee mornings so well everyone has a good time and you forget you are in a funeral parlour at all. lots of money is raised and as ruth says it gives people the chance to get together and have a laugh,a natter and a cuppa. roll on the next one!!!

              Reply
    • The day before was cloudy until lunch time, then Sunday was perfect to the point of being too hot! It’s just pot luck and we really were lucky.

      Reply

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